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Success Story: KB

My husband had been hospitalized for almost 2 months following a traumatic brain injury. The entire time he had been medicated & bed-ridden, once well defined muscles had atrophied and he’d lost 60 lbs of body weight. By the end of the 1st month, he needed the kind of help that the hospital did not provide, he needed rehab. Several home health professionals had recommended a Brandenburg facility, located so close to home, it was my #1 choice. However, another 3 or 4 weeks were wasted in hospital before the move came to fruition!

When he finally arrived at Brandenburg Nursing & Rehabilitation, he was breathing, but totally unresponsive, wearing a c-collar & tracheotomy, a feeding tube & body brace. He was also recovering from a 2nd severe bout of pneumonia which required suction and breathing treatments. Within days, a host of dedicated, caring people had him out of bed, awake and alert. Long overlooked staples embedded in his scalp were removed, physical, speech, and occupational therapy started. By the 2nd full day, he’d sat in a chair, pedaled a cycle machine, and a big one for me; he’d spoken his first words! He wanted a drink of water and a shower.

During the weeks that followed he and his team of experts worked incredibly hard to re-train his weakened body. He had to learn how to sit and to stand, to walk and climb steps, to eat and swallow without choking, and so much more. With each passing day he grew stronger, everybody celebrated his progress while offering words of encouragement. I had never doubted that this hard-headed man of mine would tight to return home, but nothing had prepared us for the mixed emotions when that day arrived. We had spent 64 days with the most incredible people inside this 1960’s building, we’d shared so much together. We were happy and excited to be going home, yet anxious, could we cope without the team? And so very sad to be leaving everybody behind. We will keep them all forever in our hearts, and we’ll back often to visit our special friends.