Therapy Dog’s Touch Awakens Woman From Medically Induced Coma Against All Odds
Matthew Russell
Then, as People reports, a golden retriever named Scrunchie nuzzled her hand.
Photo: tiktok / nbcsouthflorida
Priscilla Timmons suffered a massive pulmonary embolism in March 2025.
A Crisis Few Survive
The emergency began March 13, when Timmons collapsed at home. Doctors resuscitated her for 41 minutes before restoring a pulse.
“Most of the time, ICUs or resuscitation teams don’t persist after several rounds of resuscitation, but we persevered,” Dr. Daniel Mayer, chief of critical care for Memorial Healthcare System, told the Orlando Sentinel.
The moment underscored the scale of the effort—ER, ICU, interventional radiology, nurses, physicians. Everyone pulled the same rope.
Photo: tiktok / nbcsouthflorida
She was placed in a medically induced coma to recover.
The Therapy Dog Visit
While Timmons could hear voices, she could not move or open her eyes. A handler brought Scrunchie to the bedside and placed a treat near Timmons’ hand. As the dog nosed closer, Timmons felt a paw and reached. That contact sparked the first movement she could control, she later told reporters, calling therapy dogs “such angels,” according to People.
A second golden retriever, Honey Crisp, also visited during her recovery, adding comfort and routine, PetHelpful reports.
Photo: tiktok / nbcsouthflorida
Scrunchie, a golden retriever therapy dog, was brought into her ICU room.
Family, Faith, and Care Team
Relatives prayed at the bedside and asked the hospital’s therapy pet team to come.
“Scrunchie came in… and for the first time, I got to see Priscilla move her hands and reach out,” cousin Kandi Barnwell told the Orlando Sentinel.
Timmons later told staff, “Yes, I’m a miracle, but it’s because of you[.](https://www.kurdistan24.net/en/story/872072/a-golden-retrievers-nuzzle-therapy-dog-credited-with-awakening-florida-woman-from-coma)”
Back to Life
Timmons spent 21 days in the hospital regaining strength and mobility. She reunited with Scrunchie and Honey Crisp months later at a press conference celebrating her recovery, PetHelpful reports.
For Mayer and the ICU team, seeing her walk in provided fuel to keep going in the hardest cases.
A gentle nuzzle started it. A network of people—and two goldens—carried it through.
