Maine woman with COVID-19 wakes from coma just a day from having life support ended
WMTW
Andrew Lerman, shown here, said his mother, Bettina Lerman, 69, tested positive for the COVID-19 virus in September. On a ventilator for 60 days, she woke up just a day from having life support turned off.
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PORTLAND, Maine (WMTW) — A Maine woman on a ventilator for 60 days after contracting COVID-19 was just a day from having life support turned off when she suddenly woke up.
Andrew Lerman said his mother, Bettina Lerman, 69, tested positive for the virus in September.
Lerman said his mother was unvaccinated and had underlying health conditions, including diabetes.
He said his mother fell into a coma for more than a month and said her doctors were convinced she was not going to make it.
Lerman said the family had made funeral arrangements and was in the process of purchasing a headstone when he received a phone call from her doctor.
“He goes, ‘Well I need you to come up to the hospital right away.’ I’m like, What? Is something wrong?’ He goes, ‘Well your mother just woke up.’ I literally dropped the phone. I was like, what? I mean because we were supposed to be terminating life support that day,” Lerman said.
Lerman said he and his wife rushed to the hospital.
“We asked her, do you remember anybody talking to you and coming to see you? And she shook her head yes. So, even though she couldn’t respond, even tho she was in that coma, she knew people came to visit her,” Lerman said.
Lerman said his mother is not out of the woods yet, but said she is able to breathe on her own with some oxygen support.
“We give her words of encouragement every day. We tell her to keep on fighting,” Lerman said.
Lerman said his mother has plans to get vaccinated against COVID-19.
“I think the right thing to do is to get vaccinated, so if one of our family members gets it again it won’t be that bad,” Lerman said.
Lerman said people who have family members who are hospitalized with COVID-19 should not give up hope.
The family has created a GoFundMe page to help raise money to pay for her medical care.
