Just a week after suffering a cardiac arrest during a Monday Night Football game against the Cincinnati Bengals, Damar Hamlin was discharged from the University of Cincinnati Medical Center on Monday and sent back to Buffalo.
Hamlin will continue his recovery at Buffalo General, but the fact that he was able to return to Buffalo is an uplifting sign of the remarkable progress he has made a week after having to be resuscitated on the field.
Grateful for the awesome care I received at UCMC. Happy to be back in Buffalo. The docs and nurses at Buffalo General have already made me feel at home! 🏩🫶🏾.
— 𝐃𝐚𝐦𝐚𝐫 𝐇𝐚𝐦𝐥𝐢𝐧 (@HamlinIsland) January 9, 2023
The 24-year-old spent his first two days at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center sedated and breathing through a ventilator. By Wednesday night he was able to grip the hands of his family members, and on Friday, he was breathing on his own and asked by Bills head coach Sean McDermott to address the team via FaceTime during practice. He was projected onto the big screen at the facility where he told his teammates that he loved them.
Doctors at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center said Hamlin has been walking since Friday, eating regular food, and undergoing therapy. They said he was on a normal or even accelerated trajectory in his recovery from cardiac arrest, which is considered a life-threatening event. Normal recovery from something like this can be measured from weeks to months, they said.
“We continue to be ecstatic about his recovery,” Dr. Timothy Pritts said.
Dr. Pritts also said that, on Sunday, Hamlin jumped out of his chair and set off every alarm in ICU after Nyheim Hines ran back the opening kickoff for a touchdown.
Hamlin was tweeting regularly during Buffalo’s 35-23 win over the New England Patriots. When Bills’ fans posted a video of them in the stands saying “We love you, Damar,” he retweeted their video with a message that he loved them back. When Tre’Davious White made his first interception since coming back from ACL surgery, Hamlin said, “T WEEZY!!! WELCOME BACK!!! and when Dawson Knox made a heart gesture after scoring a touchdown, Hamin tweeted that he loved Knox too.
The Bills wore No. 3 Hamlin patches on their jerseys and honored their teammate by raising three fingers in the closing minutes, while teams around the NFL wore shirts for Hamlin or honored him with prayer or number three signs.
The day felt cathartic for both Hamlin and the Bills, and the good news kept coming with the news of his return to Buffalo. While there is still a long road to go in terms of a complete recovery, the progress made over the past week is a testament not only to the resilience of the player but the professionalism and skill of the Buffalo medical team and the doctors in Cincinnati.
However, it has also, hopefully, become a learning moment for fans as well.
Dr. Pritts, says people keep asking what they can do, and his answer is to learn CPR, support public access to defibrillators, and thank the people at your local medical centers.
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