Strengthening their bond: Lubbock family sheds light on recovery after father overcomes COVID-19 – LubbockOnline.com

The Perez family has always had strong bonds to one another, and now theyre even stronger as the family overcame the coronavirus.

52-year-old Eloy Oscar Perez was diagnosed with the virus April 8, and his wife and two younger family members also tested positive in the same week.

While the other family members recovered without severe symptoms after 21 days, things took a turn for Eloy on April 15, when he was admitted into University Medical Center and had to be put on a ventilator within an hour of being dropped off by his family.

"My dads biggest battle was overcoming the oxygenation levels. Thats where COVID attacked the hardest," said Eloy Perez, named after his father. "Our dad fought hard, and he was able to overcome the symptoms that came along with COVID."

Perez spoke with A-J Media on his fathers behalf, as Eloys throat was still sore from the experience.

Eloy was in the MICU for just over 20 days, 15 of which were on a ventilator. Not being able to know how he was doing was hard on the family and Eloys daughter, Amber, in particular. She is a nurse working on a COVID floor, and knew what her father was feeling. She was working with patients, but was not allowed to visit her father.

When the hospital started using plasma treatment, Eloy was one of the first patients to receive it. All seemed well for about eight days, and then Perez said his dad suffered cardiac arrest for several minutes.

"I cant tell you how bad we wanted to be with my dad at that moment," Perez recalled. "We knew he needed to hear us. We also knew God had full control, and at that moment learned what it feels like to fully trust in him."

That night, the Perez family prayed for their dad and prayed again the next night, when UMC held a community prayer night. Perez said the family was grateful to the caregivers at UMC because they were giving daily updates on Eloy and helped the family FaceTime after that.

Almost five days after his cardiac arrest, Eloy began to improve. He no longer needed a ventilator and he was becoming more responsive, though doctors and nurses still monitored his condition.

"The teamwork from the doctors and nurses was inspiring," Eloy said via a message later. "The staff was always very positive, supportive and caring when they took care of me."

Eloy has been steadily getting his strength back since returning home and has started physical therapy. He was able to walk on his own again five days after leaving the hospital and is not having to use his oxygen support except in a few cases.

Perez said the caregivers fought for his dad as they would their own family, and they are so grateful for their help and the support from the community.

Now, the family is focused on helping Eloy recover.

"Family is our priority," said Perez. "Together, we know we can overcome any obstacle that comes our way."

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Strengthening their bond: Lubbock family sheds light on recovery after father overcomes COVID-19 - LubbockOnline.com