BRECKENRIDGE — Patrick Lawler, the Breckenridge worker who infamously walked around for six days with a nail in his head, was expected to be released from the hospital on Thursday.

Once released, Lawler will venture into a coffee-talk world where he’s the subject of a perplexing — if not odd — question. How does one walk around for six days without knowing a 3.5-inch nail is in his head?

“He wasn’t convinced,” said dentist Greg Jungman. “We told him he needed to chat with his physician again and get treatment ASAP.”

Since the accident, he’s decided to abandon carpentry, according to his wife, and plans to pursue a career in making furniture once he’s cleared by his doctors.

Lawler was framing a house floor in Park County when a nail fired off by his nail gun struck a knot in the board, recoiled and struck him in the face.

Lawler initially believed the impact of the recoil was why his face was so swollen and why he was suffering from toothaches and blurred vision.

His boss thought the nail in in the board was evidence the gun had worked properly. Nail guns typically only release one nail at a time — except in this instance.

“His boss said there can’t be any nail. They were just worried because his eye was swollen shut, his teeth hurt, and he couldn’t open his mouth,” said Lawler’s wife, Kate, who is a nurse and works at Jungman’s office.

The path the nail took also affected Lawler’s recognition of what happened. The nail went through his upper lip, his cheek, behind his right eye and into the front of his brain, which is considered “silent” and doesn’t have much feeling, Kate said.

Six days later, however, she convinced him to go to Jungman’s office and get an X-ray, which revealed the nail in his head.

“The first thing I thought was that my friends put the nail on the X-ray (film),” Kate said. “I thought they were making fun of him because he got hit by the nail gun. But Dr. Jungman said, ‘No, there is a nail.’ And he said, ‘No, that’s impossible. There’s a nail in the board.’ And Dr. Jungman said, ‘No, there’s literally a nail.’”

Surgeons at the Rocky Mountain Oral and Maxillofacial Center in Littleton initially thought they might be able to remove the nail, but the swelling prevented them from seeing the nail’s head. Lawler underwent six hours of surgery later at Littleton Adventist Hospital — and incurred more than $100,000 in bills. He has no medical insurance, Jungman said.

Jungman will hold a fundraiser to help him offset the debt. The dentists at Jungman’s Dillon and Breckenridge Family Dental centers will see any patients who need treatment on Sunday, Feb. 13 and donate all the charges paid by patients to Lawler’s medical fund.

For those who don’t need dental work, contributions can be made to the Patrick Lawler Medical Fund at any Alpine Bank branch.

Jungman will offer tooth bleaching at half-price — $170 — and contribute $100 of that toward the fund. That will take place throughout February at his Dillon, Breckenridge and Kremmling offices.

Meg Ticknor, a front desk employee at Jungman’s office remembers when Lawler came in the office for X-rays.

“He had a huge bump high on his cheekbone, his eyes were pretty glazed, he had a hole in his upper cheek, but he was walking all right,” she said. “It was pretty scary. He just wanted to go home.”

Jungman said he wasn’t shocked to see the nail in the X-ray of his head.

“I spent years in the service; it’s not unusual to see parts and pieces of shrapnel in people,” he said. “What was unusual was the fact he was unaware the nail was there. He’s very fortunate he didn’t have any serious problems. It’s not like the nail is sterile.”

Hospital officials said Lawler doesn’t want to talk to the media.

“He still has really bad headaches,” Kate said. “But that’s normal because he had a spinal tap and brain surgery.”

Lawler has already been interviewed by numerous Front Range newspapers, “Good Morning America” and “The Today Show,” and representatives from the Oprah, David Letterman and Ellen DeGeneres talk shows have called expressing an interest in hosting him on their programs.

“I don’t know if he’s up to it,” Kate said. “And he’s not that kind of guy.”

Lawler’s surgeons have told him he must take it easy for the next six months, anyway. He hopes to get a job at Lazaroni’s Pizza and Fifty-Fifty Boards and Bikes in Frisco.

Friends and strangers from throughout the nation who have experienced similar accidents have been calling to give him advice about dealing with the headaches and letting him know what he might face in the future.

“A lot of people have responded. It’s great,” Kate said. “He just needs a break. He needs to stay home and take it easy.”

Jane Stebbins can be reached at (970) 668-3998, ext. 228, or at jstebbins@summitdaily.com.