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2:18 pm - 09/29/2012

ROYALTY POST: Dutch prince briefly wakes from coma


There is a glimmer of hope for the Dutch royal family after it was reported that Prince Johan Friso woke briefly from his coma.

Family friend Archbishop Desmond Tutu said the prince's wife, Mabel, witnessed her husband opening his eyes to smile at her, before falling back into a coma.

Speaking to a Dutch TV channel the Archbishop - who knows Mabel through her time as a human rights activist - added: "It's horrible for her to see her husband in bed inert. I pray for him every day and try to talk to her regularly, so she knows that we support them,"

The breakthrough is said to have happened last week and is the only progress in the royal's condition since he was buried under an avalanche in Austria in February.

Friso was trapped under the snow for 15 minutes while ski-ing off piste in the resort of Lech – where the Dutch royals traditionally take their winter break.

His mother Queen Beatrix and brother Crown Prince Willem-Alexander have been a constant support to his wife Mabel, with whom Friso has two daughters, Luana, seven, and Zaria, who is six.

Since the accident, the 44-year-old royal has been receiving specialist care in London's prestigious Wellington hospital.

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violue 29th-Sep-2012 06:22 pm (UTC)
:O omg is this for real??

sounds cinematic almost
leopard_legs 29th-Sep-2012 06:37 pm (UTC)
it does, doesn't it? it's almost like an oscar-bait movie moment...except infinitely more sad :(
sonja_76 29th-Sep-2012 06:45 pm (UTC)
Sounds like an automatic reaction of the nerves, I don't think he really woke up. It would be great for his family if he did show signs of improvement though.
thishollywood 29th-Sep-2012 06:51 pm (UTC)
yeah dat was my thought as well :(
kalishaka 29th-Sep-2012 07:18 pm (UTC)
That's what I think too. We had a lot of moments like that with my younger brother, still do. Granted in my brother's case he is no longer in a coma but rather a vegetative state post the coma. I haven't really looked into this case to know how coma like it is or isn't but all the same, nerve reactions and your own wishful thinking makes you see a lot of things. My heart breaks for them all. It's a horrible ordeal.
sonja_76 29th-Sep-2012 07:24 pm (UTC)
Sorry about your brother, I hope he'll get better!

I could change my father's breathing with different touches. The doctor first said that it wasn't possible, but then tried himself and it worked, but that didn't change that the massive hemorrhage in his brain had pretty much killed everything else already and he passed away a few days later.

I think that his wife kissing him probably caused nerve and muscle memory to set in, that's why he smiled and opened his eyes, but I sure hope I'm wrong and he'll wake up.
kalishaka 29th-Sep-2012 07:29 pm (UTC)
Yeah. It's situations like this where I really always hope for the miracle. I never could have imagined how hard it is to go through something like this until it was a reality. And while perhaps we will never get our miracle...someone should, every once in a while. Give the rest of us hope.
sonja_76 29th-Sep-2012 08:15 pm (UTC)
I know how exhausting this is, those miracles happen all the time though, so don't give up hope.

I still think that my dad could hear me. He stubbornly refused to die even though he was classified a lost cause the minute they did the CT scan, but passed away hours after I told him it was okay if he just couldn't make it back. My mom is absolutely convinced he needed to hear that even though technically he was brain dead. So maybe your brother just needs more time but knows that his family is there for him when he wakes up.
beatlesluv 30th-Sep-2012 12:08 am (UTC)
That's what I thought too. But that means something is going on inside him right? Hoping for the best, and more progress.
angelic_white 29th-Sep-2012 08:12 pm (UTC)
Just watched the episode again. Tutu said that Mabel had told him that Friso moved a little when Mabel kissed him, nothing about opening his eyes.

Edited at 2012-09-29 08:13 pm (UTC)
saffronshire 29th-Sep-2012 06:23 pm (UTC)
Wow, I didn't know. How sad.
ohsofierce_x3 29th-Sep-2012 06:27 pm (UTC)
This is so sad :(

Does anyone know how Queen Beatrix is taking this?
piratesswoop 29th-Sep-2012 06:33 pm (UTC)
she's trying to get on with her duties because she is the queen and it is her jobs but i think privately, it's very hard for her
fakevoices 29th-Sep-2012 06:44 pm (UTC)
i posted on the rw one of her events and she looked so happy, but i can only imagine how hard it on her

also you should post some more on there :P
piratesswoop 29th-Sep-2012 06:51 pm (UTC)
haha i know! i've been meaning to make that book post i think someone asked about ages ago, i have a list saved on my computer i just need to organize it and make links!
fakevoices 29th-Sep-2012 06:58 pm (UTC)
i look forward to seeing it!!!
d_garmo71 29th-Sep-2012 07:01 pm (UTC)
Apparently she visits him every weekend.
thewunderland 29th-Sep-2012 06:29 pm (UTC)
Wow. It's so weird how little they talked about him the last few months
egads 29th-Sep-2012 06:32 pm (UTC)
Ugh, I forgot about this and I feel bad for it. I wonder how they're all holding up. Does anyone know if the Dutch media talk about it a lot? If this was one of our royal family, the media would never stop.
zimraphel 29th-Sep-2012 06:43 pm (UTC)
Of course it was huge in the first two months or so after it happened, but ever since he was transferred to London there has been pretty much no change so there really isn't much to report at all. Willem Alexander commented on it recently at an event which happened to be on the 1-year anniversary of the accident, reiterating that there was still no change and that they would report any change if it happened. I think everybody has pretty much accepted that he'll never recover; even if he does wake up he'll almost certainly have irreparable brain damage.
d_garmo71 29th-Sep-2012 06:59 pm (UTC)
which happened to be on the 1-year anniversary of the accident

Friso's birthday. The accident was in Feb.
zimraphel 29th-Sep-2012 07:43 pm (UTC)
You're right, my bad. First birthday since the accident.
black_blasphemy 29th-Sep-2012 06:35 pm (UTC)
this sounds like something out from a soap opera. especially the opening the eyes for a little while part.
leopard_legs 29th-Sep-2012 06:36 pm (UTC)
that's heartbreaking :(
fraubluecher 29th-Sep-2012 06:37 pm (UTC)
Is it sure that that happened? I mean is it just her word?

It's really sad, never ski off piste!
swanqween 29th-Sep-2012 06:40 pm (UTC)
Poor Mabel, I can't imagine having to go through something like this :(
fakevoices 29th-Sep-2012 06:45 pm (UTC)
i feel for mabel and their girls and his mum
zimraphel 29th-Sep-2012 06:46 pm (UTC)
This is all so sad, he was arguably the brightest one out of the three brothers and all the controversy of his marriage to Mabel certainly underscored the strength of their relationship. If there is one positive thing to be taken away from the whole situation, I hope a lot of people learned a lesson about the dangers of going off-piste. :(
devochkazhenya 29th-Sep-2012 07:02 pm (UTC)
oh my god so sad
angelic_white 29th-Sep-2012 07:05 pm (UTC)
Maybe Desmond Tutu should not have mentioned this in his interview, it's such a private matter. I know he meant well, but still. Now the media is all over it again.

And I feel for their daughters :( it's so sad. But with a mum like Mabel they will probably grow up to be two strong women.
for_serious13 29th-Sep-2012 07:25 pm (UTC)
So sad. I really hope he did wake up
apothecaries 29th-Sep-2012 07:40 pm (UTC)
Its like a fairytale except he fell back into the coma :(
yurasama_love 29th-Sep-2012 07:42 pm (UTC)
How awful! I hope he makes a full recovery.
angelic_white 29th-Sep-2012 08:11 pm (UTC)
I just watched the episode of Desmond Tutu again and the quote actually is "she said she kissed him and he moved a bit". So he did not open his eyes.
genbu_no_miko24 29th-Sep-2012 08:16 pm (UTC)
:'(( I hope he gets better.
pikapika217 29th-Sep-2012 08:57 pm (UTC)
this is awful ;_____;
coulson 29th-Sep-2012 09:27 pm (UTC)
oh my god :(
shanny_w 29th-Sep-2012 09:28 pm (UTC)
:'(
jilicious 29th-Sep-2012 10:15 pm (UTC)
I thought that was Matthew Broderick
xxgoddessevexx 30th-Sep-2012 12:23 pm (UTC)
Really hope he gets better. Kind of glad Mabel and the children don't live in the Netherlands, at least they can walk around and live somewhat normally without being recognised by the public/paps.
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