Posted on 08/27/2010 4:54:58 PM PDT by wagglebee
Graham Miles, 66, said that through sheer willpower he regained the use of his body after he was left completely paralysed except for his eyes by a stroke in the stem of the brain which connects it to the body.
His recovery is such that he can now walk, talk and even races cars.
But while it has amazed doctors and his family and friends, it has also reopened the debate about assisted suicides and the assumption that completely paralysed patients can never recover.
Mr Miles, a father-of-two, believes he overcame the devastating condition by tapping into the "extra capacity" of the brain.
"If you are totally focused, you've got sufficient drive, commitment and mental stamina, you can break down that barrier between the brain and the body that goes with total paralysis," he said.
Mr Miles, originally from Sanderstead, Surrey, was diagnosed with "locked-in" syndrome aged 49 on December 2, 1993 after he suffered a stroke on the way home from his work as a gas engineer.
He spent six months in Mayday University Hospital in Croydon and then six months in a residential rehabilitation home before being allowed home.
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
"It is a myth that people stay the same and often people do get better. This is the strongest reason to stop the legalising of assisted suicide."
He is absolutely correct!
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Uma Thurmond did this in "Kill Bill: Vol. 1" :-)
Mind over matter. . .and the power of true faith - the size of a mustard seed.
The brain is enigmatic, to say the least. I remember an episode of NOVA, featuring a girl who because of a defective valve at the base of her skull, developed water on the brain, that displaced much of her brain tissue from inside out.
Surgery was performed on her in the womb, to replace the valve with an artificial one, but it was estimated that she would just live a few days once born.
The NOVA episode was about her graduating from high school, her only handicap being a partial impairment of an arm and leg, and a slight lisp.
This, though her brain was just a 1cm shell on the inside of her skull. The rest of where her brain should have been was just fluid, as they showed with a CT scan.
She is no longer unique in the world, as several people have been found with just fractions of what their brains should be. I’m not even sure their brain activity would register on an EEG.
That said; yes, an incredible message of personal empowerment. If one has 'mind'; he has power, freedom - and choice. Will, is the challenge.
“She is no longer unique in the world”
The others are called liberals. :)
(I know, that’s terrible)
It is amazing what can be done today that was impossible years ago. In the late 40’s, my mother lost a set of twins to Hydrocephalus (waterhead syndrome) They both lived for a period of months before death. Today, they can deal with such things and may possibly lead a close to normal life.
The bodies that God gave us are still mysterious creations whose potential we don’t completely understand. That we may, despite our arrogance, never fully understand.
Excellent point. If we give up on those who are ill or otherwise damaged (and who does not remember Terri Schiavo?), how will medical knowledge advance? From self-interest alone, one would think that even the most callous of our society would find a way to support the pro-life perspective.
We volunteers at Walter Reed have seen many types of miraculous recovery. Never give up!
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