Life-or-death Choices (Stories of survivors of brain injury)

The Boston Globe (hat tip Rich Lowry onThe Corner) ^ | 03-27-2005 | Alice Dembner

[jocon307]

When Sandy Burke looks at Terri Schiavo, she sees her son.

Fifteen years after his car crashed into a tree, Richard Burke hovers between what doctors say is a persistent vegetative state and minimal consciousness. He sits propped in a wheelchair during the day, his face largely blank, his eyes flickering open and shut. At 43, he relies on others for every need.

When his mother speaks to him, he sometimes turns his eyes in her direction and smiles or offers a thumbs up or down. Sometimes, he doesn't. No one knows how much he understands.

A few years ago, Sandy Burke asked doctors not to revive her son if he went into cardiac arrest. But the Middleborough woman can't bring herself to withdraw his feeding tube. ''I know he wouldn't want to live like this, but I couldn't do it."

Many families with a brain-injured loved one face such a struggle. But the road to each family's life-or-death decision is unique. Here are three of their stories.

[jocon307]

Not a very long piece, it probably should have been longer. It's actually 4 stories, the one that leads the article is the fourth. It's pretty much more propaganda for death from the Globe, but not entirely.

[AmericaUnited]

No one knows how much he understands.

Hmmm... looks like the WPPFF motto applies here:

"When in doubt, snuff it out!"

[Adder]

Don't let Judge Greer near him. He'll be gone in about 20 days.

[G.Mason]

Afraid this show will fail to garner the audience needed to be a success.

The next Terri look alike they bring out for martyrdom needs to be better than the original, or the ratings will plummet, the sponsors will pull out, and the TV screen will be blank.

[BlackVeil]

The family decided to turn off the ventilator. Doctors predicted he would die within hours. Instead, James began breathing on his own. His mother stood vigil, waiting for the end.

''On the seventh day, I said, 'No more,' " Kim said. ''I told the doctors, 'You made a mistake.' "

They are always making mistakes! In fact, it is very difficult to assess exactly the state of someone with a brain injury.

A month later, James blurted out his first word since the accident -- ''Mom" -- and began the slow climb out of what doctors had called a persistent vegetative state. Now at Middleboro Skilled Care Center, a nursing home specializing in head injuries, James, 22, is entirely dependent on others. He is unable to see more than shadows and has little control of his body. Yet, he understands more than he can express. He roars at jokes and follows the sound of his mother's voice.

I have heard other stories like this, of people who do come back - at least partially. And some stoke victims say that they were aware of everything, while people talked across them and assumed they were insensible.

[olde north church]

As someone who actually has an AVM (google it), I have experienced seizures of various types, inability to swallow at times, non-responsive episodes. My seizures are of the aphasiac and dysphasiac in nature, limiting my ability for verbal communication BUT I am able to type on a computer regarding my situation/state of mind.
It's an inconvenience, it's a disability, it's a life altering condition but it's never prevented me from enjoying life.
Altered states of consciousness, whether by means of religious ecstasy, medical cause or drug induced maintain the human perspective. I wouldn't bet the ranch on it but I am pretty sure Mrs. Schiavo is aware of her surroundings from a human perspective.
It may be insensitive to refer to Mrs. Schiavo as an organism but in truth, whether divine as Man, any organism will fight for it's survival. The closer one is to death, the harder one fights for life.

[Mjaye]

I like this one, as well, the husband actually made sure his wife got therapy, etc. And she woke up 30 years later.....

http://www.geocities.com/frankie_meehan/LongSleep.htm