Please, please forgive me for not replying to everyone right now. I feel completely ungracious after all the overwhelming prayers and thoughts and well-wishes you all posted. You all deserve a million thanks from me. You have me in tears, and for the first time in a bit, I think those are good tears. This place - KickAS - is amazing.
My dad can only speak when prompted, and even then, his answers are garbled and don't always make sense. He doesn't know who I am, and vaguely knows where he lives. It's so hard for me to see a brilliant, physically active (like 2 rounds of golf before lunch type active), 67 year old man reduced to this. I know it's early, and I know not all the swelling is down. HIs latest CT showed no change, so that's good - at least he's not getting worse. I keep thinking it's too early to worry about things, but the nurses and social workers are already encouraging us to make arrangements for long-term rehabilitation, trying to figure out what to do with his self-owned business in this crappy economy, etc.
Maybe I'm just in denial, or just naively optimistic, but I keep having this feeling that he'll turn out fine. He has to. We were all making arrangements to take a big trip to europe this summer, where I was going to get engaged, and Glen and I were going to hang out with both sets of our parents in Italy. He has to be ok. He's 67, hasn't retired, has worked his [**BLEEP**] off all his life, and he deserves some time for him.
I feel awful for my mom. When I was 19 I had a brain injury as well, and it was 4 years of rehab for me to come around again. Not sure if I've mentioned that on this site before. It took me some time and some unbelievable effort and stubbornness, but I ended up with a BSc Hons after, and am (fingers crossed) should be finishing up a thesis for my MSc this summer. My dad's injury is obviously much worse than mine... but... at least there is hope. There is always hope.
Please keep praying... and hoping...
Love and hugs to you all
