After collapsing during her Lifetime Wellness class and spending three days in an induced coma, Meghan Hancock, sophomore physical therapy major from Fairview, has made improvements and is now out of the hospital and at home with her family.
After collapsing on September 4, Hancock was rushed to Hendrick Medical Center where she was admitted to the Critical Care Unit and put in a medically induced coma. Her body was put on a cooling system to help preserve her vital organs. By the next day, doctors began to warm her body and she began making small movements.
After three days in a coma, Hancock opened her eyes and was responsive to touch and sound.
Last week, Hancock was fully released from the hospital and made the trip home to Fairview with her family. Hancock is now seeing a heart doctor in Dallas who is requiring her to spend two weeks relaxing to help her body recover.
“A week ago I felt pretty weak and I wasn’t really moving around,” she said. “Now I am doing things on my own but I still have to take it easy.”
Hancock will spend the remainder of the semester at home but has plans to stay busy.
“I just want to help out wherever I can,” she said. She expects that she will spend time working with her high school volleyball coach or helping her mother, who works at a local middle school.
While in the hospital, Hancock was visited by family and friends as well as Carrie Casada, wife of psychology professor Dr. John Casada, and Molly Bagley, junior occupational therapy major from Bedford, two of the first responders when she collapsed.
Support has poured out from the ACU community and others resulting in cards wishing her well from students she didn’t know and a “Praying for Meghan” Facebook page which has over 3800 likes.
“There as been a lot of support from everyone,” said Hancock. “The Facebook page is crazy to me. To see how many people are praying for me is amazing.”
Although it came as a surprise to Meghan, her mother felt the response was something that falls right in line with ACU’s reputation.
“Everything that’s happening, the staff, Phil Schubert, people who have come up here, it’s exactly what we expected from ACU,” said Stacey Hancock. “That’s why we have our daughter here. It seems so foreign to people outside of this community but I promise you it doesn’t happen at other colleges.”
Hancock will focus on regaining strength in her heart and plans to return to ACU in the spring and continue classes.
