Please let Gael know I am thinking about her all the time. Sending white light prayers your way girl. You are one of the strongest woman I know. I love you,
Kim

Gael
Overjoyed to hear you are doing well!!! You have been in my prayers and continue to be. Tommy keeps me posted on all your going through and all your accomplishments!!! You are an amazing person and a fighter 💗.

This is Gael's sister, Carol Hansell Barber. I have been driving between our home in Irving, right outside of Dallas, and Gael's house in Austin each week to be near Gael as she recovers. I have been staying at Gael's home, with her husband, Steve Murdoch, as we work together to ensure Gael receives the best care available to her. It has been a very difficult journey, but most of all for Gael herself.

Gael experienced an aneurysm brain bleed on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, November 21, 2020, and spent a month in ICU, was transferred to a specialty hospital, then completed a month of rehab.

On February 10, 2021, just weeks of being able to come home, she entered an extended stay/rehab facility, where that very afternoon she was allowed to fall. Gael ended back in ICU, intubated and in a coma, needing a repair of the original brain surgery she received in November. Since then, Gael has been struggling to climb back to the levels of brain and body function she achieved before her fall.

Currently, Gael is in a skilled-nursing center, which includes some rehab. She was transferred there on Saturday, May 15, from a local hospital. She had been at an Austin neuro-rehab hospital, which had removed the feeding tube running from her nose into her stomach. A week after the tube's removal, she was rushed to a local hospital. There it was determined that she was experiencing seizures in her brain, was dangerously dehydrated, and had very high sodium levels and low potassium levels. The hospital stabilized her, and surgically inserted a feeding tube directly into her stomach. Two days later she was moved to the facility where she is now. Due to COVID-19, she has been placed in a special wing for a two-week quarantine. We have to wear gowns, special masks, and face shields when we visit her.

Her current condition shows very little progress. It is heartbreaking. Gael can barely speak, and had not regained the use of her left side, including her left leg, arm and hand. She does recognize us, and can write a few words on a whiteboard. She spends all day in bed.

After the seizures she was barely awake and hardly responded to our voices and touch. However, yesterday I visited her for almost 3 hours, and she was awake the entire time! She watched the food channel with me, kissed me back, and said a few complete sentences that I was able to clearly understand, although her voice is barely audible. We are hoping that after quarantine she can be placed in a wheelchair with safety straps so we can take her outside and have her kitty Tiger, and friends and family, visit her (since Steve and I are currently the only ones who can enter the facility). Please pray for our sweet girl! We believe in the power of prayer, and hope that God's will is for a recovery that offers a true quality of life.

Going forward, I will post an update each Tuesday. Thank you for joining us and Gael on this journey! We send our love and thanks to everyone.