Everytime I see a thread like this it brings back memories of when my hubby had his cerebral aneurysm.

Central nervous system injuries are difficult to deal with. There is the initial injury and then injuries caused by swelling and sometimes the corrective surgery needed. The doctors won't be able to tell you much until the swelling goes down and they can begin the therapy phase of his recovery. Hubby also hated the intubation. He bit his tube shut and they had to do an emergency trach. He was able to get off that after several months. They knew that he would be able to eventually but they needed the trach hole to "dry up" some before the final removal. (scary day for me...they pulled it and walked out of the room!! They had to come back and tell me to take hubby back home....I was hyperventilating at this point and they had to calm me down before we could leave.)

By the way, my hubby was 37 when he collapsed. And I take care of him at home.

Your son may be fighting the respirator not just the tube in his throat which is terribly uncomfortable. This may be where he is getting the feeling that he can't breathe. A trach will help him to feel more comfortable.

All of the advice from people here has been very good. The ones I will stress are #1. Trust your instincts, you know your son the best. You will learn to be observant without even realizing it. I can walk into hubby's room and instantly know that something is or has gone on. #2 Help the nurses and doctors to see him as a person. Tell them about him, about his interests, his likes and dislikes. What type of man he is e.g. casual, friendly, a good sportsman things like that. As soon as you can get things to decorate his room like posters or pictures of his interests. It helps the nurses and doctors to have something to talk to him about, to talk about something other than medical stuff, scary stuff. For my hubby it was (and is) Star Trek and Scifi in general amongst other things. Almost everyone knows a little about Star Trek LOL. #3. Get a portable radio or CD player so the nurses can play it for him to help him and it makes them feel good that they have something that they can do for him.

The road ahead is long and some days difficult and most day tiring. A positive attitude is a MUST and your wife must know this. But right now she isn't a nurse, she's a mom who's beloved child has been terribly hurt. She's hurt and frightened and her heart cannot hear her head. My hubby has been handicapped for 22 years and his mother still cries every day for his pain. Once she can be of use again, she will "get it more together"

Let your son know that he must give his body time to heal. Let him know that people all over the country who don't know him are praying for him(and his family too), people who do know about adversity. We live in an apartment building where you must be mobility impaired and you've never seen a livelier bunch. We have basketball players, water skiers, sailors, ping-pongers (?), and pool players to name a few.

Your support and strength will help him more than anything so be sure to take care of yourself. Rest, eat smart, find someone to talk to who can let you vent too.

It is my firm belief that God sends guardian angels to watch over people who are injured in such terrible ways. They are with my hubby 24/7/365 (I have proof). They are with your son now too.