The precious moment a dad returned home to see his daughter after a devastating stroke has left the internet fighting back tears.
On the evening of June 19, Joe was driving home alone when he experienced a left middle cerebral artery stroke. His partner, Tierney, from the U.K, couldn’t get hold of Joe for several hours, despite calling his phone endlessly. She managed to get through the next morning when a nurse answered Joe’s phone and told Tierney that he was in the hospital.
“When I arrived at the hospital, Joe was sent down for an in-depth CT scan and that’s when our lives turned upside down,” Tierney told Newsweek. “The stroke had basically killed all the left side of his brain and left him paralyzed down his right side, and it was continuing to crush the rest of his brain.”
Consultants suggested there were two options—to leave Joe and “see if he would survive,” or perform a craniectomy to remove part of his skull and relieve pressure on the brain. Both options were incredibly high risk, but Tierney’s main priority was keeping Joe alive for the sake of their family, and so he could one day reunite with his daughter.
He underwent the lifesaving brain surgery before spending several days in ICU. His hospital stay was lengthy, but three months later, he was finally allowed home to see his daughter.
The family got to spend five hours together away from the hospital, which was “absolutely amazing.” It was a long time coming, and although it was only brief, Tierney said the wait was “so worth it.”
She said: “The excitement from our daughter was heartwarming and she barely slept the night before. Joe’s friend went to collect Joe from the hospital, which takes around 20 minutes, and our daughter waited in the window the whole time, just waiting for Joe to come round the corner.
“Joe’s determination to not let his stroke beat or define him amazes me and our little girl daily. We are so proud of him. This awful experience has affected our daughter, but she continues to smile and be brave, and she is the one keeping me strong.”
Joe, Tierney and their daughter went out for lunch with some friends before returning home for some downtime. Joe had to wear a medical helmet to protect his head after having part of his skull removed.
As Joe continues with his stroke recovery, Tierney has been documenting the journey on TikTok (@joe650296). The videos show him in a hospital bed, learning to walk again, and the video of him reuniting with his daughter has gone viral with over 401,600 views and 15,300 likes at the time of writing.
The heartwarming moment they finally got to see each other has delighted many, leading to over 100 comments on TikTok so far.
Joe has made great progress with his mobility, but since being in hospital he has also been diagnosed with heart failure after a blood clot was discovered. Recovery won’t be easy, and the family is taking it one day at a time, but Tierney is just happy that Joe keeps on fighting.
“Joe is now walking unaided, which is unbelievable considering the low chance of ever walking again. But unfortunately, he still cannot speak properly and has little movement in his right arm. But importantly, he is alive,” Tierney said.
Many internet users took to the comments section to praise the bond between Joe and his family, leading to more than 100 comments on the video so far.
One comment reads: “This is absolutely brilliant.”
Another TikTok user wrote: “Keep going and fighting to get home to your family.”
Another person replied: “Aww this is so lovely. Wishing you all the luck in the world.”
While one commenter added: “Precious. Hope there are many more of these visits.”
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