Our oldest son, Frank, is 39, lives with us, and has Spina Bifida, so he can't walk at all...

Monday morning, I found Frank on the living room floor. I thought he had fallen asleep watching T.V. but when I went to get him up, he told me he couldn't because he couldn't feel his left arm. The ambulance took him to Alpena Hospital where a CT scan showed he had a hemorrhagic stroke, a bleeding in his brain near his right temple about 3 inches big. He was transferred to St. Mary's Hospital in Saginaw, MI. because they have a comprehensive neurology department. Click to see: http://www.stmarysofmichigan.org/neuro/index.php
Another CT scan on his arrival there showed that the bleed wasn't any bigger...that's good. They temporarily put him on a ventilator and sedated him, with the expectation of surgery but Dr. Field is taking the 'wait and see' approach, frequently re-doing the scans, watching for increased cranial pressure and trying to control his high blood pressure which caused the bleed.
He is now off the ventilator and not sedated and feels pretty good but he still can't move his left arm. We feel he will need in-patient rehab before he comes home, so the hospital is trying to set that up for us either in Alpena or Rogers City so he will be closer to home, as he now is 2 1/2 to 3 hours away.

He is being treated by Dr. E. Malcolm Field, a man who really knows his craft....
http://www.fni.org/

If you care to send a card, his address is:
St. Mary's Hospital
Franklin Collins N.I.C.U. #8
800 S. Washington Ave.
Saginaw, MI. 48601-2524

All prayers are appreciated.........
thumperzluv

Paddy had been drinking at his local Dublin pub all day and most of the
night.

Mick, the bartender, says 'You'll not be drinking any more tonight,
Paddy.'

Paddy replies 'OK Mick, I'll be on my way then'.

Paddy spins around on his stool and steps off. He falls flat on his
face. 'What the....' he says and pulls himself up by the stool and dusts
himself off. He takes a step towards the door and falls flat on his face
again. 'Damn!' he says.

He looks to the doorway and thinks that if he can just get to the door
and get some fresh air he'll be fine. He belly crawls to the door and
shimmies up the door frame. He sticks his head outside and takes a deep
breath of fresh air, feels much better and takes a step out onto the
pavement and falls flat on his face. 'Be'Jesus... I'm soused,' he says.

He can see his house just a few doors down, and decides to try for it.
He crawls down the street and shimmies up the door frame, opens the door
and looks inside. He takes a look up the stairs and says, 'No flippin'
way.' But he somehow crawls up the stairs to his bedroom door and
thinks, 'I think I can make it to the bed.' He takes a step into the
room and falls flat on his face again. He says, 'This is hell. I got ta
stop drinking,' but manages to crawl to the bed and fall in.

The next morning, his wife comes into the room carrying a cup of coffee
and says, 'Get up Paddy. Did you have a bit to drink last night?' Paddy
says, 'I did Jess. I was totally trashed. But how'd you know?'

'Mick called. You left your wheelchair at the pub.'