I was lucky enough to go home to England for two weeks on September 1, leaving North Carolina for the London area to attend my nephew’s wedding. My husband Earl lives at home with me. He also has anoxic brain injury. We have been married for 28 years. I left him behind to be taken care of by his aides and our children and boarded the plane for London. What a blessing these two weeks have been. Being able to relax from my normal routine of “Daddy” care and work was wonderful. It felt really good to be able to do things to help my almost 92 year old mother. 92 but she can run circles around me!

The highlight of my trip was to be able to finally meet Koo, Chris and Gabriel. After following the blog during the past few years and sharing the same experiences, it was just like meeting old friends. To be able to say things about living and dealing with anoxic brain injury to someone who truly understands was very special. I met Koo at Liverpool Street station, and we took the train to Bishops Stortford. The train journey gave us plenty of time to talk. A taxi took us from the train station to the Jacob Centre. It is quite a hike from London to Sawbridgeworth. The Centre does not look like a hospital or nursing home, more like a collection of houses. Inside the center feels more like an institution because of the rooms and patients sitting around in wheelchairs in strange body positions. The staff was very friendly, and Koo is obviously well known and loved.

We didn’t find Chris in his room, he was in a different area with his “one on one person”, Hillary, who appears devoted to him. First impressions? He reminded me of Earl, my husband, Same head movements, same teeth grinding – although Earl has now moved on to clucking like a chicken instead of teeth grinding Just like Earl, if you can get Chris’s attention he will look directly at you with those beautiful pale blue eyes, and you think, Oh! There you are. – and then the head movement begins again. What broke my heart were his poor arms, which are rigid in the retracted position typical for brain injuries. Earl was starting to do this when we had the operation for the baclofen pump releasing the spasticity in both his arms and legs without befuddling his brain (more than it is :) )
We took Chris outside under the shelter in the garden – of course it was grey and rainy – we were in England. I didn’t see much of the sun for 2 whole weeks! Chris does make occasional sounds through gritted teeth. It is so hard to tell if he is trying to communicate, or what is going on. Hillary is quite convinced that he is answering her questions with appropriate nods. He responds well to the staff around him, as does Earl to his daily aide, Jennifer. I always say that if Earl recovered (which he won’t) he would run off with Jennifer!) The man loves to flirt, even in his damaged state! After a while and returning Chris to his room we took the taxi and train back to London where I had the absolute pleasure of meeting Gabriel and hearing about his trip to Woburn and all the animals. What an amazing child.
Leaving the Jacob Centre we ran into Colin whose wife has a brain stem injury. He was excited to tell us that she had responded to a nerve stimulation device provided to him by a Doctor in North Carolina. Well, since I live in North Carolina I consider this a definite “gift from God” and will be contacting Dr Cooper this week to see if he can help Earl. Another blessing.

As for Koo, what can one say. As you all know from reading the blog she is amazing. I don’t know how she holds down an important job, takes care of Gabriel and the home, and still advocates for Chris. Chris was obviously pleased to see her, but the possible interaction is small and heartbreaking. The distance and travel time to get to the Center is daunting, not to mention the cost in pounds. Everything is sooo expensive in England. Like Koo I wish Chris could be somewhere where friends and family could visit every day to encourage and keep an eye on him. Not something Koo can possibly do alone. Too bad we are don't live closer, Chris and Earl could sit and grind teeth and cluck together :)

I wanted to share with you all what a blessing it was for me to be able to meet the family in person. Just as everyone else will be doing, I will be following the continued progress of the situation and the future of this beloved man and his family. Thank you Koo for letting me share your story and a little part of your life. Sue