Golden woman makes remarkable recovery from severe brain injury | Health

By Hendrik Sybrandy, FOX31 News

GOLDEN -- A Golden woman's recovery from a devastating brain injury offers hope for Rep. Gabrielle Giffords as she begins intensive brain rehabilitation in a Houston hospital.

Giffords was shot in the head outside a Tucson, Az. supermarket January 9th. Kate Rickel suffered near-fatal injuries when she hit the pavement during a motorcycle crash in August, 2002.

"Our hearts and thoughts and prayers go out for her (Giffords) and her family," said Shawn Rickel, Kate's husband who was much less seriously injured during the motorcycle accident. "We can relate."

Kate Rickel's left frontal and left temporal lodes separated from her brain in the crash. She lost a significant amount of brain tissue and was in a coma for a week.

"They (doctors) said she's probably not going to make it from the standpoint of her brain swelling but if she makes it she's never going to speak to you," said Shawn Rickel Sunday. "It was that blatant."

He said Kate gave early indications that she was prepared to fight back from her injuries.

"She was fighting," Rickel said. "It was obvious to everyone she was fighting to survive."

What followed were months of rehab at Spalding Rehabilitation Hospital in Aurora. Kate spent three hours a day, seven days a week, in intensive speech and physical therapy, relearning basics like talking, walking and eating.

"What we do is provide the environment so that the brain heals itself in the best way possible," said Jo Ann Eisel, Spalding Nurse Manager. She said Kate's brain was essentially taken back to the level of a two or three-year-old. "You don't leave a two or three-year-old to grow on their own," Eisel said. "You have to retrain that brain."

Kate made slow but steady progress at Spalding. A huge breakthrough occurred in spring, 2003 when she got back her driver's license. Although she's had some setbacks since then and now wears a plate in her head, the 46-year-old woman has nearly fully recovered.

Shawn Rickel said the key for her throughout her rehabilitation was her attitude and relentless hard work, two factors that could also determine Giffords' future.

"Every day fighting as hard as you can and working as hard as you can, mentally and physically, and that's where we saw Kate's improvements, leaps and bounds," he said.