Martin’s Story

Site created on April 19, 2021

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.

From Kathryn: “My dad (Martin) was in an unfortunate bike accident on Thursday (April 15th). He suffered a number of injuries, including a pelvis fracture and two bleeds on his brain. It’s going to be a journey to making a full recovery, but we could not do it without all your love and support. Thank you! My Mom and I will take turns posting to this site so you can all follow along and get updates about the man we know and love!”

Newest Update

Journal entry by Fiona Armson

From Kathryn: “Welcome everyone! Thanks for stopping by. This is our first post. It’s been four days since the accident and a lot has happened. We first found out about Dad’s accident not long after he went out for his bike ride on Thursday (thank you - Laura and Karen), and he was rushed to the hospital. When the ambulance took him in Mom and I weren’t really sure what to expect, maybe some stitches or a bad concussion? However, when we got to the hospital it was clear this was a little more serious than we had initially imagined. Dad was sedated and put on a ventilator. He had fractured his pelvis, and fractured many of the bones in his face, but it was his brain injuries we were most worried about. Dad sustained a fractured skull that caused two bleeds on his brain and punctured his ear canal. Thankfully in the days since the brain bleeds are now stable - which is good news! On Saturday evening Dad’s vitals were progressing well so it was time to start taking him off the sedation. Poor guy is still a bit groggy, but we’ve already started to see glimmers of the Martin we all know and love! It’s early days, so unfortunately we don’t have all the answers yet, but we’re staying positive and celebrating every milestone we cross. As of today, Dad is starting to recall important information, he knows his name and recognizes me, my mom and my brother when we come to visit. He remembers he’s been married to my mom for over 35 years (whew, you’re off the hook there Dad!) but he’s still trying to piece together where he is and what’s happened. He’s gotten out of bed twice and sat in the chair in his room, but they’ve done that using a sling and machine as they don’t yet want him to put his full weight on his fractured hip. It’s been a tough road so far, but there are a few little “Martin moments” that have happened, which we can’t help but smile at. 

The first “Martin moment” took place Saturday night. Dad was on a ventilator and had been intubated. The nurses were planning to take out his intubation Sunday morning and had told him so several times as he started to come off his sedation. He was mostly breathing by himself at this point but the ventilator was still doing a little bit. But it was clear it was irritating him as they had to put special mittens on him to stop him fiddling around. Well, I guess the timeline wasn’t what Martin had in mind as Saturday night when no one was looking he ripped out his intubation himself! The poor nurse on duty probably about had a heart attack, as Mom and I did Sunday morning when we found out! But the initial doctor told us ‘We’re going to do everything on Martin’s timeline’ and boy was he right! 

Today he is showing more signs of understanding where he is, talking a little more but still tired and in quite a bit of discomfort. I’m headed back to the hospital now to see Dad again, so I won’t write much more at the moment, but we will continue to provide progress updates as much as possible. Thank you again for everyone’s love and support. It’s moments like this when you realize just how many special people you have in your life. Love you all and look out for more updates soon!”
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