Archie

[Oma]

What do you make of this poor child Archie Battersbee ?

Ifeel heart sorry for his family and I can understand why they fought for him, no parent wants this for their child ,
I do however think they need to let this little boy go ,
All these appeals have only prolonged his death and cost the NHS hundreds of thousands of pounds in legal fees when it’s already struggling .

It was proven he was Brain stem dead so nothing could bring him back
As a mother she has done what she thought right but even if he had lived what quality of life would he have , he would have been in a coma just breathing with a machine and his organs slowly closing down one by one.

Something similar happened to our Friends DS they switched his machine off 10 years ago on Wednesday
theyof course still miss him , he was 30 and had 3 small children a brain aneurysm caused his brain stem death
They knew nothing else could be done , He was my DSs friend and our next door neighbour growing up

Today that little boy will be at peace although technically he has been dead since April , it’s all so sad

[Plantaholic]

Very hard for the family but I think it is time they made the decision to let the medics turn off the machine.

[Lizzie48]

I agree with you Oma, we were talking about it at the gym the other morning, one of the ladies works with patients that have brain damage and she said you wouldn't wish that on your child! The best friend of DS2, his daughter was born with SMA, a muscle disease, they knew from her being 2 months old that she would never be able to move, at 6 months they had to let her go, so sad. They now have a daughter, she must be almost 4 years old now, luckily no problems at all, maybe just a little over spoilt as the parents put it, which is understandable!!

[Nanto2girls]

It would be kinder to let him go. I know it would be hard to do though.

[Plantaholic]

RIPArchie

[Gemini]

Well it has to be so, so hard, doesn't it?
Which of us would not want to keep our child with us?

When my OH worked as funeral director there were families who would come again and again to be with their child in the run up to the funeral. They knew their child, or grandchild was no longer alive, and that they had to let go, but they wanted every last moment 'with them'. Those stories tore at my heart.

How much harder to say goodbye when the child is technically still living, and there seems to be some sort of chance however slim and remote?


I agree with the other posters here, the time has come to let Archie go. I really feel for the parents, but it will in the end be better for them. They can grieve and say goodbye, and in time hang on to the happy memories of Archie, not these weeks and months of him in this state. He will be at rest, and the NHS not spending money on keeping him 'alive'.

I do feel so sad that unlike in the case of an illness or accident this need never have happened if he hadn't experimented with this stupid game

[Oma]

I think it would help his mother if she channeled her grief into going into schools and educating young people on the dangers of these online challenges .
Its scary what children are exposed to now online , something has to be done about these sites

[Gemini]

RIP Archie.

I wish his parents some peace to come to terms with their loss.

[Sum1Ls]

Agree with all that Oma has said. It is a dreadful experience for any parent, and I’m sure that a lot of the trauma has been added to by certain media outlets and groups who jump on the bandwagon. I also think that the general public need educating about the difference between being in a coma and the death of the brain stem. As for that MP who arrived in the hospital for a photo opportunity, words fail me.

[Oma]

Sum 1 we said the same about the media and MP
Yes there is a big difference isn’t there between coma and Brain stem death ,
We hear of locked in in syndrome where people are in similar state , but with coma and locked in syndrome there is clear Brain activity ,
Brain stem death is totally the opposite .

Poor child is at peace now .

[Daisy]

It's heartbreaking for everyone, and I can only imagine the anguish of Archie's parents. But I haven't seen much media sympathy for the dedicated medical staff who have been caring for Archie for months, and would have been wishing and hoping for a different outcome while knowing that it was highly unlikely.

My thoughts are with Archie's family and the people who have been caring for him.

[Oma]

Very true Daisy