My mom can't swallow and her brain sometimes does not tell her to breath

[zorie]

We are hoping to find some information or direction.
Our mom, Suzanne, who is 71 had a stroke on the back of her head, on the brain stem on May 23rd 2008. All of her memory and the part of her brain that makes her who she is, is all there. Thank god!

Suzanne was diagnosed with a stroke 7 1/2 hours after being rushed to the emergency room. My family and I found this a bit odd since she had every symptom of having a stroke.
And we all know that it is vital to get help and diagnosed as soon as possible, when a person apperes to have had a stroke.

Suzanne was unable to swallow before she even got to the emergency room and still can not swallow 18 days later.

Our mom was put on a respirator 2 hours after being diagnosed with a stroke and within four days she was making great process. She was able to breath on her own, with out the respirator for 48 hours, her strength was good, her speach was good, and the droop on the right side of her face was getting much better.

Since she was doing so well the Doctor said " she is going to be fine, and she would be going to the general care unit and start physical therapy" This was at 8:00 PM on May 27th.

On May 28th at 9:00 am they started physical therapy in a chair, with simple leg lifts. Our sister, Bridgette noticed that our moms color did not look good and ran out of the room yelling for help from a doctor.
My mom had stopped breathing as a result from the stroke. The part of her brain that make/tells her to breath had stopped telling her to breath.

Suzanne was then taken back to the intensive care unit (ICU) where she still is today, June 10 2008.
We are getting mixed feed back from the many "rotating" doctors we have been dealing with for the past 18 days.
Some basically saying " get a living will and decide wether you want your mom in a nursing home, or if you want to keep her at your home" reminding us that keeping her at one of our homes is not a pleasant way for us to live and a nursing home would be better, or letting her go back to her home and have 24 hour, home health care.

We are certain that our mom is going to be discharged from the hospital. We are so confused and don't quite know where to place her. We are hoping to find a place that will take stroke victims, that can't swallow, can't breath 100 percent on there own, sees double unless one eye is covered, and that has basically not been out of bed for 18 days, other then the past 3 days sitting in a chair for 2 hours at a time with 2-5 minutes of physical therapy.
Our poor mom is on a feeding tube, (directly to her stomach) and on a respirator through a trach, at least 65 percent of each day. We are asking for anyones help!
For anyone that has had a family member, friend, loved one  that has had this kind of stroke and or any doctors that can give us any information, hope, and direction.
If you have any information,please email us ***@****.
Thank you in advance!
Barrie, Shane, Bridgette, and Dakota

[N3FR]

Our son had 2 strokes over the past 3 years, and intermittently goes through stages where he just will not swallow. We get little to no satisfaction from the doctors who attend him and are so unbearably frustrated. No support groups for his age group (42) either. Please, we need help.  Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

[Debbie_Days]

I hope your mom is doing better.  She needs Vital Stim Therapy so she can learn to swallow.  My dad just had a stroke on July 1, 2008.  He can't swallow, but now is recieving vital stim therapy and is recuperating.  Vital Stim Therapy are electrodes that go directy to the throat and stimulates the weak muscles so they can swallow eventually.  It has a  97% success rate.  Make sure your mom goes to a rehap center that has that.  Any questions, please reach me at debbie_days@yahoo.  Just tell me who are on the subject line.  Your mom should recuperate but you have to be patient knowing this is a slow process.  Eventually they will remove the peg feeding tube.