Linda Fletcher

Pontine brainstem hemorrhagic strokes sever all communication from the brain to the body. Survival is extremely rare. If a patient survives, life expectancy is days to months. My mother is this patient and this is her story of miraculous recovery.

It would be months before my mom awoke as a fierce warrior. She was unresponsive with severe brain swelling. It was causing constant seizures. We were advised to “let her go.” We were told the damage was severe. There was no chance for cognitive or physical recovery. She would remain in a vegetative state. Reasonable advice given the severity of her situation, but they had never met my momma. They weren’t given the chance to see her warrior spirit. As a family, we wanted her to have the chance to make her own decisions about her recovery. Thankfully, that chance would come.

Miraculously, my mother’s brain swelling was decreasing. She beat the survival odds awakening with a burning desire and determination to live. She was blessed with a full cognitive recovery. Her memory and personality were restored. Her love for life and radiant spirit shined through her pain. Her desire and fight to live was undeniable. This was evident to all those caring for her. So evident, that the hospital’s physical therapy department gave my mother a generous scholarship for two weeks of inpatient rehabilitation. They were convinced that if my mom was given the opportunity, nothing would stand in her way of making a full recovery. They believed she could… So that’s exactly what my mom did.

My mom took this opportunity and thrived! She learned how to eat, appreciating every bite. She worked hard, learning how to talk again. She no longer needed the breathing machine for assistance and was learning how to walk in only two weeks’ time. Her progress was astounding. Her future was bright.

That was 4 years ago. Therapy stopped due to a lack of insurance. This has led to repeated hospitalizations and setbacks. Each time my mother has pulled thru, refusing to give up, earning the nickname “warrior “by the hospital staff. My mother currently has declined to a bedbound state, unable to work with physical therapy due to lack of funding.

I will walk into her room to find her moving her body however she can. She smiles, and exuberantly says, “I’m exercising! I’m going to learn how to walk again! I’m going to learn how to eat again!” She continues saying, “Every day I do something different and get better.” She does not let anything stop her reminding all of us that, “God says I will live, so I will get better for my kids.” My mother has never lost her physical ability, only her opportunity.

She has spoken daily over the past 4 years of her desire to eat, breathe without a Tracheostomy attached to a ventilator, no longer be bedbound, and able to walk again. She longs to be with her children and grandchildren. She waits patiently. Her joyful spirit is unwavering. Her hope and belief in her ability to overcome for the second time, if given the chance to do physical therapy, cannot be shaken.

My mom has been a miracle from the start. She continues to thrive despite setbacks. Her beautiful, joyous spirit is infectious and blesses all those around her. She is a proud mother, grandmother, sister, aunt and friend to all. Working with physical therapy will give her a chance to live life to the fullest. She prays and believes faithfully that this opportunity lies up ahead. She knows it is not a matter of if she can, but when she can. After all, she has proven it to herself before. This year is going to be her year of continued miracles, blessings, and progress.

Thank you for your support, donations and prayers. Because of you, she will have the opportunity to live life beautifully.

Family and friends of Linda Fletcher are raising money for the nonprofit Help Hope Live to fund uninsured medical expenses associated with Catastrophic Illness.

Linda has chosen to fundraise for Help Hope Live in part because Help Hope Live assures fiscal accountability of funds raised and tax deductibility for contributors. Contributors can be sure donations will be used to pay or reimburse medical and related expenses. To make a tax-deductible donation to this fundraising campaign, click on the Give button.

For more information, please contact Help Hope Live at 800.642.8399.

Thank you for your support!