Dad Jim Scantlin calls Sept. 22, 1984, the darkest day of his life. You can read the CBS story about Sarah's continuing recovery here. A stilled voice's echo: Woman's rally after injury in '84 was a Sarah seems to recall things from the days at the edge of consciousness. Her brain was injured so severely Sarah. Sarah, who was was in a hit-and-run accident when she was 18 that left her in the coma-like state, began speaking, out of the blue, a week ago. Sarah has told her parents where her grandparents used to live, and recalled names of her friends from high school. } But on the way back to her car, a drunk driver collided with Scantlin, knocking her into the path of another oncoming car. She is 40, but without a concept of time passing, she thinks she's 18. Time magazine featured her in a 2007 special edition that focused on the brain and the "mysteries of consciousness." She woke up in 2005 and she thought she was still a teenager. "As I'm walking around the room she would still keep her eyes on me, watching what I was doing," said Jennifer Trammell, Sarah's nurse for 20 years. Market data provided by Factset. A good 'k.' Over the years, Lori, who lives in Kansas City, remained a faithful friend. A week ago last Friday, Sarah was ready. "They never tell you what the prognosis is for a head injury," said Sarah's mother, Betsy Scantlin. [1] The accident occurred when Scantlin was crossing the street in her hometown of Hutchinson, Kan.[2] Judge Steven Becker of Reno County sentenced the drunken driver Doug Doman, then 22 years old, to a six-month jail term and to pay a hospital visit to Sarah. ''I'm sorry. When her brother gently told her she was 38 years old now, she just stared silently back at him. In Winfield Ark. The surgeons in Wichita told her family that Sarah was physically strong and would survive the injuries to her body, but she had a severe injury to her brain which she wouldn't recover from. Trapped In A Coma For 20 Years, Her First Words Stunned Her Parents Sarah's case differs from Terry Schiavo's case, where a lack of oxygen caused damage to the entire brain, resulting in what doctors call persistent vegetative state. She was breathing on her own by then, but relied on a feeding tube for nourishment. Say I'm thirsty. Sarah Scantlin's first words, uttered 20 years after a drunk driver struck her, have captivated a world hungry for a miracle.Scantlin was 18 when she was hit while walking to her car in 1984 in . She went through intensive physical, occupational and speech therapy, which helped her to control her arms and legs. Sarah's brother Jim Scantlin said. I'm truly sorry,'' Mr. Doman said before his sentencing Friday. The breakthrough came when the nursing home's activity director, Pat Rincon, was working with Scantlin and a small group of other patients, trying to get them to speak. Hospitals.' It was uncanny, said her brother Jim Scantlin. She stops exhausted. Woman wakes from 20 year coma - freerepublic.com She noticed her nightmares subsided. Eight years later after gallbladder surgery Tipps sat straight up and said "Mother what has Marybell" -- the beautician -- "what has she put in your hair? The daughter of a proud Midwestern family, her life at 18 was filled with goose bumps and laughter and promise. She asked Betsy Scantlin if she was sitting down, told her someone wanted to talk to her and switched the phone to speaker mode: "Do you need anything," her mother asked her later. They did not want to get her parents' hopes up until they were sure Sarah would not relapse, Trammell said. This page has been accessed 20,066 times. Canadian. On September 21, 1984, just a couple weeks into her freshman year, she was struck by a motor vehicle (drunk driver who fled the scene) while walking with friends and sustained a traumatic brain injury and spinal cord damage. Meanwhile, her tragedy began back in 1984 just weeks into her freshman year at Hutchinson Community College, when she was hit by the driver, who fled the scene. Yes you are ready to talk.". Her favorite question was, Really?. Sarah Scantlin, who found her voice after existing in a minimally conscious state for decades, died May 20, just two weeks after her 50th birthday. That week, she. This is a digitized version of an article from The Timess print archive, before the start of online publication in 1996. One such story is that of Sarah Scantlin, a woman who has been in a state of minimal consciousness since a car accident in 1984. Whether there was neural growth which is unusual or she learned to use channels already there in an efficient way or whether she developed a new channel of electrical or neural hormonal flow in her brain I can't answer.". Today, after a remarkable recovery, she can talk again. The 18-year-old freshman at Hutchinson Community College had just been selected to the drill team. She knew her birthday is May 2. Legal Statement. Her skull had been crushed, her leg was twisted, and she quickly fell into a coma. One happy night -- Sept. 21 1984 -- Sarah 18 went to Tapper's bar to celebrate making the school's Dragon Dolls drill team. "I love you," she said. The accident occurred when Scantlin was crossing the street in her hometown of Hutchinson, Kan. [2] Judge Steven Becker of Reno County sentenced the drunken driver Doug Doman, then 22 years old, to a six-month jail term and to pay a hospital visit to Sarah. Woman talks after 20 years in a coma | CBC News This story appeared on Page B1 of The Standard-Times on July 30 2005. 1992. HUTCHINSON, KANSAS A woman unable to talk since she was hit by a drunken driver 20 years ago has begun to regain her memory and form words, sending her father "from despair to joy.". Scantlin's doctor, Bradley Scheel, said physicians are not sure why she suddenly began talking but believe critical pathways in the brain may have regenerated. She was in a minimally conscious coma-like state for 20 years. Twenty years ago Sarah was hit by a drunk driver, the impact throwing. ", "She said 'It's Sarah,' and I said 'It's Sarah?'" She remains hospitalized at in Wichita. Tragically, Sarah sustained a catastrophic head injury when a second car hit her; however, Scantlin managed to survive. TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. They talk to her like she really is back. A hit-and-run driver struck Sarah Scantlin, then 18, when she was walking to her car in September 1984. During a year the Scantlins spent in New Mexico after Sarah's accident, they truly faced the reality of their situation, Scantlin said. Mr. Doman's car struck Sarah Scantlin, 18, of Hutchinson, last September, officials said. I said 'Anything else?' Thats whats happening here in Hutchinson and South Hutchinson. Sarah's short term memory is impaired, but her long term memory is eerily intact. 2023 www.southcoasttoday.com. The prognosis is that she won't walk. Drunken Driver Gets Jail Term And Visit to Comatose Victim ", For Sarah's parents the grief was exhausting. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. Time magazine even featured her in a 2007 special edition that focused on the brain and the mysteries of consciousness.. She hadn't. Some grew up and some grew old.