Michelle Nelson

Thanks to all for your prayers and support. She feels them. 
Michelle is currently at Intermountain Medical Center in Murray, Utah. For now, we ask for no visitors. We’ll let you know when she’s well enough. 


Here’s what happened: 
On Friday morning, Oct 5, Michelle was warming up to exercise when she suffered a brain aneurism called a subarachnoid hemorrhage. Thankfully she was with a good friend who is also an EMT when it happened. She was flown from Idaho Falls to Salt Lake City for diagnosis and treatment. 

She ruptured her middle cerebral artery (MCA) and apparently she had another smaller aneurism in the middle of her brain. She had brain surgery on Saturday morning in Salt Lake to repair the rupture.
 
Surgery on Saturday went well and they successful clipped the two aneurisms. 

However Michelle’s brain is swelling causing her to be very limited in her ability to communicate and stay awake.  The primary short term goal is to reduce the swelling. 

Because of the high risk of stroke, she will remain in ICU for about three weeks with an anticipated release around Halloween. 

She has a long road ahead of her.  
Short term: reduce swelling and minimize the risks of stroke while in the ICU. 
Longer term: physical therapy, speech therapy to help her return to the active lifestyle she loves. 

Michelle has no family history / risk factors.  She’s probably had this her whole life and it ruptured on its own. 

Prognosis for her is too early to tell, but she’s a really strong woman both physically and mentally.  If anyone can get through it, she will.