Scott Hawkins was only 37 years old when his entire world turned into a nightmare.
Scott suffered a serious stroke while his wife, Danielle, was attending a class in a neighboring county.
Her husband was home with their children when Danielle received the call she will never forget.
Scott Hawkins with wife Danielle / Facebook
It was an April day when Danielle was taking a class in a neighboring county and Scott was staying home with their kids at their Durand residence in Michigan.
“He called me and he was slurring his words,” Danielle recalled.
“He said he had a bad headache and something was wrong.”
Danielle and Scott both called 911 and a medical team quickly arrived to take Scott to the hospital.
Scott Hawkins with wife Danielle / Facebook
”When emergency medical crews loaded Scott into the ambulance, his blood pressure spiked, causing fluid in the lungs,” Danielle said.
“It was really, really bad,” Danielle added, before taking a long pause and admitting, “Sometimes it’s hard to talk about it.”
The emergency medical had to intubate Scott in the ambulance.
When the couple arrived at the hospital, doctors encouraged Danielle to call the rest of the family.
She was told that her husband would probably not make it through the night.
“His oxygen levels were in the 60s and 70s. They told me they should be above 90”, Danielle said.
Scott Hawkins / Facebook
Scott had suffered a burst arteriovenous malformation aneurysm near his brainstem.
The aneurysm that had been with him since birth, caused a stroke.
When the surgeons attempted to stop the bleeding in his brain, Scott tragically suffered a heart attack during the procedure, according to Health Beat.
“They lost him for a few minutes,” Danielle said. “He had a loss of oxygen because of that, too.”
A week after the procedure, Scott was still unable to respond or follow directions.
Doctors then told her at this stage, he was probably never going to wake up. Danielle was told that her husband would likely never regain consciousness or function normally, let alone ever be able to kiss her or tell her that he loves her.
Scott Hawkins / Facebook
“They told me to let him go,” Danielle said.
But she refused to believe their devastating prognosis.
And Danielle knew something even the doctors didn’t: the strength of Scott’s spirit.
Instead of pulling the plug and saying goodbye, Danielle leaned over to kiss her dying husband.
As she put her lips to his lifeless body, she felt something she never expected: Scott kissed her back.
Shutterstock
Maybe Danielle was just imagining it, she admits. But that little sign was enough for her to believe, enough to keep life support systems running, and enough to change the course of their lives forever.
With newfound hope, Danielle fought to keep Scott on life support and was determined to prove to everyone that he would recover.
Her belief in Scott slowly returned to life function. After five weeks of pulmonary rehabilitation, Scott no longer needed a ventilator.
“That’s when I started proving to everyone (that he could recover),” Danielle said.
Scott Hawkins with wife Danielle / Facebook
“He’s a musician, so I’d bring in thumb guitars. He would flick the notes. The doctors said it was just a reflex. I told him to change the notes and he did.
Danielle knew that if Scott tried to speak to her, he wouldn’t be able to do so because of his tracheotomy, an incision in the windpipe made to relieve an obstruction to breathing.
But in a leap of faith, Danielle covered the surgically created airway in Scott’s neck — and he started talking to her.
“I covered his trach and he started talking to me,” she said.
“The first words were: ‘I love you,’ the second: ‘get me pain medication.” Then, when the doctors asked him, ‘What are you playing?’ he said, ‘an instrument.’ The doctors started to believe in us.”
With this indisputable proof of his will to fight, the doctors finally began to believe in Scott.
He was quickly transferred to Spectrum Health’s Rehab and Nursing Center. Scott arrived there in an ambulance and spent six days a week in rehab for the next 16 weeks.
Therapists and doctors used music therapy and instruments, often in co-treatment with speech, occupational, and physical therapies, to help Scott regain strength and coordination.
Scott Hawkins / Facebook
Finally, after 16 weeks, Scott was going home — and he was going to do it on his own two feet.
“He went in on a stretcher and just moved his right hand, and then he left walking with a walker with one hand in the air saying, ‘Rock on,’” a thankful Danielle said.
Danielle praises the staff at Spectrum for Scott’s speedy recovery.
“They started talking to Scott like he was there,” Danielle said, remembering how the rehab staff fueled the hope she had all along.
Additionally, Danielle never left his husband’s side. She offered support, encouragement, and even tough love when needed.
Danielle definitely believed he would recover. Even when they told her to call the family that first night, she just never felt it. She never believed Scott would die.
Scott Hawkins with wife Danielle / Facebook
Scott still has a lot of time to recover, but he’s making progress, step by step.
“He’s playing guitar again. He plays drums. Before, he was unable to swallow. He had a feeding tube for nine months, but now he can eat whatever he wants,” Danielle said.
I believe the greatest medical miracles happen when we believe that they can happen and give care with that in mind!
The best thing you can give someone is a chance.
The rehabilitation staff did that, seeing Scott as the man, husband, and father he was instead of just another patient chart to be dealt with as quickly as possible.
Scott Hawkins / Facebook
Too many people take marriage for granted, tossing aside such dedication when it’s no longer easy or convenient.
Thankfully, Danielle Hawkins made a vow to remain steadfast to her husband “in sickness and in health, through good times and bad,” and she meant those words, never giving up on him.
This couple’s perseverance is proof that a strong bond can overcome even the biggest obstacles — and our intuition can be more accurate than any medical test.
