Question
"My mom was shot in the face five months ago one bullet exited through
the c4 vertebrae causing her to have no movement to her body. but she
has feeling and can move her eyes, mouth. she can't feel us touching her
but she can tell the difference between hot and cold and she also has
allot of muscles spasm in her legs. she has difficulty breathing on her
own. I have come to the realization that she will probably never walk
again. but with her being dependant on the breathing machine will she
always be dependent upon the machine or will she some day not need the
breathing machine especially since she has felling back in her neck."

Answer
HI Hailee-

I'm sorry, I did reply to this question- it must've gotten lost somewhere... But here is my reply again- hopefully it'll reach you this time!


It sounds like your mom had an 'incomplete' injury- she cannot move but still has some sensation. Unhappily, she may continue to require the ventilator, though I can't say for sure. I had a vent attached for more than 3 months before I could breathe on my own, so sometimes it does take a while. c4 is right on the edge of it though- some people injured there need help breathing, some don't.

I'm sorry I can't tell you more- so many times with spinal cord injuries it's hard to say what the outcome will be, there are so many things that can affect it. Please do write in again if I can help, and again i apologize for the lost answer from before.

good luck
leslie