Austin Hatch update - July 17th
The journal entry below as posted by the Hatch family on the CaringBridge website earlier today. It seems like his improvement has been significant.
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written by Hatch Family
Austin James is handsome as always, and still looks like a fit teenage athlete. Austin's treatment program is going very well, including Physical, Occupational, and Speech therapies. (He also enjoys a lot of extra massages and PT exercises with help from the family!)Speech therapy? Not a good sign. I didn't realize he had brain trauma. I thought it was mostly mechanical injuries. Damn.
People can lose and then completely regain their speech, though.
Yea-they had to put him in a medically induced coma because of brain swelling....
Unfortunate to hear about speech therapy, but all things considered it seems to be a positive update. I still have no doubt he will be on the floor of Crisler Arena in 2.5 years in one way or another.
I wish nothing but the best for this young man.
Have they clarified whether we can buy the wrist bands to help support this kid yet?
Glad to hear he's doing better and hope he continues to do so.
You can e-mail [email protected], to inquire about buying one and give them your shipping address.
That was not what my question was directed towards. It was directed towards compliance, as in as am I, as a Michigan alum, allowed to buy something related to a recruit in order to help his family out with this difficult situation or is it against NCAA rules right now. The last I heard, it was not allowed. I was wondering if things changed.
but let's be honest for a minute. Does anyone really see the NCAA launching an investigation on a school who had some alumni donate money to a charity that would help a kid who had been in a plane crash and lost his family? Just the fact that one has to worry about this absurd (I'm not saying you are absurd, but the fact that you have to worry because of how incompetent the NCAA is is absurd).
In all honesty. I can't imagine the NCAA making a big deal about this given the circumstances, but it is the NCAA so one can never be too sure. I would think they would be pretty hesitant with the negative publicity it would draw for doing such a thiing though (they creat enough of that on a daily basis).
As of right now there has not been a ruling made on donations, but what a lot of people have said is say in the email that you would like to cover the cost of the material and the shipping and then if you find out at a later date that you can make donations, feel free to do so.
Well it's good to hear everything is going well for them. Can't wait to hear news about his eventual release from the Hospital
I know that you hear of stories that sometimes seem surreal but this is pretty remarkable. Even if this young man doesn't play basketball ever again (which I highly doubt) to survive not one but two plane crashes is crazy. I can just see the storyline in 2-3 years if this kid leads Michigan Hoops to a Final Four.
The best hope we can have for Austin Hatch is that he sometime leads the Wolverines to an NCAA Championship: as the team doctor. When you are having to learn to walk and talk all over again, it's an indication of severe trauma and residual damage. If he makes what looks like a full recovery, it will still be too risky for him to ever play a sport in which he could sustain another head injury.
He's not "Austin Hatch, the basketball player" anymore; he's "Austin Hatch, the human being." With the support and love he is getting, there is plenty of time for him to be a very successful human being.
I have to disagree. Without knowing the extent of his injuries there's no way to know the celing of his recovery. I would argue to hold out hope that he accomplishes his dreams of playing basketball for Michigan, despite the actual chances of that happening. The kid is clearly resilent, let him fight his battle and see what happens.
you, sir, are a pessimistic fuck. That is all.
so Neurology isn't my field exactly, but it is a little premature to say he won't ever play basketball again. I would agree that it isn't a sure thing, but a kid his age who is obviously physically fit and well conditioned could do t if anyone could.
Also, it isn't like he is playing football or hockey where concussions are frequent. Basketball is a sport where concussion aren't all that common so fear of further injury due to the sport he plays would be relatively low.
I am going to hold out hope that he will make a full recovery that includes playing basketball (for his sake, not mine).
But we don't know the extent of his injuries. Isn't it possible that his speech therapy is due to jaw or tongue damage, rather than brain injury?
I've seen kids get "speech therapy" just because they had trouble after being intubated. Without knowing the extent of his injuries though it's tough to say. I wish him a speedy recovery, tough road ahead but from what I can tell he's a hell of a fighter.
As I last understood they were slowly bringing him out of a medically induced coma. I have no idea how long of a process that is but it seems that he may now be on the road to recover all he can from a severe head injury. His age and fitness will give him every advantage and I continue to pray for him.
Well let's hope people across the country will get tired of hearing about his remarkable recovery during our run to the Final Four!
And this does not violate HIPPA, but Sources close to him say he will probably not be able to play ball again, brain problems considered. Crazier things happen, though. Pray for the kid.
The news I would love to hear more than anything on this site, is that this kid is walking and talking without any problems.
And me both. I try to get daily updates, but it's difficult. I still honestly think he will be perfectly healthy and live a full life
Never say never. They told Brock Mealer he would never walk again. Praying for Austin. Glory to God.
had a good buddy flip his car resulting in severe brain injury. was in a medical coma for 10 days or so, had to drain the pressure off his skull. he is back to about 95% of what he was roughly 1 yr out from the accident. he had to do all the therapy and more from what is described. truly nobody thought he would ever come back if you saw him after the accident. that said, he wasnt an elite athlete, so not sure what the long term holds for Austin. one thing the doc's always said, everyone is unique and responds differently
This is not the time to bicker among ourselves about what are really just details. Let's all pull together now and send all of our love and best prayers to Austin and the whole family. And certainly, I want to chip in and agree that I have always hoped for him to be the next Dr. Hatch.
And I do love the idea that if he can't play the game, he could lead us on to the court, the way Brock Mealer did. I really can't think of too many better things.
Austin, I hope you know that all of your Michigan family really want you to join us as a student - basketball or not. You were our guy then, and you're our guy now. Get back on your feet and start on that degree ! You don't know how much we are pulling for you . . . .
I pray that this kid just makes a recovery to live a normal life. If he does then I hope that Michigan will honor his scholarship regardless if he ever plays again. God works miracles!!
From the previous updates, I wasn't quite sure they'd completely brought him out of the coma. If he's involved with speech and physical therapy, he's obviously passed that landmark and more. And, shallow as it seems, glad to hear he's still handsome, considering the reported fractured skull and cuts to his face, because looking in the mirror and seeing himself as he was can help his mood and further encourage him to work on recovering what isn't so easily seen.
All the best, Austin. We're pulling for you.