New Signs of Awareness Seen in Some Brain-Injured Patients

The New York Times ^ | 2/8/05 | Benedict Carey

[syriacus]

Terri does not want to die.

[Trinity_Tx]

"If I was that brain-damaged, I would rather be dead. This I can say with absolute certainty."

I'd rather be dead than go on long like that, for sure. It sounds like the worst hell imaginable to me - like being buried alive. Much worse than not knowing what was happening at all. But I hope they use this to diagnose and determine the prognosis for people so the state would only be temporary.

I mean, they should do the MRIs on everyone, and if they see the activity, they can try therapies to "train" people to communicate somehow. Then, chart the progress to see if it's being effective.

I think I could handle it as long as I could communicate somehow.

[hershey]

Amazing, and a great step forward.

[FreepinforTerri]

Finally, science has caught up with what loving families have instinctively known forever- that their brain-damaged family members react to them. Now it's scientifically proven.

What are they going to prove next, that unborn babies are human beings, too?

DUH.

[LibWhacker]

I think I would, too -- and I only use my brain 1/1000th as much as you! :-)

I agree with the person who said that it would sort of be like you were buried alive.

That said, I'm glad this may help Terri Schiavo and those who love her. I could never bring myself to pull the plug on someone like her, or condone someone else doing it.

[Sun]

They covered this on NBC tonight and said that there was more activity in their minds than anyone obviously knew. They also mentioned Terri.

[RadioAstronomer]

Ok. Sorry I took her statement wrong.

[RadioAstronomer]

Terri does not want to die.

I made no reference to her at all in my previous post. However, let me go on the record that starving her to death is heinous, barbaric, and evil in my opinion.

[RadioAstronomer]

I could never bring myself to pull the plug on someone like her

Neither could I.

[RadioAstronomer]

I hope it helps. Thanks. :-)

[Schiminie]

Amazing article...

Thanks for posting it!



~~BUMP~~

[Ohioan from Florida]

Prayers for Terri!

[Nataku X]

Dittos.

I've long harbored a suspicion that what we consider the state of being brain dead is much more rare than we think--after all, just about every person who comes out of a coma says that he or she was quite aware of the outside world. It's merely that the brain cannot sync with the body.

We should treat all people in such states with just as much love and attention as if they were perfectly healthy and able to communicate, if not more so. Hopefully, with more advances, we can shift our focus to determining awareness and developing methods of giving people in Terri's situation more means of communication.

[my_pointy_head_is_sharp]

"This study gave me goose bumps, because it shows this possibility of this profound isolation, that these people are there, that they've been there all along, even though we've been treating them as if they're not," said Dr. Joseph Fins, chief of the medical ethics division of New York Presbyterian Hospital-Weill Cornell Medical Center.

God, what a moron!!! "We've been treating them as if they're not [there]." How does a moron such as this end up as chief of ethics?

[muddypaws]

I was in a coma for 5 weeks...didnt remember much.....but glad they kept the tubes in.....that was 35 years ago

[Pajamajan]

Bookmark

[TenthAmendmentChampion]

Thanks for the ping, OfF. This development is similar to the new realistic images of unborn children available to their future parents. The more we can see people as human, with feelings and thoughts, the more we can help them and possibly heal them. God bless Drs. Fin and Hirsch.

[syriacus]

I made no reference to her at all in my previous post.

I didn't say you referred to Terri, when you replied* to the article, which, on the other hand, specifically referred to Terri:

Dr. Bernat said
findings from studies like these would be relevant to cases like that of Terri Schiavo,

*When you wrote
If I was that brain-damaged, I would rather be dead. This I can say with absolute certainty.