Brett's Scary Day (and ours)

Okay, I want to write this all down before I forget anything. Today started out peacefully. I slept in after a late night. I went to bed after Brett got in which was 2 AM. Mindy called around 10ish to see if we were home. She brought over a present. Three really cool books. Always fun! So we were enjoying her company and just hanging out talking. Brett was still sleeping. A little after 11:30 AM we heard a loud boom and we all three started running down the hallway toward the noise which ended up being from the small bathroom, door closed and locked. We knocked and called Brett's name, no response. We did it louder, no response. We pounded the door and yelled his name...no response. I yelled for Jeff to get the key above the door and he opened it while our hearts quickened. Jeff opened and pushed the door and it only budged about 6 inches before it pushed into Brett's slumped body. Jeff could only see his leg. Mindy said, "Should I call 911?" "YES!" And Jeff pushed the door as hard as he could to be able to squeeze in sideways. I followed. Fear gripped my heart as we called Brett's name and there still was no response. Time played tricks as it felt like forever that we tried to get Brett to wake up and I absolutely had a feeling of the worst but quickly pushed that out of my head. Did he faint and fall into the wall or did he fall and get knocked out when he hit the wall? That was the question! Jeff struggled to lift him up and finally he fluttered his eyes and they became huge as he tried to figure out where he was and what was going on. We managed to get him out to the couch, something we agreed later was probably not the best move. He had hit the wall hard and caved it in so it was a concern that he would have head, neck or back trauma. Once on the couch, Brett was holding his hand over his heart and I was asking if he had heart pain. He said "No", but he was mainly just scared and freaked out. Up to this point, he hadn't conversed much but he started praying, "Our Father Who Art In Heaven...", and asking us to pray with him. I was so grateful that Brett turned to God and knew how to calm himself with God's presence in his heart. What a Blessing. At this point I had taken over the 911 call and as I was answering questions and giving details, Mindy started looking pale and was saying that her heart had been beating fast and had just started beating very slow, about half what it had. She was definitely having a physical reaction to the stress and now I was also worried about her and telling the dispatcher that my daughter was also not doing well and I would need someone there for her. The fire department is just across the street and they were to our house very quickly but it still felt like forever. They knocked, dogs went crazy. It was a blur. But once they came in I felt better. Brett also seemed to be feeling less anxious. I think there were about six guys in the house. Some tending to Brett, some tending to Mindy. Asking questions, checking vitals, etc. We took one medic back to see the wall where Brett hit and upon seeing the hole, he highly recommended taking Brett on a stretcher to be safe. They put him in a neck brace. Mindy was given oxygen and her numbers started coming around and she felt better. Whew. One better, one to go. :) I quickly threw some items in a bag and got dressed. Before I knew it, they had Brett loaded up and I drove in the ambulance with him to Mercy Gilbert Hospital. Josh made it to the house to be there for Mindy and she was doing well. Jeff headed to the hospital once Mindy got on her way. Many tests followed... CAT Scan, Chest XRay, Urine and Blood Tests, EKG. Brett had been feeling nauseous so they added medicine to the IV to help with that. He had a great doc who explained everything well and talked with Brett and us at length to give us that comfort level. Everything checked out and he was given a diagnosis of Vasovagal Syncope. (Explanation follows). It turns out to be pretty common according to the doctor. As we pieced things together, we determined that Brett got up to go to the bathroom, was feeling nauseous and as he stood to wash his hands his legs must have buckled and down he went falling backward into the wall. Later at home Aaron and Lynette stopped by for a visit with Nicaea. Uncle Brett enjoyed that. So, I guess that is a pretty good synopsis. Through it all I think Jeff and I remained pretty calm. We are just feeling very grateful that both our blue eyed kiddos survived the drama of the day and are no worse for wear. Thank you Jesus! Now if Brett will perhaps take this as a hint that maybe, just maybe, it is time to TRY to get on a better schedule of sleeping and eating. A mom can only hope...
(and pray) :)

"Vasovagal syncope occurs when the part of your nervous system that regulates heart rate and blood pressure malfunctions in response to a trigger. Your heart rate slows, and the blood vessels in your legs widen. This allows blood to pool in your legs, which lowers your blood pressure. This drop in blood pressure and slowed heart rate quickly diminish blood flow to your brain, and you faint."

I asked the doctor what would have happened if we had not been there and he casually said, "Well he might have been out for as long as 15 minutes but he eventually would have woken up and been fine." Easy for you to say doc. :)

P.S.- Sweet Katie if you are reading this... Sorry for the news via a blog post. Since you are traveling, it's the only way. But all is fine now!