Tracker Pixel for Entry

The truth about being on a ventilator

Live and Learn | October 21st, 2020

By Ashlee Nordquist

hpr@hpr1.com

I've come to the conclusion that not everyone understands why my brother and I went on ventilators for covid and what that means. As I survived and my brother SO FAR is improving, I can make jokes and talk very straightforwardly about the condition without becoming a wreck. So here's some education.

1) You don't get to pick to be on a ventilator. We didn't pay extra to sleep through our symptoms.

2) Jacob and I both developed ARDS (acute respiratory distress syndrome). One of the requirements to meet ARDS is organ failure. Our organs failing were our lungs. It's not that it was just "hard to breathe." Our lungs were unable to process enough oxygen to keep us alive. Jacob was coughing up "shot glasses" of pinkish water. My lungs were holding the water within their linings so I had no cough and was just endlessly exhausted from low oxygen absorption. That's when a ventilator comes into play.

3) We got ARDS because we had strong immune systems. Our immune systems reacted to the virus so strongly that it decided to also attack the infected tissues in our lungs. That is what is called a cytokine storm.

4) Before going to a ventilator, you go through a variety of oxygen supplements. We had nasal cannulas, higher-powered cannulas, and then the BiPAP. A BiPAP is a dual-level CPAP that you have to wear all the time. It was my least favorite part of the hospital experience. The BiPAP is the last step before the ventilator. They use a BiPAP instead of a CPAP because the lungs are too damaged to handle a constant airflow level.

5) The ventilator is dangerous. There's still about a 50/50 chance of dying while having covid on a ventilator. I had a 12% chance of living as US doctors were still very new to the disease. Forcing air into the lungs at an unnatural rate and pressure is a bad time. If your oxygen is too low for too long, your other organs start failing. All the medications required to stabilize a person and keep them under are very hard on a body and sepsis or complications are common. But if you aren't on the ventilator, you die for sure.

6) The after-effects of the ventilator are ugly. The longer you are on, the uglier it is. Short term memory loss, inability to focus, muscle atrophy, shortness of breath, vocal cord damage, and a high risk of aspirating food and stomach acid are standard expectations that can last up to a year. That's why you have so much therapy after going off a ventilator.

7) Going into a coma while ventilated is also pretty standard. There are different levels of coma where you may still be able to take direction or react to stimulus so for part or all of that journey you are also paralyzed as higher ventilator pressures are extremely uncomfortable and most patients will rip out their own ventilator tubing due to the physical distress they experience while in the coma. Jacob has been paralyzed the entire time. I was for only a week of mine as keeping me slightly alert worked for giving me directions for rolling over/washing me but as I kept trying to sit up while unconscious, my arms had to be strapped down to the hospital bedsides instead.

8) The doctors don't understand why we are getting hit by Covid so hard. Jacob and I, despite our weight, are otherwise healthy, younger adults. Our blood work comes out solid. We have no asthma or a history of lung problems. We're both obese, but most people our size still aren't getting it as badly as we do.

9) Every time you say "you just gotta go out and live your life." Or "I'm going out even if I'm exposed because I'm healthy," you are telling us that you are aware that you are potentially killing people, but because it didn't kill you, you don't give a damn; and that people can be permanently damaged or dead at your hands because their lives matter less than your convenience. And that's monstrous. That's not a joke.

Recently in:

By Alicia Underlee Nelsonalicia@hpr1.com Ten North Dakota communities will participate in the nationwide No Kings Day of Peaceful Action on October 18. The grassroots movement is a nonviolent protest against President Trump’s…

By Michael M. Millermichael.miller@ndsu.edu I would like to recognize some of the scholarly Germans from Russia from Canada and USA shared on the GRHC website. There are additional names not included here. If you have suggestions…

Friday, October 31, doors 8 p.m. show starts at 8:30 p.m.The Aquarium above Dempey’s, 226 N. Broadway, FargoThe annual Aquarium Halloween Cover Show is back and it is stacked. And this time there are a limited amount of presale…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.com At the end of September, downtown Fargo said goodbye to another old friend; the Spirit Room closed its doors, marking the end of an era. The Spirit Room room has been a fixture downtown for the…

By Ed Raymondfargogadfly@gmail.comThat old time religion, filled with love, is no longer good enough In the first “Inherit the Wind” movie about religion and evolution starring Spencer Tracy, Fredric March, and Gene Kelly, the…

By Rick Gionrickgion@gmail.com Holiday wine shopping shouldn’t have to be complicated. But unfortunately it can cause unneeded anxiety due to an overabundance of choices. Don’t fret my friends, we once again have you covered…

By Rick Gion and Nichole Hensenrickgion@gmail.com The wait is finally over. Those who have visited Nichole’s Fine Pastry & Cafe lately know about the recent major additions and renovations that have taken place over the past…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.com Dakotah Faye is a hip-hop artist from Minot, North Dakota, and he’s had a busy year. He’s released two albums. This summer he opened for Tech N9ne in Sturgis and will be opening for Bone…

By Greg Carlsongregcarlson1@gmail.com Now available on Amazon Prime following its world premiere last month as the opening night selection of the Toronto International Film Festival’s golden anniversary, “John Candy: I Like…

By HPR staffsubmit@hpr1.com Mark the first weekend of October on your calendar. It’s the weekend of the Studio Crawl, which takes us all on a wonderful, metro-wide tour of our talented (and often wacky) arts community. On October…

Press release“Shakespeare with a sharpened edge.” To launch its 2025 – 2026 season, Theatre NDSU is thrilled to team up with Moorhead-based organization Theatre B to perform a co-production of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and…

By Annie Prafckeannieprafcke@gmail.com AUSTIN, Texas – As a Chinese-American, connecting to my culture through food is essential, and no dish brings me back to my mother’s kitchen quite like hotdish. Yes, you heard me right –…

By Sabrina Hornungsabrina@hpr1.comNew Jamestown Brewery Serves up Local FlavorThere’s something delicious brewing out here on the prairie and it just so happens to be the newest brewery west of the Red River and east of the…

By Ellie Liveranieli.liverani.ra@gmail.com When we are sick, all we want is a cure. You go to the doctor, they give you a pill, you take it for a bit, then you are cured. It happens. But unfortunately, it is not always the case. …

By Alicia Underlee NelsonProtests against President Trump’s policies and the cuts made by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) are planned across North Dakota and western Minnesota Friday, April 4 and…

By Vern Thompsonvern.thompson@rocketmail.comMoral accountability and the crisis of leadership  As a recovering person living one day at a time for the last 35 years, I have learned not to judge others because I have not walked in…