Love and courage to face life
Mahatma Gandhi once said, "Love is the strongest power in the world". And Nathalie Sänger is the best proof. Following a tumour haemorrhage, her life was hanging by a thread and her family had already been asked to say their goodbyes. But giving up was not an option for Nathalie, she was determined to get married - at least that!
Everything began in August 2018 when Nathalie Sänger was diagnosed with a tumour in her nasopharynx, which unfortunately proved inoperable. However, six months later it was clear that the cancer had not spread and that the therapeutic measures seemed to be working. But then Nathalie suffered a tumour haemorrhage, was tracheotomised, put into a coma and, to make matters worse, she had a stroke. She was 28 at the time.
The best day of her life
When she was brought out of her coma, the young woman could no longer speak aloud and her right arm was paralysed. The tumour had meanwhile grown into the carotid artery and the treating physicians lost hope. "My oncologist asked me what my last wish was. I immediately said: to marry my husband-to-be," recounts Nathalie. The wedding had already been planned, but was postponed due to the dramatic events. Things now had to happen quickly.
"My closest friends and family organised everything and planned our wedding within three days," she says happily. On 9 June 2019, Nathalie Sänger and her husband gave their marriage vows in the ENT ward at Dortmund Municipal Hospital. She wore her wedding gown, which she had bought a few weeks earlier, and her husband wore his suit. The family arranged for the wedding cake and the guest book. A freelance wedding speaker made the day one of the most beautiful in her life.
"I was in a small single room with a balcony, and we had some 35 guests in the room," laughs Nathalie. Two days later, a lady came from the registry office and handed over the marriage certificate.
Palliative care or hospice?
The newlyweds were then faced with the question: palliative care or hospice? Nathalie Sänger decided in favour of the hospice and her husband moved in with her. His love and that of her family carried her through this difficult time, and the loving care of the hospice staff did the rest. Yet, she never gave up hope, and little by little things did indeed start to improve.
Nathalie became happier and more positive, she wanted to participate in life again. At some point, the question arose as to whether she would like to go home again. The couple thought about it for a long time, discussed it a lot and finally decided in favour of doing so.
"Day by day, week by week,
I grew more and more confident."
(Nathalie Sänger)
In September 2019, three months after the dramatic events, the young couple already moved into their own home. Once at home, Nathalie started again with her swallowing and voice training. Even before the stroke, her oesophagus had shifted and she required a feeding tube, which is why she had already been working with a speech therapist. She now attended her again. Voice training proved to be very strenuous and she found it difficult to breathe. Unfortunately, speaking still doesn't work to this day.
The caramel latte macchiato ritual
Training to swallow was also difficult. "But I wanted to eat an ice cream or drink a cup of cocoa again," Nathalie explains her motivation.
So she continued to train, sip by sip, sometimes accompanied by many fits of coughing. Giving up was not an option, so keep going.
To give herself a positive boost, she adopted a ritual and made herself a warm caramel latte macchiato every day, something she loves to drink. And indeed, the many exercises and the courage to gradually dare to do more paid dividends. Today she is able to eat liquid and pureed foods again.
After moving out of the hospice, the Sänger couple discussed a church wedding and a larger wedding celebration. In the end, they decided against it, as this would have been too much for the two of them, both physically and financially. Nevertheless, the couple treated themselves to a wedding photo shoot against the backdrop of a castle. They also went on a honeymoon, travelling to Cologne on their first wedding anniversary to attach a love lock to the bridge railing.
‘I want to show other people with my story that giving up is never a choice,’ says Nathalie Sänger at the end. Her courage to face life, her impressive will to persevere, lots of practice and, above all, the strong love of her husband and family helped her to fight her way back to life. Chapeau!
Nathalie Sänger, 33 years old
Nathalie has been a customer of FAHL since 2019 and describes the company as reliable and honest with great employees.
It was very important to Nathalie to encourage others with her example, which is why she proactively contacted the SCHON GEHÖRT? editorial team. We were delighted to hear this and were happy to include her story.
