Dennis Prager Health Update

Hi everyone. I am here with David Prager, Dennis's oldest son, and many of you have been asking for us to give you an update on how Dennis is doing. And so given that David is here in town, we figured that we'll sit down and we'll tell you everything we know. Uh, so David, how, how is Dennis doing? It's been 8 months now.

It, 8, just about 8 months since the injury. Um, he moved to a new facility as a lot of people know a few months ago and We're thrilled with the facility. He has hit a lot of new milestones since our last update, namely he was able to be off the ventilator for over a week at one point consecutively, which was a really big deal in terms of milestones. That being said, want to also urge cautious optimism because then there are days and a few days at a time sometimes where there are a lot of setbacks and that's, you know, tough emotionally, psychologically, both for him and for us as the family. So I would say I'm happy to see the long-term trajectory, but it's not like every day is perfect.

So for those who haven't been following as closely, I'm sure many have. The reason the breathing is such a significant issue is because while he fell down and injured his spinal cord, the spinal cord area, the C3-C4 area of the spinal cord, is what controls his diaphragm. And so the big struggle The struggle for Dennis has been to regain control of his ability to breathe without a supporting machine so that once he can breathe, he can properly talk, he can properly function, et cetera. And so Dennis currently still has a trach collar, which occasionally is capped so that he can breathe on his own. But when the doctors get a sense that he can't really breathe on his own, they put him back on the breathing support, right? And so it's kind of on and off as he's regaining function, trying to get stronger, getting used to this, I guess, new function in his body.

It is new. And that part of it is he's not moving and a lot of us move and then we don't have secretions in our lungs so much. So that's much easier for us to clear secretions. And those secretions, if they're not clear right away, can lead to infections, which has happened in the past. So we have to be careful of that, cognizant of that, and also create this balance where he may want to stay off the ventilator because when he is off the ventilator, typically he can then speak. And what does Dennis Prager like to do more than speak, right? But sometimes the doctors have to come in and say, I know you want to speak. I know you're feeling good right now. We still have to put you back on the ventilator and not speak in order to sort of rest that muscle. I mean, think about not exercising for several months and then all of a sudden lifting a heavy weight. That's the similar concept with the diaphragm. So the doctors are always talking about this balance. Also understanding that when he spends as much time as he spent off the ventilator, that there would then be certain ramifications. Secretions as a result of that. So again, how do they get him to a point where he's consistently speaking, but not then, you know, sort of paying a price of having to be on the ventilator and have that discomfort which comes with a lot of secretions?

So one of the main concerns that we had, especially while Dennis was still here in California, was that he was laying down for many, many days, and that obviously led to bedsores. Many people are familiar with spinal cord injuries being with that, one of the most dangerous things is that the body doesn't move. And that leads to these bedsores. And Dennis has developed those bedsores. And the place that he is in now actually is very good with treating bedsores. And I know that there's been some positive news about the ability of, of this specific clinic to help him with the bedsores. How, how is Dennis doing on that front?

So the first thing that they had to do was make sure that things didn't get worse and they're, they're not getting worse. They are, improving. Anybody that knows anything about wound care management— I knew nothing 8 months ago— is that they are, once they, once they are bad, it takes a very long time for them to heal. And the scariest part of that is the infection, sepsis in the, in the bed, or sepsis, excuse me, in the bedsores. So that could be, that could be a real problem. But this place is so good about making sure that he's moved often enough to do so. Again, it's a balance, right? Because if he has to be woken up every 2 hours in the middle of the night, for instance, that impacts his sleeping pattern, which obviously sleep is an important part of health. So I mean, I do not envy these doctors. They have a serious balancing act on their hands. I will say, you know, again, I like to focus on the positive. I was just there with my older son. You've mentioned it in the past. They've spent a lot of time together talking Torah and philosophy. That's their favorite subjects. And we did a lot of that when we were together for that weekend. So it happened to be a great weekend. Where it was like it felt to some extent, even though it was in a hospital, like a Shabbat dinner that we would have with the family. So that was, that was really special. And obviously we hope it continues.

How are Dennis's spirits throughout all of this, given that it's been pretty much 8 months of battling this severe injury?

You know, they're, they're sort of all over the place. Sometimes they're, they're great and sometimes, sometimes not so great. It was, it was fun that he was really passionate about the hockey playoffs. Being from Florida and a Florida Panthers fan, it was fun that he took on that and we would talk every day during the playoffs. That would be his first topic of conversation. So we're trying to find the next thing that he can enjoy outside of trying to keep up with the news and everything like that. But obviously that's not always gonna put you in a positive mood.

The news is really nice.

Yeah. So trying to find the next thing to make him happy. So again, it's, it's a little bit all over the place. A lot of the times he will say to me, I'm trying to think about with this whole new perspective on life, both physical and emotional, how am I gonna share this with my audience? He's always thinking about how do I How do I convey this to the public?

What perspective does he have in your opinion, or that he's shared with you on life now that he's gone through what he's going through?

He says his general philosophy has not changed so much. He never believed that— he said this, that God is involved in the minutia of your life and terrible, crazy accidents could happen, and that this is what happened. So I don't think much has, much has really changed in terms of his philosophy. Uh, though again, I don't think he has so much, he has time, but things change so quickly at the hospital, whether it be with visitors or be doctors coming in or having to be moved. Has he had enough consistent time to really think about it? I don't know. Yeah.

He's, he's busy taking care of himself and that's a lot of work.

Yeah.

All the physical therapy and all the other therapy. Yeah.

And he's sitting in a chair a lot now, which is really fun to see. And he's, even getting on the floor and doing some physical therapy on the floor now. So it's fun to see that there is again that long-term progress. But again, in the short term, sometimes it does feel like, like it feels difficult.

So Dennis's birthday is coming up and usually we invest in PragerU in honor of his birthday. I know this is every year when we ask him, Dennis, what do you want for your birthday? Aside from cigars, you'll usually, you'll say, you know, I want to save America, I want to spread goodness. And so people oftentimes will donate in his name on his birthday. We do have a campaign for Dennis's birthday. And what are, you know, what are ways to just show support for Dennis and let him know that we're thinking about him all the time because he's had such a big impact on so many of us?

We have every year a matching campaign where the dollar amount varies based on major supporters that help us out. It's usually between $1 to $2 million. There will be a double match where we have people give. And usually what happens is a lot of that comes from his radio listeners because he's constantly advertising it on the radio. Obviously, we don't have that ability this year with him not being on the radio, so we are hoping and counting on, as we've done in the past, for the PragerU supporters to, to step up.

It is a good point that so many of the radio listeners would hear Dennis saying, you know, please support PragerU. We don't have that now, but I'm sure that a lot of people who are listening, uh, will still listen to the PragerU videos and following how, how we're doing. And, and so hopefully we'll really be able to make up that gap of what we are worried. I mean, speaking of that, people ask me all the time, you know, with, with Dennis being injured and not at PragerU, at the PragerU offices, not doing the show, how is PragerU being impacted? And, you know, the answer financially is we don't know. It hasn't been a complete year yet. But as David mentioned, the time that people usually listen on the radio and then contribute to the match is very, very significant to us financially. And so this is a great time to step in for us if you're willing and able to. And of course, we always let Dennis know that, you know, how we're doing here at PragerU. And then people ask from a content perspective how PragerU is doing, from a management perspective how PragerU is doing. I'm assuming people are asking you this question as well.

And yeah, it comes up. And a lot of people who know us intimately, some of our biggest supporters, understand and have understood for a very long time that my dad was not involved in the day-to-day operations of PragerU, and thank God for that. But Marissa is the one running the show, always has, and it's been continuing that way. And I mean, they're always amazed, as am I, about how much is happening at PragerU between the activities with the White House and America 250 and all the other initiatives that are continuing to go on. I mean, from a content perspective, we haven't slowed down. We'll see what the impact of my dad's injury is on our fundraising. But in terms in terms of PragerU, nothing's stopping.

Yeah, I mean, we're actually— it's actually bizarre, and I guess God works in different ways, but we're doing more this year than we've ever done in the last, you know, 13 years of PragerU's existence. I'm showing here this little baby board book that we have here for ABC America and this cute little thing. But we have so many things that are going on, so many positive things that we're sharing with with young Americans, young-at-heart Americans. And so our impact is actually greater than ever before. And then we hope that really the financial hit, both in the economy as well as, you know, Dennis not being on the radio right now fundraising for us, is not something that will be felt here internally at PragerU. We believe in all of you. We believe that you'll continue to support us because you believe in the values and the mission and everything that we're doing here.

I would say also that there have been no, no, no less than a few times where doctors or nurses came into his, his room and have, have said that they've been impacted by his work. And really, this is a chance for them to reciprocate for all that he's done for them. And a lot of those people, especially the younger ones, found out about his work through PragerU. So I think if you want to see his work continue and his legacy continue, especially while he's sidelined, the best way is to help Elevate our voice.

So one thing to do is to participate in our match if you're willing and able to do so. We have an opportunity where every dollar you give is going to be doubled. And another way to support Dennis in particular is click on the link that we have below where you can wish him a happy birthday, because he loves getting those wishes. He really loves feeling connected to all of you, and he is aware of the fact that, uh, the seeds that he has planted are still impacting America and people around the world. And so if you want to wish him a happy birthday, birthday, we invite you to do so. And I'm sure that you're going to be reading the letters to him along with Sue and everybody else.

Yeah. And the one thing he did say, his biggest realization I should say, is that he said, you know, very classic him to put things succinctly, is he said, I always knew that I was respected, but I didn't know how much I was loved. So yeah, it's like, that's definitely a positive way.

Well, thank you all for listening in. I know that you've been waiting for quite a while for this update, and I know David and I were talking about is sometimes people expect something revolutionary in an update, something completely different in every update. But we're honest with you, you know, that it's a few steps ahead, it's a few steps back. We don't always have massive big updates. We're as transparent as it is. There are no secrets, and we're sharing everything with you with Dennis's and the family's permission. And, you know, we're just gonna have to keep praying and be patient and realize that we're gonna bring to you updates when we can. And the reason we haven't brought you an update in, in some time now was, was because we were looking for some big thing to share with you, and we realized ultimately you just want the truth. You want to know how Dennis is doing. And, you know, it's, uh, as, as we mentioned, he's, he's doing okay, but he's not fully recovered, and it's going to take a, it's going to take a while. And so thanks for praying and for tuning in, and, you know, looking forward to seeing your letters and your love for Dennis.

Thank you, everyone.