A Personal Story by Pattie Welek Hall
Personal Story by Pattie Welek Hall
When my nineteen-year-old son was admitted to the Medical University of South Carolina, tagged as ‘John Doe’ and given only twenty-four hours to live after he suffered a traumatic brain injury, I refused to accept his death sentence. I called on God and His angels, seeking healing and understanding. But at times, even that wasn’t enough. When Casey’s ICPs skyrocketed, when his fever reached 104 degrees, when he was put into a coma—twice—I was at wit’s end. And even though the nurses and doctors were very supportive, it wasn’t enough as I rode the roller-coaster into the unknown. Was my boy going to recover? Would he be able to talk, walk or even eat on his own again? How was I, how was the family going to cope after our life had been turned inside out?
It took years of healing before I could pen the first word of my memoir, the pain so deep. But some force outside of me kept whispering, “You need to tell your story to help others on their journey.” So I did. And my journey into healing began.
I hope that my story A Mother’s Dance—a story about hope, perseverance, self-discovery, hard choices, and most importantly about love, the sad and the wondrous—will inspire others to brave the unthinkable storm.