Hello All. Thank you for the continued messages of support for our friend and co-worker, Eric Zangroniz. Here is an update on his condition as of this date: Eric is awake, stable and off of the ventilator. He is no longer in danger of passing away because of the brain injury. He is able to speak. At this time he has no recollection of or ability to comprehend the accident or where he is and what is happening to him. The hope is that this will begin to change over time. There is no set way the human brain repairs itself and the physicians and hospital are completely unable to provide any type of prognosis. The only thing that will tell what exists as his potential future is time to heal. He seems happy, is interactive to some degree and is able to eat liquid foods prepared by the hospital. For his own safety he has to remain secured to the bed for the time being so that he does not remove tubes / wires connected to and in him. He is also currently battling round two of pneumonia. The staff at the hospital have been outstanding and compassionate. They have provided outstanding support for him, his mom and me. His mom is returning to Florida tomorrow but Eric and I will FaceTime with her often. Eric does have memories from his past and is able to recognize most faces. He is currently unable to focus for more than about 60 seconds at a time or remember the immediate past. An example is that if I go to the restroom, by the time I get back he has forgotten I am there. This will most likely improve with time. His immediate future will be at an acute care facility. It is suggested that this may last several months to years. As rough as all of this sounds, there are some silver linings; First and foremost, he seems overall happy. Since he is not able to recall the immediate past he is not dwelling in any type of depression and that is a very good thing. He does not have any sense of loss at this time. His overall health will begin to improve now that he is able to take some regular food that has been pureed and the ventilator has been removed. Although there was substantial weight loss in the last month, it is expected he can regain the weight over time. He definitely has a huge appetite :) He is also usually willing to interact with me, even if he is not in the mood to deal with the nurses or doctors. They have given me some great exercises and coaching on memory exercises to do with him every day. He is usually willing to at least try. He is usually willing to allow me to feed him with a spoon but easily falls asleep even as he is eating. He remains very tired and exhausted, yet there is definitely some of Eric still there. On Friday I was working with him a lot and at one point he said Damn Boss, thats a lot of work. Im sick man. Leave me alone. It was a great moment for me and the staff. We all busted out laughing and he smiled. Due to the pneumonia and the restraints it is requested that visitors still wait until he is stronger. When he is settled in a new facility and away from the intensive care environment it would be great for everyone to feel free to visit and interact as much as possible. In the interim, if you really want and need to visit him please contact me and we will work to set it up so that it is a successful visit for both you and Eric.
Posted on: Mon, 11 Aug 2014 22:16:55 +0000
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