Welcome to our CaringBridge website. I am using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement during this difficult time. We continue to hope and pray for a full recovery for our sweet Blake.
On the morning of Thursday, March 26, 2020, Blake woke up saying that his heart "felt funny". Being that he went for a jog the day before and had been doing flips on mattresses (thank you quarantine!), I assumed that he was just sore or had pulled a muscle. I suggested that we go get some water to drink in the kitchen and see if that helped. This was around 7:00 a.m. Everyone else was asleep so I asked Blake if he wanted to play me in checkers at the kitchen table. For those of you that know Blake, you know that he is very competitive, in everything he does. He kept trying to change the rules and pull a fast one on me. About halfway thru I got up to refill my coffee a few feet away. I heard his water bottle fall over and turned around. He was just sitting there and I thought he was playing around. I asked him to clean up the water but he didn't respond. Shortly thereafter, he fell out of his chair. I called 911 at 7:29 a.m.
The paramedics worked tirelessly on Blake for what felt like an eternity. CPR and many interventions were used to recessitate him. During that process, he received CPR for 40 minutes and his brain was without oxygen for significant lengths of time. Blake had a tough ride to Vanderbilt Children's Hospital and required being shocked 4 times on the way.
These weeks have been a blur and a rollercoaster. Blake was in ICU for the first week and was intubated on a ventilator to help him breath. He was taken for an MRI which discovered that he sustained some degree of brain damage with the lack of oxygen. They discovered that he had several types of bacterial infections, likely attributed to him aspirating during CPR. He started experiencing intense neuro "storming" episodes which were difficult to watch and thankfully seem to be happening with less frequency with the help of medicaiton. Neurology still can't tell us where he will land as far as brain functioning- it is a watch and wait situation. Multiple EEGs have been performed and show no seizure activity. He was on a nasal feeding tube and then had surgery to place a Gastro feeding tube in his tummy. He was sedated to have a neuro MRI, a heart MRI and then surgically install an ICD (heart defibrillator). At this point, we don't know why Blake experienced the sudden cardiac arrest. There is a family history on his father's side with heart issues so they are running tests and trying to figure that out.
Once he is considered medically stable and appropriate, he will be transported to a pediatric inpatient rehabilitation hospital in Atlanta to receive intensive therapy (physical, occupational, speech, etc.). From a brain injury standpoint, his team here keeps saying how important it is to get him there as soon as possible. He has a long road ahead but if any kiddo can get thru this, it's Blake. He is a fighter and has already made huge strides since admitting to the hospital. We continue to celebrate every miracle and pray for full healing in his brain and his body. Thank you for checking in on us and loving us well. ❤️
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