Debbie's Story
If not for her husband’s keen observation, Debbie Thigpen likely wouldn’t be alive.
Debbie, 67, was with her husband Dave and a few friends watching sports and playing Yahtzee in their pole barn in Starke, Florida, one Sunday night. Debbie got up to get a drink and tripped over a bucket on the floor.
Her husband saw her go down and quickly helped Debbie into a chair. She had a cut above her left eye but was conscious and talking – she didn’t look seriously injured – but he noticed her pupils weren’t tracking quite right.
“A friend said she hit her head hard on the concrete floor so I thought, well, we might need to get her checked out,” Dave said. The family called 911 and Debbie’s daughter went with her mom to the UF Health Shands Hospital (Shands) in Gainesville.
“Next thing you know, I get a call from the hospital saying we need to do emergency surgery to save her life,” Dave said.
Debbie sustained a subdural hematoma, causing blood to pool in her brain. The family rushed to the hospital as Debbie was intubated and taken into surgery, where her skullcap was removed to relieve the pressure on her brain.
For nearly five hours, her family waited for news.
“After the surgery, (the doctor) came out and said she’s as sick as anyone can be without dying,” Dave said. “And now it was up to her.”
Awaking in the ICU
A diehard Florida Gators fan, Debbie retired in 2023 after working as a research administrator at the University of Florida for 23 years. She generated research funding for the university – a job she loved – but now she was enjoying time with Dave, their kids and grandkids, and friends who often joined them for football and basketball games in the pole barn.
She doesn’t remember much from the night of the accident or for the two weeks that followed, but Dave does. And talking about it months later is still very hard.
Following surgery, Debbie went to the intensive care unit at Shands, where she was sedated for a few days, but then began responding to neurology tests, such as squeezing a hand or moving her feet.
On day five, she opened her right eye; her left was still swollen shut.
Her family asked, “Do you recognize us? If you do, blink your eye.”
Debbie blinked.
Debbie slowly improved during her 13 days at Shands. Her brain and incision were healing. A ventilator still helped her breathe and she now had a tracheostomy – a slit in her windpipe with a tube that connected to her ventilator. A feeding tube provided nutrition. She couldn’t talk, walk or think clearly but she recognized she had a long road ahead to recovery.
“Each day, I could see progress”
Once stabilized, Debbie transitioned to Select Specialty Hospital – Gainesville, a critical illness recovery hospital, where a physician-led, multidisciplinary team created a personalized plan to help her return to her active lifestyle.
As nurses tended her incision and helped to manage her comfort, Debbie immediately began participating in respiratory, speech, physical and occupational therapy to strengthen her body and improve her cognition and motor skills.
To help her breathe on her own again, Debbie’s ventilator settings were turned down for increasing amounts of time so her lungs did more of the work. Resistance bands, memory games and swallowing exercises became a routine part of each day.
“Each day, I could see progress,” Dave recalls. In fact, he marked her milestones on a calendar.
Day 2 – his birthday – he arrived to find Debbie had written “Happy Birthday” on a board.
Day 4 – she no longer needed the ventilator, just supplemental oxygen through her trach.
Day 5 – with assistance from her care team, she stood for the first time, wearing a special helmet to protect her head since she was still missing her skull cap.
Day 6 – she sat in a chair. This is important, as being upright helps to rebuild core and respiratory strength.
Day 7 – she was able to speak again after a speech-language pathologist attached a special valve to her trach, allowing air to move through her vocal cords. She asked for water to moisten her parched mouth.
Day 8 – after passing a special test indicating she could swallow without aspirating, she was able to begin eating by mouth again. Initially her diet was soft, easy to chew foods but she soon transitioned to a normal diet.
Day 9 – she no longer needed supplemental oxygen.
Day 10 – her feeding tube was removed.
Day 11 – her tracheostomy was removed.
Day 12 – she was able to get herself up with the use of a walker.
Day 13 – she took her first steps with a walker.
Regaining independence
By the following week, Debbie could walk 350 feet with the walker while closely supervised. At that point, she was ready to move to more intensive therapy at UF Health Rehabilitation Hospital in Gainesville.
Debbie had made tremendous progress, but still lacked strength, endurance and cognition. She couldn’t fully use her right arm. She couldn’t shower or brush her teeth. Over the next 11 days, physical, occupational and speech therapists worked with her daily to change that.
Her sessions became more challenging. For example, in physical therapy, Debbie practiced standing and tossing a ball. She also used a stationary bike and attended group therapy sessions that required her to focus in a stimulating environment.
Debbie played games on a special machine that required her to move her right arm, improving her range of motion. She practiced walking longer distances, stepping into an agility ladder to increase her balance and caring for herself.
And to improve her memory and ability to solve problems, Debbie practiced activities that challenged her thinking skills, such as organizing a pill box or choosing items from a restaurant menu and figuring out how much everything would cost.
During March Madness, as her beloved Florida Gators battled their way to the NCAA men’s basketball championship, Debbie decorated her helmet with Gator stickers and was glued to the hospital TVs.
Debbie was discharged 12 days later, able to bathe and dress, go to the toilet and groom in front of a mirror. She could pick up objects and transfer in and out of a car. She had significantly improved in her ability to prepare meals, order groceries and organize her medications. Debbie still had to wear her helmet everywhere except bed, although now it was fun to wear.
Home sweet home
Debbie is now home with Dave and their cat, Whiskers.
“When she first got home, she needed help with some things like bathing and getting into bed. She still didn’t have a lot of strength but she progressed quickly,” Dave said.
Her walker is gone. “She won’t get a speeding ticket, but she’s moving around pretty good now,” Dave jests.
Debbie sees her progress, too.
“I used to have to take a lot of naps but pretty much now just one a day,” she said.
A month after she got home, Debbie returned to Shands for surgery to have her skull cap put back in place. She no longer wears the helmet but it serves as reminder of how far she’s come.
She achieved a milestone when she felt safe taking a swim in the pond on her family’s property and looks forward to driving again.
Debbie is grateful to the care teams at all three hospitals that saved her life and made recovery possible.
“I’m thankful for everything I’ve come through. Hearing my family talk about it, I know I’m lucky to be alive.”
