BRAIN WARRIORS STORIES

I am Wally Peterson,34 years old now.I was in a severe motorcycle wreck in 2009,doing 140mph on interstate 40 near bowling green,ky(we live in tn.)i went through the back window of car and ended up in heap inside.i was wearing a helmet and it s the only reason i survived but drs say it s also why i m so severely disabled because of the coup/counter coup bouncing around in my skull.it was so bad,my clothes were torn off(incl.my id)and interstate shut down for 5 hours.i was resucitated at scene and life flighted to university of louisville trauma hospital(one of the best).i was john doe for 2 days(they ran my fingerprints-minor record-that s when my mom found me)i had multiple traumas,broken pelvis in many places(and bleed in pelvis),all ribs broken,broken clavicle,compound fracture to left arm,basal skull fracture,and temporal fracture and 2 other skull fractures(but not a mark on my face-WOW)i had a collapsed lung.i had to have a trach(2 months) to breathe,an ivd port to relieve fluid off brain(7 days),and a peg tube for nourishment(10 months).my glasgow coma scale was 3.i had subarachnoid hemorrhages in most lobes,and ventricles and cerebellum.also contusions,esp front temporal lobe,subdural hematomas in most lobes,and diffuse axonal injuries(shearing throughout)the worst blows were to the front,back and right side(hence,the worst paralysis is to my left side).by the time my mom rushed the 3 hours to my side,the dr(chief neurosurgeon) gave me less than a 3% chance and was actually upset that my mom wanted him to continue to treat me,he wanted my mom to “pull the plug”(i had no insurance-did that play a role?).he gave us no hope.even one month later,he wrote my mom a letter that said” he is in a persistent vegetative state that is expected to be permanent.he is severely disabled with no expectation for recovery.”i remained in a coma for a month and then minimally conscious(vegetative) for a month.my autonomic functions were shot, for over a month my temp was between 100 and 104 and had to be kept on cooling blanket,uncontrollable heart rate and blood pressure(still all 3 are a problem).i was racked by sympathetic storming(fight or flight response that won t shut off),horrible posturing–those 2 were so frightening for my familyto watch)my mom stayed in my rooms at hospital-even icu, the whole time i was there,only to leave to eat in cafeteria.she lived and breathed those monitors and drove the staff crazy,advocating for my care.she kept journals everyday.finally,i started to track with my eyes,then finally a thumbs up,and one morning the doc came by in mid december and i flashed him a peace sign…..screw you doc!!!! they should nt try to take away the families hope,but my mom never gave up and neither did i. 2 days before xmas ,i was released home because i had no insurance,ky didn t want me,neither did tn,the only other place that would take me was a nursing home many hours west of our house,and that was unacceptable…no therapy,no rehab!!!all my mom got was one hour of training on tube feeding at one oclock in the morning,the night before my discharge.the hospital did pay my bill and did pay for 2 months of hospital equipment,therapy and weekly nurse visit and enteral food….and then my medicaid kicked in .well,i had a little therapy on and off…we ve had to fight for every little thing.we learned whatever we could and read everything my mom could and have tried to take up the slack,but i have been so shortchanged by the system.i ve had learned to breathe on my own,talk(first 10 months,i only whispered),eat( still has a slight choking hazard),read(but only couple words at time and it gives me a headache),write(mostly just name and it s unrecognizable to most)but i still cannot sit up on own(no balance),barely hold my head up,and i can t walk,i m incontinent,adynamia,but then i get angry and then has disinhibition,no focus,no concentration,no initiation,sleeps most hours out of the day,quadparesis,contracture of right knee,thyroid quit functioning,can t find words for things,inarticulate,delusions,hallucinations,has had 3 pnuemonias and several bronchitis’, has some retrograde amnesia and NO short term memory,……but with the right rehab ,i KNOW could get alot more function back.we changed ins. carriers in july but it s still state medicare,and we have built a slightly better team of drs for him but i m still fighting to get the help i need….NEVER GIVE UP!!!!!!