Taylor Hale, who was declared brain-dead by doctors in September 2011, made a miraculous full recovery after her family chiropractor prayed for her, following her being taken off life support.

 

Hale was only 14 years old when her parents were informed by medical professionals that they would never see her graduate. On May 18 however, Hale, who completed her studies at Waukee High School in Iowa, donned a cap and graduation gown and ascended the stage along with the rest of her batch to accept her hard-fought diploma. When asked to recollect her struggle, the 17-year-old said she had little memory of what she had gone through but knew that she had made a full recovery because of some sort of divine intervention.

According to her family, Hale was spending time with some friends after a football game, on the night of her accident, when one of the friends said that he had to leave. To stop him from leaving, Hale and another friend playfully climbed onto the hood of his car, only moments before he unwittingly put the car in reverse, which caused both girls to fall to the ground. While her friend escaped from the accident unharmed, Hale hit her head against the pavement and lost consciousness immediately.

She was rushed to the nearest hospital, where her parents Chuck and Stacey were told that Hale had suffered a traumatic brain injury. Reportedly, Hale spent the next seven days in a medically induced coma so her brain could heal but it was not long before doctors saw her suffer a brain hemorrhage that caused her brain to partially slide into her spinal canal – a phenomenon that is medically considered almost always fatal if not a point of no return. Consequentially, the doctors told her parents that Hale was now brain-dead and they would have to consider donating her organs or prepare for her funeral.

That is when Jeff Stickel, a devout family friend and chiropractor, dropped by and everything changed for the better. Upon arrival, Stickel told Hale’s parents that God had sent him to heal their dying daughter. Despite being told repeatedly by the doctors that nothing could be done to bring Hale back to life, Stickel sought permission to pray for her and her family. He went on to place his hand on Hale’s neck and plead the lord to spare the child’s life.

Stickel left after praying but later, when doctors took Hale off life support, instead of flatlining, she struggled to breathe on her own. She was immediately put back on life support, where over the next few hours, Hale started to show visible signs of improvement, with her brain regaining momentum and her eyelids starting to flutter. Eventually, Hale woke up from her coma.

“It was the hand of God at work,” said her father. “That's the only thing that can explain it.”

On her road to recovery, Hale spent several months re-learning how to do everything, including talking and walking on her own.

“It was just like a painful stressful recovery. But I pushed through it because you just got to do what you got to do,” she said.

Hale’s recovery was undoubtedly an arduous one, with her stumbling upon several setbacks multiple times. After regaining her cognitive ability, which had suffered a great deal since her long-term memory had been lost in the accident, Hale finally returned to school, where she was expected to clear tests and make grades just like any other student.

“I'm always thankful to all the doctors and nurses and therapists who helped me get better, but God did most of the saving,” she said.

Having resumed normal life, Hale learned how to drive and even started dating. Today, she continues to welcome bits and pieces of her childhood memories as and when they decide to come back to her.

Photo Credits: Fox News