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gifford is now breathing on her own after being shot in the head. She still has a breathing tube for precausion but she is breathin on her own.

TUCSON, Ariz. – Rep. Gabrielle Giffords reached an important step in her recovery from a bullet through her head, breathing on her own for the first time and moving both arms, doctors said Tuesday in what was expected to be a long recuperation. Giffords still has a breathing tube in place as a precaution, said her neurosurgeon Dr. Michael Lemole.
"I'm happy to say that she's holding her own," he said.
Giffords, a three-term Democrat, remained in critical condition at Tucson's University Medical Center since Saturday when she was shot during a meeting with constituents outside a grocery store. The attack killed six and injured 14 others. Six remained hospitalized.
Doctors previously reported Giffords raised two fingers with her left hand and gave a thumbs-up when responding to verbal commands. Now they say she is moving her arms.
Although her condition has remained virtually unchanged the past few days, doctors were hopeful.
"She has a 101 percent chance of surviving," said trauma chief Dr. Peter Rhee said. "She will not die. She does not have that permission from me."
Doctors initially thought the bullet entered the back of the skull and exited the front, but after reviewing X-rays and brain scans, two outside physicians brought in by Giffords' medical team now believe that Giffords was likely shot in the front of her head.
Giffords was lucky the bullet did not cross into both sides, or hemispheres, of the brain, which can leave lasting damage, her doctors have said.