Paul's Update: April 27 @ 9pm
There really isn't much new to report, other than yesterday marked one month since Karen's injury. The days all seem to blend together sometimes.
Karen continues to go to her rehab sessions each day. They tend to tire her out, so she has been sleeping a lot. I have been reading more information on aneurysms, and understand that one of the lasting effects of this type of injury is constant fatigue. This could last for over a year, depending upon the person and the severity of her injury.
I also understand that it is not uncommon for someone to have trouble with language skills when there is bleeding in the area of the brain Karen has experienced. This would explain the uninteligible talking that we are experiencing as of late. Hopefully, with continued rehabilitation this will correct itself. Often, this too can take a long time to happen.
She appears to be quite hungry these days though, and is obviously enjoying the ability to eat real food. I know they are trying to get her on solid food now too. Not all the pureed meatloaf and such she has been getting. However, she does seem to like it.
There really doesn't seem to be any indication as to how long this process will go on, but I suspect Karen could be in the rehab facility 2-4 months or longer, and will continue as an outpatient for many, many months beyond that. It probably would approach a year or more. However, we won't really know for sure until we can get the full assessment from the rehab team.
She's doing great, and has progressed a great deal since the first week, but sometimes it's like watching the grass grow, you just want more to happen, faster.
Paul's Update: April 25th at 9pm
Well, the girl never ceases to amaze us. Today was a day of wonder that I never would have expected, and frankly it bought tears to my eyes when I witnessed what I did today. Karen's dad called me at work today and said he thought I should get down to the hospital to see something. He wouldn't say what it was, so I left workearly and headed down to the hospital. Much to my surprise, there was Karen, sitting in her wheelchair, drinking from a cup of water and just talking away. It was as if it was no big deal to her.Now, don't get too carried away with the talking thing, because we couldn't understand all of it. But, we could understand a lot of it, and there were complete sentences. That's just the beginning of things, because a little later they brought her first meal, and she ate it mostly by herself. It was a little sloppy, but pretty darned amazing to us.Karen has become somewhat of a chatterbox lately too. As I said, not all of it is understandable, but there is obviously a lot going on in that head of hers.I wonder what tomorrow will bring?
Paul's Update: April 25 @ 10pm
There really isn't anything new to report on Karen's condition today.I did see her this evening, but she was asleep, and really didn't wake up the entire time I was there. However, I know many of you have been inquiring about when you could come visit Karen. We have had conversations with the doctor and her rehab team regarding visitors, and this is what we have been told ----------The doctor has said that until the therapists have completed their evaluation(s) they are limiting visits to immediate family and very close friends. This could last through to next week. She also went on to say she does not want ANY visitors before 4pm because they are reserving Karen's energy for the rehab sessions. Once we get the okay from the doctors that things have changed I will post something for all of you.Now here are my thoughts about the above. If the doctors say its ok, and the therapists say its ok, I'm still going to defer to one additional authority on this matter. That authority will be Karen herself. At this point, we are all (her parents and I) reluctant to open the doors to what could be a large number of visitors until we have a chance for Karen to express her desires. We believe she should have a say in all of this, and until she is able to express her opinion on her own, it's probably too soon anyway. I truly believe this is not too far off, but until we know she understands fully what we are talking about, we think this is the best way to handle it. We do not want to cause any undue embarassment for her, or make her feel uncomfortable having people see her. I'm sure you all will understand why the doctors are taking this position, and realize that it is only for Karen's well being and speedy recovery. We also hope you understand that we want Karen to make the decision for herself, if possible. --- Thanks for your understanding and patience.
Paul's Update: April 24 at 7am
Wow, what a change in four days!
I returned from my business trip on Sunday afternoon, and after dropping off my bags at home and grabbing a bite to eat, I went to the hospital to see Karen. When I arrived she was sitting in a wheelchair, in front of a window with her mom. She looked so much more alert, and was moving her right arm and leg a lot more. We sat there for over an hour until the nurses moved her back to her bed, where I spent another hour or so with her. She tries to talk a lot, but you can only make out short phrases, and this is only on an occassional basis. I suspect that in a fairly short time though we won't be able to keep her quiet. Won't that be terrific!
She definitely has a lot going on in her head. She looks great, has lost most of the puffiness due to the fluid retention, and she seems much more alert than ever before. However, it is clear that this process will be a long one for Karen. Even though I saw a big difference from when I left her on Wednesday at the hospital, by no means is she able to get around on her own, and she has yet to start communicating in a way that is constant or fully understandable. But, we all know the tough, stubborn (this is good) person she is.
I am sure she will be just fine, given the necessary time. The tough part is that we just don't know what the necessary time is going to be.
Karen's Parents Update #2: April 21st at 10:30pm
Karen has arrived at the Mount Vernon Hospital’s INOVA Rehabilitation Center.
The regimen will be a very intensive therapy. At Fairfax Hospital she had 30-45 minutes of therapy per day and at Mount Vernon Rehabilitation Center she will have three to four hours of therapy throughout the day. She will be supervised by a team led by a physician who is board certified in physical medicine and rehabilitation and will receive occupational, speech, physical and other forms of therapy on weekdays. Due to the schedule and her need to become acclimated to her new surroundings her Doctor suggested that visitation be kept to a minimum for the first week and then after 4 PM on weekdays. They schedule the one hour sessions through out the day to give the patients time to rest in between.
We are encouraged as this is the premier rehabilitation facility in Northern Virginia. The entire staff at INOVA Fairfax Hospital worked very hard to make sure Karen qualified for admission. We owe them our gratitude for their help and expect great things from Karen.
Ken and Judy Rasmussen
Update from Karen's Parents: April 21st at 1pm
In keeping our promise to Paul to update the blog during his absence, here is the latest news.
Karen is still making "baby steps" in her effort to regain her abilities and it will be a long fight, perhaps 6 or more months of rehabilitation. The good news is that she has progressed enough to leave INOVA Fairfax Hospital where she has been since her admission on March 26. She will be transferred and enrolled as an inpatient at the intensive rehabilitation facility at INOVA Mount Vernon Hospital. I will give more details once we arrive there and Karen is assigned a room.
This has been a very emotional experience for her mother and me as Karen has beaten the odds in first surviving and then slowly progressing with rehabilitation. There are good days and bad days and we have been advised to expect plateaus in progress, too. She has many months of tough times ahead to restore her ability to stand, talk, feed herself and comprehend her surroundings. At this time she remains on a feeding tube. Knowing Karen's energy and toughness, I know that she will do her best. How far she is able to progress is to be determined. The wonderful care at INOVA Fairfax Hospital saved her life and started her on the path to recovery. Also due a big thanks are the three Fairfax County EMS Paramedics who restored her breathing on the running trail. They are true heroes! And also deserving of our thanks and gratitude are you, her friends and fellow runners, who have sent expressions of support.
Thank you!
Judy and Ken Rasmussen
Paul's Update: April 19th @ 8pm
Karen continues to hold her own during the physical therapy sessions. Today they worked more on her sitting up on the side of the bed, and this time they let her go to balance on her own. She performed wonderfully, and the therapist were themselves very exited about how well Karen was doing.
They stood her up for a few minutes, but this was very hard for all. Tomorrow they are going to try it again.
After the session was over, they put her in the chair again and we wheeled her out to the lobby where she could look out through the windows to a lovely view of the roof, and the helicopter pad. Hey, when you’ve been cooped up in the hospital for three weeks even that can be pretty cool.
She was getting tired and I took her back to her room. I left to go to work shortly afterwards, and her parents came for the afternoon shift. They said she seemed a little tired and she probably was, given the workout I observed.
I leave tomorrow for a business trip for a couple of days. I will try to post based on the information I get from her parents. For those of you who do see Karen, feel free to post your own observations. If you don’t see a post from me, don’t freak out. I’ll be back online Sunday when I return.
In the meantime, kick some butt Karen !
Paul's Update: April 18 @ 10:40pm
Well, just when you think you've seen it all the woman keeps on amazing us.
It's funny sometimes when certain things happen. You just have to tell yourself there must be a reason for this. I don't really know what, but I decided at the last minute today to drive to the hospital to see Karen during lunch, instead of going tonight. Much to my surprise, when I walked into the room, there she was, sitting upright in a chair with her eyes wide open. She had just finished her therapy session for the day, and they wanted to leave her in the chair for awhile. It was amazing.
She was more alert than I had ever seen her, and she had that sparkle in her eyes again. The nurses were all talking about how much she had improved in such a short period of time. She had been talking a bit more, even constructing short phrases. She also has begun moving her right arm more -raising it to scratch her nose, etc. I was told by her mom that the social worker we got to know in the ICU who was in charge of Karen's case came to visit today. When she arrived and saw Karen sitting in the chair looking at her she was so amazed at what she was seeing see started to weep.
It seems as though the therapy is working wonders, and doing exactly what they said it would. We are all very excited about it and can't wait until tomorrow to see what surprises are in store for us. Hopefully, they will all continue to be good.
Paul's Update: April 18th at 7am
Karen continues to give us little surprises each day it seems. She is awake more often now, and her eyes a little brighter than they have been. She is receiving occupational and physical therapy daily. I believe her increased alertness is attributable in a large part to this increased activity.I also think Karen is much more alert and active in the mornings. For those of us that know her well this is not too surprising. I have switched back to my nightly visits due to work, but Karen's parents go during the day.Yesterday morning Karen spoke again. This time Judy was the recipient of Karen answering "Judy" when asked if she knew what her mother's name was.From where I sit, this is bigger news then her answering the question with a yes on Saturday. To me this confirms not only that she is there, but her memory is definitely intact.More in the coming days, I am sure.
Paul's Friday/Saturday Update: April 15 @6:30pm
The Doctor that is overseeing Karen's care had told Judy and Ken that we might start seeing some changes by Friday, once she was moved to her new ward. He had said that she really needed to get some physical and occupational therapy going in order for her to progress to the next stage.
Karen started her sessions with the therapists on Friday. There wasn't much to report as a result of yesterday's session, and when I went to see her last night she seemed quite tired and was sleeping a lot. She had been awake several times I was told, and particularly during her session, her father said she had her eyes open the whole time.
Today I went in to see her at 10am when visiting hours started. I was there for a while by myself and with Karen's friends Susie and Pete from NYC. The physical therapist came in and asked if I would help her out this time because she wanted to get Karen sitting up in the bed. We sat her with her feet hanging over the bed, and Karen was immediately opening her eyes and clearly trying to focus on the activities. The therapist asked me to sit in the chair in front of Karen so she was looking at a familiar face. We took some photos off the wall and showed them to her. She was definitely focusing on the photos, recognized the one of the two of us when we were on a camping trip, and tracked them with her eyes when I moved them from one side to another. The therapist was pleased with this, and said this was definitely a good sign. I don't think she really needed to tell me this, since I was already about to burst with excitement as I was watching.
Karen soon tired, and the therapist was concerned she was getting dizzy, so we put her back in the bed. As we laid her head back on the pillow the therapist, concerned that Karen was perspiring a little from obvious fatigue, matter of factly asked Karen if she was OK. Well, without skipping a beat Karen spoke her first words and said very simply, "yes". Well, I about fell on the floor, but there was no mistaking it, and the therapist confirmed that I wasn't imagining things.
This may not seem like that much to the average person, but all of you know we have been looking for some solid evidence to prove without a doubt that Karen was in there, she just needed to get out.
We tried to get her to say my name, but she was very tired and fell back asleep. I was quite satisfied with the day by then, and was willing to take that little gift to the bank along with the big one I received before anyone else arrived. While I was sitting with her, I was talking to her about many things and it seemed clear to me that she was understanding what I was saying most of the time. I even thought she had nodded her head when I asked her a question. But the big gift of the day for me was when I asked her if she could give me a kiss. Well, I have to tell you, she puckered those lips right up, and I accepted it with a big smile, and a few tears. When I left her for the day I got another one for the road.
So, all in all it was a banner day, especially Karen. Hopefully, we will start seeing more and more of these, and in time we will all be having regular conversations with her.
She is still not out of the woods, and the cloud of the aneurysm still looms overhead, but this was about the best Easter gift we could have asked for.
Happy Easter to all !
Project "Karen from A to Z"
We are calling on all family and friends of Karen for your help with this project. We are putting together a book/album for Karen and hope everyone can contribute.
The book will be a photo album with 200 slots for 4x6-inch photos/stories. The album cover is a yellow background and bright blueflower, looks like it was made for Karen in particular. What we would like to fill the album with is your stories that help us celebrate all the special traits, events, qualities, memories and favorites that we all cherish or have enjoyed experiencing with Karen. Any photos that illustrates your story or a favorite about Karen are welcomed too, as well as, favorite photos of Karen too. When writing your stories, please keep in mind that each slot can only accommodate approximately a 4x7 piece of paper or photo, so try to keep the stories short, sweet and to the point when possible. You can e-mail your contributions directly to the PROJECT KAREN email link (click here) or request to receive a mailing address through the e-mail link.
As the stories are gathered, the book will be built into an encyclopedia format. Your stories will be the entries in the book and will help celebrate our special girl Karen, from A to Z. You do not need to worry about what letter of the alphabet your story will fulfill, but if anyone has a few good q, x and z fitting ideas they are most welcomed. If we are short stories to fill the book after the initial sending, then we will make follow up pleas. If one subject is submitted my many, than that subject may have multiple entries in the book or one compilation entry credited to all submitters. After the book is completed, it will be sent immediately for Karen, Paul and her family to enjoy....so send your stories as soon as you can. Our hopes for this book is that it will help celebrate all that we love about Karen and help Karen remember all the fun things and maybe even learn about some of the traits and qualities that we love about her that she never realized we knew or saw.
So who is going to tell us about poodles or Coach or tapas or Penn State?
Paul's Update: April 13th at 10:45pm
Karen continues to be in what I referred to her Doctor as a period of “regression”. She isn’t opening her eyes as much, and not really moving as much as she was a couple of days ago. I asked the Dr. about this, and he said it is normal to see periods where the patient will be less active. He also reiterated that it will just take time.
Karen has begun her sessions with the occupational and physical therapists, and is likely to see them even more now that she had been moved out of ICU. She is in a ward where there are four patients for each nurse.
We will provide visiting information in a couple of days, as soon as we get a better handle on the visitation rules.
Here movement out of ICU is somewhat of a double edged sword for us. She was very well cared for in the ICU, and we grew accustomed to the attention she received. We hope she receives the same level of care in her new situation, but we don’t know for sure.
Paul's Update: April 12th at 11:45pm
Not much activity on Karen's part today. She is spending a lot more time itseems with her eyes closed, and not moving much. The Doctors did remove the feeding tube from her nose, and put an abdominal feeding tube in. They also removed the central line from her neck and placed a PICC on her upper right arm. She did seem a bit more comfortable this evening when I saw her. They still intend to move her, once a bed is available in the other ward.
Not much else to report.
Paul's Update: April 11th @ 11pm
Karen's brother, her parent's and I have sort of been splitting duties at the hospital lately. It's an incredibly busy week for me at work, so I have been taking the evening shift and going in at 8:30pm. This is usually a pretty quiet time, but unfortunately as many of you who know Karen will agree, it's a pretty quiet time for her too. What I mean to say is that she's usually zonked out by 9-9:30 on any normal evening, so these days she'd pretty out of it by the time I arrive. She'll never be able to complain about me snoring again.
Anyway, Eric has been taking the morning shift, and her parents have been doing the afternoon. They all get to see much more in the way of activity, and are able to get a lot more information than I do at night. So, I have to rely on them for much of my information the last couple of days.
Here's what's going on lately. Karen has been dealing with some blood clots in both her arms and legs. They are treating her for them and watching her very carefully. They are concerned, but I don't think alarmed at this point. We'll see how that goes. They continue to do tests each day, but have not come to any difinitive conclusions as to her long term mental/physical condition. We do know that she continues to move her right arm and leg more, and has begun to move her left arm and leg a little. She is doing well with her breathing off of the ventilator. They have put off changing the feeding tube for now. I'm not sure why. They are planning to move her in the next few days out of the ICU and into another ward as soon as a bed becomes available.
This is a good sign, and I know they want to move ahead with some rehab to get her exercising her limbs. This in no way means that she will be doing any of this on her own -we are still not there yet. However, I am told that today both Eric and a nurse believe that Karen made an attempt to talk. Hopefully she will continue to do this more and more. We will certainly let all know if this happens. Obviously, this would be a major development if it were to continue.
Stay tuned . . .
Paul's Update: April 10th @ 11:30pm
There really isn't much to report as of late on Karen's condition. She still continues to open her eyes periodically, but no real indication as to what she understands. It looks as though tomorrow the doctors will be removing the feeding tube from her nose and replacing it with one that leads directly to her stomach through her abdoman. I suspect we will have days go by with very little change. Hopefully, we will see her begin to understand and communicate with us soon.
Update Status: Monday April 10 @ 12:30pm
All: The most recent post I have is the one listed below. As soon as I hear from Paul I will post immediately. - Steve
Paul's Update: Friday/Saturday April 7th/8th
The procedure to remove Karen's breathing tube was rather uneventful yesterday, but went well. We were all very pleased to see that it went without a hitch and with almost no discomfort for Karen. She seems much more relaxed now that she is able to breath on her own without a tube in her throat. She also seems much more peaceful when she sleeps.
I visited her last night again, and I saw a noticable difference in the way she looked compared to my visit that morning. The swelling in her lips had gone down already, and the redness from the tape that was used to hold the tube in place was already going away.
That's the good news.
I can't speak for the rest of Karen's family, but I think they would agree with me when I say that we were probably a little naive in our expectations of what would occur after the tube was removed. I had in my mind that since Karen was under sedation to keep her more comfortable while the breathing tube was there, that once they took it out and stopped sedating her we would see more than we did. It was pretty hard reality check for all of us.
Karen appears to have suffered significant trauma to the brain as a result of the aneurysm, and it will take some time for us to truly understand what the extent of the injury is. We all believe Karen is there, but for now, she is trapped inside and can't get out. Even though she will open her eyes, she doesn't appear to focus on, or track what it is that she is seeing. I think she hears us when we speak to her, and probably knows who we are when we do. The nurses have told us there appears to be some paralysis on her left side, but the extent or how permanent this will be is still unknown, and probably won't be for a while. I keep telling myself that the important thing to remember is that she has made it this far.
My goal with these updates has always been to keep everyone informed as to her progress, but I also want to make sure everyone is aware of the true picture. I know we are all thankful that she has made it this far, and that she is still with us. Tomorrow will be two weeks from her injury and she had beaten all odds at this point.
The Doctors and Nurses at the hospital have been extraordinary in their care for her, and they should all receives medals for what they have done up to this point. However, I think we all know that a good part of Karen's success so far is a result of Karen and the stubborn fighter that she is. Hopefully, these factors will continue to bear fruit down the road, but it is clear that this is going to take some time. Possibly, this will take a very long time.
I have been reading your comments to my posts, and I know Karen's family have been reading them as well. We all appreciate your kind words, your wonderful cards, and all of the music you have been sending. We are keeping track who sent evrything, so Karen will know who it came from. Keep them coming. I believe they help all of us, especially Karen.
For now, I think it is simply a waiting game to see what is going to happen. I would imagine that in the coming week or so she will be moved out of ICU and into another ward where more visitors are allowed. I will keep you informed as to when this happens.
In the meantime, I will continue to post updates, and hopefully I can bring more good news.
Paul's Update: April 7 - 12:30am
There were only two things of note today, but both of them were very good
news.
First, the vasospasms appear to have ended. This morning's venal doppler of Karen's head confirmed what they saw yesterday, so it was the last one she will have. They are no longer needing to elevate her blood pressure, so today her pressure was back down to a more normal level.
Second, we were informed that tomorrow/Friday morning they intend to remove the breathing tube to allow Karen to breath on her own. The Doctors feel she is ready and they are anxious to see how she does. Once she has the breathing tube out, they can remove all sedatives and do a more complete evaluation of her condition, both mentally and physically.
So, Friday and the two or three days that follow should reveal many things.
Paul's Update for Wednesday April 5th
Karen continues to do a little better each day. They continue to periodically reduce her sedative to see how she is going to react, but each time she gets agitated. We believe this is because she is aware of many things, and probably doesn't know what has happened to her, or frankly why she has a tube stuck down her throat. Ideally, they would like to fix all of that by taking the tube out. That may happen here either Thursday or Friday. We will see.
The Doctors and Nurses have indicated that they believe that spasms have subsided or stopped. This is great news.
The big news of the day though is the great pair of Converse All Stars that her
brother Eric bought her. The Nurses indicated that her feet were beginning to drop from lying in bed for so long, and some good high topped sneakers would take care of this. So, now she is sporting some white ones with checkered green and black tongues and laces on the top and a bright yellow stripe around the edge. Very appropriate for Karen I would have to say. I think she'll get a real "kick" out of them when she realizes they are on her.
I have purchased an inexpensive CD player that now sits on the table in her room. So, bring the music on. You can send it to the hospital, but it may be easier to send to Karen at my office:
Karen
c/o Political C.F.O.s., Inc.
201 King Street, Suite 200
Alexandria, VA 22314
Paul's Update: April 4th at 8:30pm
Today was a rather interesting one. Without going too much into detail I will fill you in on the most important details. The Doctors are preparing to take Karen off the ventilator. They feel it is an important step in her recovery, but want to make sure they do it at the appropriate time. I would expect that this could happen rather soon.
Part of this process has been both to periodically turn the respirator off, so she breaths on her own for several hours at a time. This is partially to build up her stamina. They are rather pleased with her pulmonary progress, and attribute it to her physical condition. All that running does pay off. Another part of the process is to reduce her sedative to see how she reacts.
This morning, I was there when the were reducing her sedative. I am convinced now that Karen knew that I was there. I also believe that she sensed something was wrong, because she appeared rather worried about her situation. It seemed as though she calmed down a little when I spoke to her and told her that everything was going to be ok. However, I think her frustration was in part due to that fact that she could not respond. These are all good things of course, but we just don't know the extent of her capacities, and won't know for a while.
For those of you who have sent cards, they are all being taped to the door leading in to Karen's room for all to see. Thanks so much for sending them.
Providing Support to Paul & Karen's Parents
Dear Friends of Karen -
As a way of providing support to Paul and Karen's parents, we'd like to purchase gift certificates for them from Home Bistro (www.homebistro.com), a company that specializes in "Chef-prepared meals delivered to your door nationwide. From Freezer to Table in About 10 Minutes." The meals are vacuum sealed and flash-frozen, packed in dry ice, and shipped in a special insulated cooler.
If you're interested in making a contribution towards these gift certificates, please send your check (payable to HOME BISTRO -- please write your phone number on the check) to:
Lisa Manion
P.O. Box 25322
Alexandria, VA 22313
We're aiming to purchase the gift certificates by the end of next week, so please mail your check by Tuesday, April 11.
Thank you!
Paul's Update: Monday, April 3rd at 10:40pm
The weekend seemed to drag on forever. Without work to keep me occupied it was all I could do not to think about Karen stuck in a hospital bed. Especially with the weather as nice as it was, and how she was so much looking forward to Spring's arrival.
Karen continues to make it through each day without any major problems. Saturday was particularly difficult though, since we saw very little activity. There wasn't much to report, and the Dr.s didn't provide much in the way of encouraging news.
Sunday, however was a completely different story. Karen's brother, Eric has flown into town from California and was there with Karen's mother and me for the later part of the afternoon. Karen had begun to open her eyes briefly several times during the day. While her eyes were opened she did not appear to focus, or track anything, but it was a very positive sign for all of us. Even the medical staff were encouraged. When we saw this happening we began speaking to her. We all agree that it seemed as though she knew we were there, yet she was frustrated that she wasn't able to communicate in anyway. This went on for about five or ten minutes while we were there, until she appeared to tire and go back to sleep.
Today, the nurse said she has been moving her arms on both sides more, andeven raised her right arm off of the bed once. These may seem like small and trivial things, but we'll take whatever we can at this point.
She continues to improve her breathing, and is generally breathing on herown with only slight assistance from the respirator. They are considering the possibility of taking her off the respirator sometime in the nextseveral days if she continues to grow stronger.
This is good progress, but they are still very cautious about the risk of spasms. They say that the spasm risk runs from about the 3rd to 5th day through the 10th to 14th day. So, we are looking at as late as next Sunday before we are through this very critical period.
That's about all I have to add at this time, but I wanted to take a momentto reinforce what I have tried to express in my earlier posts. Karen isextremely sick. Even with the events of this weekend and today, she has along, long way to go and she is not by any stretch of the imagination out ofthe woods. Even if we assume that there are no setbacks - and there will besome, Karen is looking at spending two to three months in the hospital.Then, if all goes well, she will likely need a very long time for rehabilitation.
Karen has beaten a lot of the odds up to this point. Frankly, very few individuals in her position ever make it to the hospital alive, much less past the first week. We are thankful that she is still with us and fighting. We are not surprised that she continues to fight hard. She does however, have many tough battles ahead of her.
My goal in saying this is to make certain everyone fully understands the severity of Karen's situation.
If you haven't yet gone to the links for theBrain Aneurysm Foundation I would encourage you to do so.
