#CharlottesStrong
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Hi Friends, Family, & Kind Strangers,
We are humbly asking for financial help to cover travel, lodging and medical bills. We are also asking for lots of prayers and good vibes for our heart warrior Charlotte and our sick pup Chief. About a month ago Charlotte’s cardiologist advised us her 3rd open heart surgery has been bumped up from November to September. Charlotte has had 2 open heart surgeries, 5 cardiac caths and has spent 6 months of her life in a hospital. Most of this time and these procedures were at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital roughly 390 miles and 8 hours away from home. A few days before she turns 10 months she will be going through her 6th cardiac cath. On her 10 month birthday she will have her 3rd open heart surgery. Historically, recovery has been rough for Charlotte so we may be looking at another long stay. After her first open heart surgery she suffered from respiratory failure. After her second open heart surgery she had a cardiac arrest requiring CPR for 20 minutes. It hurts me to no end to say we almost lost our baby twice. Unfortunately her Daddy, her favorite person, couldn’t be there the first time and although he was there the second, he had to leave a few days later to work. This time we were hoping to be able to save enough for him to be there but due to it being bumped up and her continuously mounting medical bills this may not be possible without help. If you would like to know more specifics about Charlotte's health conditions please see the last paragraph of this post or feel free to ask.
In preparation for her upcoming surgery we have to go LPCH a week prior to the surgery date for preop appointments. We will need to stay in a hotel for at least the first night and right now it is looking like we may need to stay in a hotel for 6 nights. As we live in Southern California and LPCH is in Northern California, Ronald McDonald House will not let us check until the date of her first appointment because although we aren’t close by any means, we are within the same state. Her first appointment is at 8am and due to Charlotte being a baby, the distance, her medical needs, driving in the middle of the night to get there the morning of a full day of appointments for her isn't an option. We may not be able to stay the RMDH at all as they require a physical current DL or ID and my Drivers License was up for renewal but it’s not likely going to get here before we leave. We are currently waiting to see if they will make an exception but the housing coordinator couldn't make any promises. Hotels in Palo Alto are not affordable and we are confined to being within a certain distance from the hospital. Additionally, Charlotte has a very weak immune system so we have to be very selective about the hotel to ensure she doesn’t get sick especially right before her big day.
This past week, our last week home before leaving for LPCH, our home flooded and Chief needed emergency surgery twice. The flood has affected almost every room in our home. Although we’re insured, there is a rather large deductible and certain things needed to be paid upfront. Of course, the insurance will be reimbursing for what they cover after everything is said and done but that is currently leaving us in quite a pinch. As for Chief, he had a large mass inside of his chest that required surgery to remove and although in a crate with a cone to keep from hurting himself, he ripped open his stitches 3 times. The first time post op, the second time at home while in his crate somehow, the third time leaving chest closure from the crate incident. Chief is a 60 pound lab mix, the mass was large and so the scar is almost a foot long. Due to the high risk of it opening again, he was stitched from the inside and outside with stitches that need to be removed in a few weeks. He will also have to stay on a mild sedation medication (in addition to his pain and antibiotic meds) to ensure he can properly heal.Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for taking the time to read this, for the good vibes, prayers, sharing our story and/or donating. One day we hope to be able give back to the world as much as we have received in our time of need.
♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡
Charlotte has complex congenital heart disease, heterotaxy syndrome (her stomach & heart are on the opposite side than usual) w/malrotation (twisted intestines) and asplenia (no spleen - the spleen helps fight certain infections). Her heart defects are an unbalanced atrioventricular (AV) canal type ventricular septal defect (VSD), double outlet right ventricle (DORV) with pulmonary atresia and severe pulmonary artery hypoplasia, total anomalous pulmonary venous return (TAPVR), bilateral superior vena cava (SVC) with left SVC draining to coronary sinus and multiple major aortopulmonary collateral arteries (MAPCAs). Drs initially didn’t know if she would make it through the pregnancy, then through her 1st week of life or even what to do to successfully repair her heart but no one wanted to give up. Our local hospital has an amazing heart center but they didn’t think they could help her best so they searched everywhere for someone who thought they could. After months rejections from hospitals all over the country, we found a Dr who accepted her case and believes she can and will live a full life after several open heart surgeries. #PrayforCharlotteTM #CharlottesStrong ♡
We are humbly asking for financial help to cover travel, lodging and medical bills. We are also asking for lots of prayers and good vibes for our heart warrior Charlotte and our sick pup Chief. About a month ago Charlotte’s cardiologist advised us her 3rd open heart surgery has been bumped up from November to September. Charlotte has had 2 open heart surgeries, 5 cardiac caths and has spent 6 months of her life in a hospital. Most of this time and these procedures were at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital roughly 390 miles and 8 hours away from home. A few days before she turns 10 months she will be going through her 6th cardiac cath. On her 10 month birthday she will have her 3rd open heart surgery. Historically, recovery has been rough for Charlotte so we may be looking at another long stay. After her first open heart surgery she suffered from respiratory failure. After her second open heart surgery she had a cardiac arrest requiring CPR for 20 minutes. It hurts me to no end to say we almost lost our baby twice. Unfortunately her Daddy, her favorite person, couldn’t be there the first time and although he was there the second, he had to leave a few days later to work. This time we were hoping to be able to save enough for him to be there but due to it being bumped up and her continuously mounting medical bills this may not be possible without help. If you would like to know more specifics about Charlotte's health conditions please see the last paragraph of this post or feel free to ask.
In preparation for her upcoming surgery we have to go LPCH a week prior to the surgery date for preop appointments. We will need to stay in a hotel for at least the first night and right now it is looking like we may need to stay in a hotel for 6 nights. As we live in Southern California and LPCH is in Northern California, Ronald McDonald House will not let us check until the date of her first appointment because although we aren’t close by any means, we are within the same state. Her first appointment is at 8am and due to Charlotte being a baby, the distance, her medical needs, driving in the middle of the night to get there the morning of a full day of appointments for her isn't an option. We may not be able to stay the RMDH at all as they require a physical current DL or ID and my Drivers License was up for renewal but it’s not likely going to get here before we leave. We are currently waiting to see if they will make an exception but the housing coordinator couldn't make any promises. Hotels in Palo Alto are not affordable and we are confined to being within a certain distance from the hospital. Additionally, Charlotte has a very weak immune system so we have to be very selective about the hotel to ensure she doesn’t get sick especially right before her big day.
This past week, our last week home before leaving for LPCH, our home flooded and Chief needed emergency surgery twice. The flood has affected almost every room in our home. Although we’re insured, there is a rather large deductible and certain things needed to be paid upfront. Of course, the insurance will be reimbursing for what they cover after everything is said and done but that is currently leaving us in quite a pinch. As for Chief, he had a large mass inside of his chest that required surgery to remove and although in a crate with a cone to keep from hurting himself, he ripped open his stitches 3 times. The first time post op, the second time at home while in his crate somehow, the third time leaving chest closure from the crate incident. Chief is a 60 pound lab mix, the mass was large and so the scar is almost a foot long. Due to the high risk of it opening again, he was stitched from the inside and outside with stitches that need to be removed in a few weeks. He will also have to stay on a mild sedation medication (in addition to his pain and antibiotic meds) to ensure he can properly heal.Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for taking the time to read this, for the good vibes, prayers, sharing our story and/or donating. One day we hope to be able give back to the world as much as we have received in our time of need.
♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡♡
Charlotte has complex congenital heart disease, heterotaxy syndrome (her stomach & heart are on the opposite side than usual) w/malrotation (twisted intestines) and asplenia (no spleen - the spleen helps fight certain infections). Her heart defects are an unbalanced atrioventricular (AV) canal type ventricular septal defect (VSD), double outlet right ventricle (DORV) with pulmonary atresia and severe pulmonary artery hypoplasia, total anomalous pulmonary venous return (TAPVR), bilateral superior vena cava (SVC) with left SVC draining to coronary sinus and multiple major aortopulmonary collateral arteries (MAPCAs). Drs initially didn’t know if she would make it through the pregnancy, then through her 1st week of life or even what to do to successfully repair her heart but no one wanted to give up. Our local hospital has an amazing heart center but they didn’t think they could help her best so they searched everywhere for someone who thought they could. After months rejections from hospitals all over the country, we found a Dr who accepted her case and believes she can and will live a full life after several open heart surgeries. #PrayforCharlotteTM #CharlottesStrong ♡
Organizer
Brianna Olmos
Organizer
Lake Elsinore, CA
