Schumacher ski accident, coma and recovery

[Jeffsvilleusa]

I would like to include a link to my short blog post about Schumacher.

http://jeffsvilleusa.wordpress.com/2014 ... chumacher/

[Helios]

G. Hartsteins latest blog

http://formerf1doc.wordpress.com/2014/02/24/perplexity/

[Pup]

G. Hartsteins latest blog
http://formerf1doc.wordpress.com/2014/02/24/perplexity/

Wow.

Well, I appreciate the insight he gave into Schumacher's decision just after the accident. I don't, however share his opinion on what information the public "deserves" - using his word.

This is totally unfair to the people who made Michael the celebrity he is.

Absurd. The Schumachers don't have a debt to repay to his fans. He has always been appreciative of his support, from what I've seen, and that's all any fan should ever expect from their hero. The idea that his family somehow owes the public regular updates on his condition - and that we have the right to complain when they don't - is incredibly selfish and, frankly, a bit creepy.

...they DESERVE to know. Why on earth is their pain not being considered?

Sorry, by "a bit creepy", I obviously meant "off-the-scale creepy".

On top of that, his critiques and prognostications on Schumacher's care and outlook seem to have sunk to the level of color commentary. I'm sure he's well meaning - in his own way - but someone needs to go thump him on the head and remind him that he's this is real life, not a sports broadcast.

Creepy indeed.

[simieski]

http://www.planetf1.com/driver/3213/918 ... unchanged-



The process of waking up Michael Schumacher from an artificial coma is "unchanged", his manager said on Monday.

"This phase can take a long time, which much to our regret can lead to many misinterpretations," Sabine Kehm, Schumacher's manager, told dpa.

The news magazine Focus reported on Monday that the waking up process had been halted.

Schumacher, 45, suffered severe head injuries in a skiing accident at the French resort of Meribel on December 29.

The seven-time World Champion was taken to a hospital in Grenoble where he was placed in an artificial coma.

[myurr]

@Pup - whilst I do agree with you, at the same time with the lack of news many fans will slowly be realising that in all likelihood their idol is effectively dead. I'm not in this camp for anyone I'm not close to in real life, but many people really do feel incredibly attached to people they follow and read about in the media and see on TV. They get the same emotional attachment as they would to a close friend. Due to the lack of information these people are left in a vacuum and are having to face up to a devastating reality without the closure given by actually knowing.

Whilst Schumacher's have my every sympathy and deserve their privacy, his management are different. This is not a man who only has his family around him, he has a public profile and a team of people who manage it. Would it really have caused pain and suffering for his family to have released a news story saying "we're still in the process of waking him up, nothing much has changed, things are still serious and could get worse but for now everyone is still feeling positive that there will be good news down the road." From @simieski's post it sounds like they've effectively released just such a statement. Doing so every couple of weeks wouldn't be too much to ask.

[Alexgtt]

G. Hartsteins latest blog

http://formerf1doc.wordpress.com/2014/02/24/perplexity/

I'm sorry but this guys blog is a disgrace. This is a private family matter until the point the family want everyone else to know. That's it, end of.

[Helios]

I didn't give any opinion with my comment, just posted the blog itself. Just in case anyone feels I agree with Gary. But I also don't think he meant all the things he said in a negative way.

[Manoah2u]

G. Hartsteins latest blog
http://formerf1doc.wordpress.com/2014/02/24/perplexity/

Wow.

Well, I appreciate the insight he gave into Schumacher's decision just after the accident. I don't, however share his opinion on what information the public "deserves" - using his word.

This is totally unfair to the people who made Michael the celebrity he is.

Absurd. The Schumachers don't have a debt to repay to his fans. He has always been appreciative of his support, from what I've seen, and that's all any fan should ever expect from their hero. The idea that his family somehow owes the public regular updates on his condition - and that we have the right to complain when they don't - is incredibly selfish and, frankly, a bit creepy.

...they DESERVE to know. Why on earth is their pain not being considered?

Sorry, by "a bit creepy", I obviously meant "off-the-scale creepy".

On top of that, his critiques and prognostications on Schumacher's care and outlook seem to have sunk to the level of color commentary. I'm sure he's well meaning - in his own way - but someone needs to go thump him on the head and remind him that he's this is real life, not a sports broadcast.

Creepy indeed.

G. Hartsteins latest blog

http://formerf1doc.wordpress.com/2014/02/24/perplexity/

I'm sorry but this guys blog is a disgrace. This is a private family matter until the point the family want everyone else to know. That's it, end of.

i'm glad i'm getting some backup finally, when i said the same a couple of weeks ago i was burned for it

[i70q7m7ghw]

Ignoring the bit about demanding information etc. because that is clearly out of order, this bit if accurate gives us something to think about

If Michael is breathing on his own but still not showing purposeful interaction with his environment, then patience is still very much in order. Remember that at one month post-sedation, persistence of this state means roughly a 50% chance of awakening, with the quality of that awakening an open question. This falls to 20% at six weeks (three weeks from now), with a larger portion of these patients having severe functional handicaps. And at one year, essentially no one still comatose wakes up.

If accurate, what he is saying is that 3 weeks from now if nothing has changed the chances of Michael waking up drop dramatically.

I hope for the best, but fear for the worst at the moment. I think realistically, if Michael doesn't wake up or show a significant improvement in the next 4 weeks, It's unlikely he ever will.

[FoxHound]

I think Gary Hartstein's er.... heart, is in the right place here.
He is getting lambasted for being over eager and I get that too. But he does make some amends today by giving us his reasoning why.

You’ve made me realise I was certainly too strong in my criticism of the current comms policy. You’ve probably noticed this is a bit of a character trait! I’m exquisitely sensitive to the unimaginable situation Michael’s family and friends are in, and if I could think of how giving us SOME information would make their lives in any way worse, I would reverse position immediately.

And I get his point too.

It is none of our business what happens to Schumacher, but at the same time it is our business as Schumacher is not an average person whom has gone unloved for many years by many millions.
Dr Hartstein worked with him for many years and has issue with the lack of information forthcoming from the Schumacher camp.

The Schumacher's owe us nothing, that is a given. But the human side to this tragic story is that the millions who have supported him are left to know near zero of what is happening to their hero.
Us knowing, or not, will have no impact on Schumacher's recovery. What I have seen happen the last 2 months is that the media blackout has actually had the reverse effect of it's intended goal.
Rife speculation and nothing tangible which leaves people like Dr Hartstein frustrated.

It is not the people's right to know, but it goes some way to keep the loyal fans in touch with their hero.
And in view of the speculation we have witnessed from various news sources which are unsubstantiated and downright absurd....is that a bad thing?
I don't think so.

[marcush.]

Yes I look for News about Michaels conditon now and then but I respect the familys decision to keep quiet .I don´t think they are any different to a normal Family in what they experience now , and I think that´s why they want to Keep Michaels condition out of the News there is no Special Agenda behind it apart from the hope to create the Optimum Environment to help Michael.
Whatever it is all just not our business and it´s not Mr.Hartsteins as well . Humans as we are we make mistakes and take decisions others may not be happy with . Such is life.

[Holm86]

I don't feel its our right to know either. But the very big problem with being secret and don't want to say anything about his condition is that conspiracy's and false stories start to wander. And I would think that it is much more hurtful to his family to have to respond to outrages rumors instead of just telling the truth and being open about his condition. And sure it is hard to tell the public about the condition of your loved ones but then use a spokes person. If there was daily updates even if they say that things are the same today as yesterday it would still help stop all those speculations if he is alive or dead. At least that's my opinion.

[myurr]

Yes I look for News about Michaels conditon now and then but I respect the familys decision to keep quiet .I don´t think they are any different to a normal Family in what they experience now , and I think that´s why they want to Keep Michaels condition out of the News there is no Special Agenda behind it apart from the hope to create the Optimum Environment to help Michael.
Whatever it is all just not our business and it´s not Mr.Hartsteins as well . Humans as we are we make mistakes and take decisions others may not be happy with . Such is life.

Whilst true, imagine your best friend was critically ill in hospital and the family refused to talk to you and update you. That is not a perfect analogy as best friendship is a two way thing, but many people do feel that level of connection to the idols they follow and have been kept in a vacuum by Michael's management team. It's worth remembering that MS earned millions of pounds a year because of that connection thanks to sponsorship deals and so on. His management team has been exploiting that human connection felt by his fans to market to them to earn Michael money.

Nothing at all wrong with that - it's a basic fact of life in this day and age. But it is callous and insensitive to have exploited that connection for personal gain to now deny that any connection exists and to refuse to give any kind of update.

I don't think this reflects at all on his immediate family, nor do I think it would really affect them one way or the other what is in the media. As others have pointed out if anything the news vacuum has made things worse for them should they read the papers or go online as it has led to rampant speculation. But I do think it reflects badly upon his management team and their lack of communication except when effectively forced by the build up of pressure is poor handling of the situation. Unfortunately in these situations when someone is in a critical and life threatening situation no news is generally bad news especially the longer it persists. Schumacher's fans are being asked to deal with reality in a vacuum with no hope for closure, not knowing whether to hope and pray or come to terms with the worst.

If my best friend were in a life threatening coma in hospital and the family refused to give even the briefest of updates then I would be pretty devastated. Millions of fans are now going through that experience with Michael's public personality, yet his management team (the effective family of his public profile) are shutting those fans out and ignoring them and their feelings.

[WillerZ]

For those of you wondering about helmet camera safety (I was), I tried to chase it up with Contour/GoPro and asked cycling legend Lennard Zinn to ask his helmet-manufacturer contacts about it as well. Happily, Lennard was as interested as I was, and as concerned about Schumi, his writeup is here.

[Vettel Maggot]

This situation could have been handled a lot better from his management team. By creating a blackout what that leads people to believe is he is pretty much dead. Which I think he might be anyway. If there was good news we would have heard it by now surely.