After being a shattered, and near dead AVM survivor…I was brought back home and managed to get back in the front door of my home only with the help of two relatives. I mended very slowly, and to me the hardest part to improve upon was that I looked like I was a mildly retarded individual. People treated me like I had the plague. The following is what I learned is good to recover even from this.
It is simple really, just hike for a mile or two every couple days, and/or jog if you
are up to that. Plus ride a bicycle when you can, or go on horse back rides for
an hour or two. If you are allowed to drive a car, do so for a hundred miles or so…
even that is helpful. Driving was very helpful for me in the end stages of my recovery.
Now did I actually do all of this while I slowly recovered? I got good at the hiking, and
could do three miles at a time. Horse back riding was very helpful, and if that had been available closer to where I lived…I would have done it more often. After I got my drivers license back that was very helpful, especially driving on vacation. I was patient.
Does this all help? I asked my neurosurgeon early on if this all would really help me or not, and he said that it would help, because it promoted blood flow between the
two sides of the brain. It required five years, but it got me back to where I wanted to be again, and I was accepted by society again.
Wow, John_P, great to hear from you again, and even better to hear that you are doing well. Thanks for dropping back in.
But here’s the problem: some of us don’t remember your story! If you can write a short account of what happened to you and when, one of us here will update your profile so that everyone can put your good news and excellent advice into the perspective it deserves. Good news is so much more meaningful when we know more of the whole story!
If you post your story here, we will get it put on your profile for posterity!
It was 2002, and no Dr. had ever told me that I had an AVM that might just burst one
day and bring me close to death. But one did, and I had an eight hour operation by my neurosurgeon to try to save my life. Tons of prayers were made for my life. My short term memory was wrecked for some time to come, but I tried not to give up. My
AVM was removed, and after that I was for awhile between life, and death, or
at least that is how it seemed to me.
At this time I appeared to others to be a mildly retarded man. I looked worse than
I was, but it was not easy to survive. I got home again after two months in hospitals
and rehab centers, and ever so slowly I recovered. After five years from my operation
I was very close to being totally back, and I was more surprised than any one else.
If you have what almost killed me, all I can say is get a good neurosurgeon, and
don’t give up, and get as many prayers from the faithful as you can get.
I hope that you come back to your life even sooner than I did!
Hi John, My name is Maria and my AVM ruptured 12.22.02. I was flown to a hospital in a coma that day. I had brain surgery 12.26.02 for 7 hours and then spent 6 weeks in a medically induced coma. I stayed in Loma Linda Hospital for over 2 1/2 months when I was released. It took me a while to learn to walk again but by the time I was released my doctor told me I was a miracle to have recovered. It took me a while to get used to being home and adjusting to my “new life”. But thank the Lord all went pretty good for me. I do have a good life now and I am so thankful for this. I never knew prior to all of this that I had an AVM and when I was told I had to research it because I didn’t know what that was. God was with me through it all! Your friend, Maria
Always good to hear something positive from any of this - I’m still on here reading daily - me personally, I have no clue how I or why I was so lucky to have come out of this the way I have - especially what & how it happened to me
Same here - no true idea of having the avm until a rupture that rendered me mostly useless for over a week - i kept going into seizures that would take away all movement ability & the ability to speak
If anything went different, I would not be here today the way that I am - very well said, somewhere between death & here - I was there for over a week - I don’t want to go back
I completely agree, if you find out that you’re dealing with an AVM - get an excellent neurosurgeon - the two guys that put me back together, here at Barrow Neurological are as close to god as they can possibly be - I have had a very close call in my life once, this felt exactly the same - nothing but a miracle would bring me back - well, I’m back
Since my DAVM is pretty much inoperable, it’s nothing but a miracle to be here - if embolization had not been perfected at the time of the rupture, I’d be done. I asked my surgeon, he said it wouldn’t b good - at all, since my DAVM is on the left side of my head 1” back following the ear line - I feel beyond blessed, let alone them achieving full occlusion on the 1st try - I’m trying my best to watch my anxiety, it just gets away sometimes - but, I am doing just fine - considering the magnitude of the situation
Hmm. I don’t think that either of us had a very nice 2002, but the important thing is
that in the end we both survived. Sometimes I feel that it all helped me to become who I was supposed to be.
Hi John, How is everything going with you? I am still doing very well and it has been 18 years since my brain surgery at Loma Linda Hospital. Hope to year from you, Maria
Hi John_P. I know your post are old but I happened to be scrolling by and took the time to read them. You must live around good people. I mean the society you live around finally accepted you so I know that helps a lot. The society here where I live is not so accepting, even after they knew about my avm/disability. They treat me like a plague constantly. I wish I knew a way to make people comfortable around me, but I can’t seem to find a way.
Hi John, I don’t know your story but it sounds like it’s been a long difficult haul. Congratulations for coming back so far.
I’m in the midst of a tough recovery and your words helped me a lot. The patience part is definitely a challenge for me. Nevertheless, I’m making incremental progress even though it hasn’t been linear. I was up to almost an hour on the treadmill and now I’m down to where I started at 22 mins, maybe pushed too hard too soon.
Thanks for your suggestions. Best wishes, Greg
