‘I felt like I was having to say goodbye’
“When we arrived at the hospital in Baytown, they rushed me into the emergency room. One of the doctors said they would need to run some blood work and also do a spinal tap. But based on my symptoms, he believed I had GBS (Guillain-Barré syndrome).
“He said that you can get it from a flu shot, mosquito bite, food poisoning — all kinds of stuff. It’s a very rare condition that affects about 1 in 100,000 people. It strikes your nervous system, and you become paralyzed.
“After the spinal tap, the doctor confirmed that it was GBS. It was attacking my body very fast. It began in my legs and was working its way up. He said that in time I would recover, that my nerve system would build itself back up. But every person is different. He said it could take weeks, months, or even a couple years.
“By that point, my lungs were collapsing. I was having a hard time breathing. He said that other organs would start collapsing as well. Because of all that, he wanted to intubate me and induce a coma so that my body would have a chance to relax and recover. He told me that I could be in the coma for days, a couple weeks, or maybe even a month or two — however long it took for my body to come back.
“It was a very scary situation, not knowing what was going to happen to me. I asked the doctor, ‘Is there any way you can wait? I want all four of my kids to be here. I want to see them before you do this.’ He said, ‘OK, but you can’t take too long because your body is collapsing.’
“Finally, when my son and three daughters were all there, everyone was crying. My whole family was in tears, along with the nurses. Even the doctor had to walk out. It was so emotional. I felt like I was having to say goodbye.”
— Jaime Aceves
After coming out of the coma sooner than expected, Jaime began a long road to recovery. It has included several stints at TIRR Memorial Hermann in Houston. From not being able to move his legs and arms, to not being able to speak, he slowly regained those abilities and continues building up his strength.
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• ‘I knew something was seriously wrong’
