Saved by a Prayer
At age four, Audriana Roldan was a lively little girl. She had everything: intelligence, good health, and an overall happy life.
Just two weeks after her fourth birthday, a car accident changed her life. In the middle of a snowstorm, a vehicle slammed into her family's car, causing it to spin around on a local highway. Audriana's mother looked at her children in the back seat to make sure they were okay. She looked at Audriana's car seat, and grew fearful. Her father felt her neck for a pulse. "She's not breathing!" he yelled. He gave her CPR until the paramedics arrived.
Before they knew it, the family found themselves watching Audriana in the emergency room.
"It felt unreal, like I was watching an episode of 'ER' on tv," says Audriana's mother, Trina Roldan. As her intracranial pressure rose, doctors became less optimistic. If her pressure got too high, the blood flow to her brain would be cut off, leaving her brain dead.
Doctors suggested performing a partial left temporal lobectomy, a procedure which involved removing a portion of her brain. It would make room in her skull for the swelling. The family was informed that she would more than likely die. And if she lived, she would remain in a vegetative state. The family took the doctors' suggestion, and agreed to let them perform the procedure. Trina says that was the hardest paper she'd ever had to sign.
"I prayed that we were doing the right thing," she says.
Audriana survived the surgery. But after shortly after, her condition was unsteady once again. Doctors ushered her family into the room, preparing for the worst. Trina knew they were getting ready to say their farewells, but she hadn't given up yet. So she went into the hall to pray. She prayed out loud.
"I didn't care who heard me so long as God heard me," she says. She promised to do everything she could to help Audriana live a happy life.
Two weeks after the accident, Audriana began to wiggle her fingers. She awoke gradually, but she was silent. She couldn't speak. Only a tear rolled down her cheek. Once Audriana had regained consciousness, her mother handed her favorite doll to her. Smiling, she took it, and banged it against her bed railing. Trina's spirits fell as she watched her daughter play.
"I had to leave the room, so she wouldn't see me cry," says Trina. She had heard so much about how mental capabilities were often affected because of brain injury. And she was prepared for the worst.
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