patients' stories

Why don't YOU start, so that we will have an idea of what you want!

I have one story to tell. It's about my father, and brother. We are three sons in the family.

In 2003, my middle brother and his friend were going to the airport, taking the latter father there. They had a Honda civic car (we call it here the flatiron, because it looks like that). My brother was sitting in the back seat, and his friend's father was in the second seat. Since the childhood, I've known my brother as the sportman, who only likes cars, and football. I remember him defending me many times at school. He was a kind person though. He is 2 years older than me.

They found an accident a head in their way. So, they slew down as everybody was doing. A tourist man hit them from the back. I think he was going faster, maybe was surprised by the accident and the cars trail. I haven't seen this person to this moment. Most of tourist people choose the bigger four wheeled cars. So, what happened to my brother's car was that the it veered or skidded and most of the damaged was in the back where was my brother .

Nobody was hurt except my brother. It's true that the father had some troubles with one of his legs, but he is fine now. He went to the hospital for a checkup, and that was nothing to mention. My brother bounced to the front, and had a neck injury. People sometimes get panicky, and don't know how to act even if they know what to do well, or have studied it before. I think it was dragging out more than saving someone's live.

Back home, I was sitting in front of my computer peacefully. Father and mother weren't there. The doorbell rang, and I opened. I was told that brother had an accident and that he had a slight neck injury. I thought everything would be fine. The time was evening, and when my mother knew, we went to the hospital. Mother, sister, aunt, aunt's son, and me of course.

I said this story hundreds of time, and so my bro.Do you know the feeling of telling the same thingy every now and after?. I thought of recording it on tape, so we wouldn't have to tell the visitors at that time, just press on play button. But, it's ok now I guess. I'm getting used to everything now.

My sister was crying, screaming when she saw all the things coming out of my brother at the hospital. My mother was cold ( I like her very much, and call her till now the iron lady ).Brother was able to speak. There was nothing wrong with his body, except the neck. He told us that if we cut his four limbs he wouldn't feel it.

I had to face everything .I have an older brother, but he's married, and has four kids. He was very busy, you know kids and work. Later, doctors told that my brother was paralytic. He was paralytic since the accident occured not later in the hospital, because he had a fracture, and some kind of changing position in his neck vertebrae. There was nothing to do except a surgery to put his neck four and three vertebra in their original position. They substituted place due to the crash. When I was told, everything was dark in my eyes. I was walking in the corridors and didn't know my destination, and what to do.

Later, I was thinking of a way to tell my family. I called my neighbor ( friend since childhood ) , and told him to inform my family in his own way. Though my mother was cool and self-controlled, I was afraid that something would happen to her. But, I didn't think of my father ( 83 now ) , who after hours of hearing that his son won't be able to move , would fall down. He was taking to the hospital. It was a stroke, and he had hemiplegia , and doctors said that nothing to do but take car of him at home.

See, I'm expert now in medical things; brother is paraplegia, can't move the four limbs ( he can now lift both arms slightly, but can't move the fingers ).There is zero control in his all muscles but from the chest up , and have no sensation of passing urine or stool.

So, I'm the youngest, and the Godfather

There are many things to say that happened during my long stay in hospitals.I think this all.

My life changed forever, when I suddenly became ill with a severe ear pain and a flu- like symptoms in October in 1992.I was healthy up to that time. I went to be thinking it would be all better in the morning, but it wasn?t. One side of my face was paralyzed, and a few months later, the other. I am told this is a rare occurrence. I immediately went to a doctor, and was diagnosed with Bell's palsy. I was prescribed a medicine, which was ineffective.

Several months later, I developed intense pain behind the ear, and itching inside the ear canal. I desperately wanted to scratch, but couldn't get at the itch. A yellowish fluid was oozing from my ear, and there were blisters outside; reddish-purple, weeping from the skin. One doctor said the infection happened from the soap that I use. Another blamed it on the eardrops that I hadn't used yet. The one said it was the shaving lotion.

I now noticed my hearing was failing, my speech slurred, and I had trouble swallowing. Because of paralysis on my both sides of face, I could no longer eat in public places. I couldn't drink without a straw, and food kept falling out of my mouth. My eyelids fell, covering my eyes and hindering my sight. Since I couldn't work, I required assistance from Medicaid. They wouldn't approve eyelid surgery. I was unable to frown, smile, or whistle.

I was still continuing my search for a doctor who knew what to do. I underwent many test; MRIs, CAT scan, bone scan. I had in-home infusion therapy, and many blood tests. Except for diabetes and blood pressure that I developed after the onset, my blood was normal.

After another bad ear infection in 1996, I met a doctor who knew what I had. I was diagnosed with Ramsay Hunt Syndrome (RHS), but told there was little available to treat it. Six of the doctor's colleagues came to the room, and observe my mysterious illness. Other patients were quiet, and listened.

Since there was little known about RHS, I began a search about any information. I only found bits and pieces, even with the information I could only get from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke. From the information I had, I learned the shocking news; RHS was discovered by Dr.James Ramsey Hunt in 1907.Nearly a hundred years a go.

We are talking about a disease that can disable. RHS is a serious neurological disease caused by varicella zoster virus. This virus damages the nerves inside the ear, and affects the nearby parts of the face. It also affects the brain. Every doctor I've spoken to knows about the British-born Dr.Charles Bell, discoverer of Bell's palsy in 1840s.Dr.Ramsey was an American, born, raised, educated in the state of Pennsylvania and abroad, yet few doctors have ever heard of him.

When I decided I didn't want to go through life with both of my face paralyzed, and the situation worsening. I began to search for a reconstructive plastic surgeon, but again I couldn't find any who would reveres the paralysis. I read everything I could, and learned about the "smile" surgery by two doctors from Toronto. It?s a long story, but I had two surgeries in Toronto in July and September 2000.I?m working with a speech therapist at this time, and most of my smile has returned. Full recovery is expected to take a year.

http://shingles.mgh.harvard.edu/story.htm