In the wee hours of January 15, 2006, Mad Mikey woke his wife with his shaking. He didn't mean to, but that's how seizures are. Yes, he was seizing. He'd never done that before and Mrs. Mikey was scared.

She called 911 and tried to keep her husband from getting hurt. The paramedics showed up a few moments later and began to administer care to their patient. After the seizure, Mikey was out of it -- incoherent and combative. He was restrained on the stretcher as he was loaded into the ambulance and whisked off to the hospital.

In the Emergency Department, the doctors and nurses worked quickly to fully assess him and figure out what was wrong. It was decided that he'd had a stroke and that there was a bleed in his brain. After hours of careful monitoring, the situation was not improving; surgery was the only hope.

Mikey came out of surgery and went straight to ICU. Intubated and pharmaceutically comatose, and no one knew what to expect. Family and friends gathered over the next few days. Prayers were offered as frequently as hugs. Anything to help Mrs. Mikey and the young Mikette through the long hours of uncertainty and fear.

Each day was another day filled with questions and raw nerves. Little things like a twitching finger caused as much concern as they did excitement. The one thing everyone tried desperately to hold onto was hope. Hope that Mikey would make it. Hope that Mikey was still in there somewhere. Hope that he'd wake up soon.

Sedation was gradually reduced so that doctors could gauge whether or not he was able to respond to commands. He would respond to one or two, but each one was a victory in the eyes of the people who loved him.

Then the infections hit. At first it was pneumonia. Then, MRSA. And then, Mikey went into septic shock. His already weakened body was being further subjected to more punishment. It was touch and go; doctors camped out next to his bed.

Mikey pulled through. Time and time again, he managed to surprise all the men and women who worked so hard to save his life.

22 days after the seizure first woke his wife, Mikey himself woke up, extubated himself (oops!), and was officially back amongst us. Vocal chords damaged from the rough treatment, he could only whisper. Once again, hugs and tears ruled the moment.

10 days after waking up, Mikey underwent surgery again to have the bone flap from his first surgery placed back in his head, closing the skull.

Rehab was next. He's improving. Weak, wobbly, and absolutely wonderfully alive, he's due to go home soon, but he still needs time to recover and build strength and stamina. It's a long, long road, but he's on his way.

Mikey had missed a lot of work prior to his hospitalization; kidney failure, dialysis, incapacitating headaches and vomiting made work impossible. It will be a long while before he's ready to go back to work, too. His wife missed quite a bit of work for a few weeks as well. Already strained finances have reached critical levels. Mikey needs our help.

Rent, phone, gas and electric, food, gasoline, medical expenses all add up quickly. You know how it is.

We can ease the family's burden and let Mikey focus on getting better instead of worrying about money by donating to the MadMikey Recovery Fund.

Every little bit helps.

Thank you.

Donations can be sent to:

Mad Mikey
c/o SMASH
PO Box 882353
San Diego, CA 92108-2353

or