Cunningham-Ramos AML & Stroke after TBI Journey

Two days before we were to depart initially, Copa Airlines, a Panamanian airline with the shortest flights to Cali (there are no direct flights), canceled our flights due to it having to ground 21 Boeing 737 planes with possible door defects. This turned out to be a blessing because at 10:30 pm that night, when we would have been up in the sky flying, Kim suffered a seizure and ended up in the hospital overnight. This is the third seizure he suffered ever, which started last year and likely caused by the stroke he suffered over 1.5 years ago.

At first I thought we were going to have to cancel our plans to travel to Colombia, but his old neurologist called us the next day, prescribed anti seizure medication, and said it was okay to fly.

Our flights were actually postponed twice, but we were finally able to take off this past Sunday. By then, having thought back and forth about how ‘adventurous’ it was to take Kim on such long journey, I was pretty calm and ready to take on any emergency that might arise during transit. Amazingly, the trip was better than fantastic! Kim was super alert the entire trip, did not even rest his head on the plane pillow provided to him, was super strong and cooperative during the 4 wheel chair transfers he had to make, and did not have a single bodily function.

We breezed through immigration & customs with the aid of wheel chair handlers and luggage porters, and stepped out of the Cali airport radiantly to meet my family who had been anxiously waiting for us.

All is going great so far! I interviewed 2 nurses yesterday and will be conducting 4 more interviews today for a second nurse. We loved the first nurse we interviewed and likely to hire her to start tomorrow.

I’m grateful for your messages of support, good wishes, and prayers for us to have a good trip. It was better than I ever expected it to be! I know deep in my heart that I’ve made the best decision for both of us. It ‘takes a village’, loving and caring family & friends to physically & emotionally survive a long and sad illness such Kim’s. THANK you 🙏