Welcome to our CaringBridge website. We are using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement. Thank you for visiting. Here is Mike’s story and bumpy road: Mike contracted Covid on March 26th. He developed new signs and symptoms every day. On Wednesday March 31st we took Mike to the emergency room in our home town. Mike was constantly coughing and just couldn’t breath in between. He wasn’t sleeping and just wasn’t able to heal. With Covid restrictions I wasn’t able to go in with him. Mike came out from the emergency room with a prescriptions for codine cough syrup and an inhaler. Mike tried fighting Covid on his own for the next 4 days. I decided on Monday, April 4th that Mike needed to go to the hospital. I dropped him off at Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire where they admitted him. He was taken from the ER to a regular floor. On Tuesday, April 5th I received a call just before 6 am that Mike was really struggling to breathe and his stats were not good. They were transferring him to the ICU where he would be able to get more emergent care. He was put on a bipap machine to help him breathe. I was told that if his stats didn’t come up on the bipap machine that Mike would need to be intubated and put on a ventilator. Mike’s stats did improve and a vent was not needed at that time. Over the course of the next week Mike was making small improvements. He was getting up in the chair and even started physical therapy. Mike was able to video chat with me a few times although it was very difficult because he would start coughing when he talked. He was texting me and a few others. I was told that I could finally visit Mike in the hospital 20 days after he had tested positive for Covid. The magic date to see him in person was Thursday, April 15th. I was working on somethings to bring him and had my list going. At 11:36 pm on Wednesday, April 14th the hospital called me letting me know that Mike wasn’t doing very well and he was most likely going to need to be intubated and placed on a vent before the morning. The NP said that since the isolation restrictions were lifted at midnight I had a chance to see him and talk with him before he would need to be intubated. I threw my clothes on and woke up my parents. My dad got me to the hospital in record time. I was able to see Mike and talk with him. He was struggling so much to breathe. Within a few hours of me being at the hospital it was decided that Mike needed to be intubated and placed on a vent. I was able to tell Mike “I love you,” and he told me back, “I love you.” As of Thursday, April 15th Mike is on a vent due to complications with Covid. He is currently in stable but critical condition.

Mike Brouillet

Update: My Story – by Becky Brouilllet