Mama Donna's Aneurysm Recovery
Donation protected
Hello from the Fowler kids. Thank you so much for being here!
Let us tell you about our mama, Donna. She's unlike any other. If you've been lucky enough to spend even five minutes with her you know how unique she is. Her love is intrinsic and her warmth is infectious. She's adopted people into our family as far as our memories stretch. Bloodlines are no boundary for our mom who regards the baristas in the Starbucks drive-thru as "ours." She's the woman who gets stuck in the chip aisle at Smith's with a lonely 85 year old woman who needs company and someone to complain to. Mom will listen to her cares for 30 minutes and offer to pray with her when she's done. My parents have had more people live with them over the years than we can count. They are our constant examples of Jesus's love. It is because of our mom that we know just how graceful and merciful our Heavenly Father is.
On Tuesday, March 3rd, around 4:30 pm mom told dad to pray for her and immediately passed out. They were driving around to pray for everyone in their lives (it's a regular thing they do) which meant they were in close proximity to Presbyterian Hospital. Dad rushed to the ER and carried mom inside upon arrival. At Presbyterian, mom received a CT scan that reveal her aneurysm. She was promptly transferred to UNMH for care as Presbyterian no longer has a Neuro department. Within an hour we were pulled into a consultation room where we learned that our mom had a subarachnoid aneurysm and the road ahead would be long and tumultuous. BUT! We know our mama, and we sure as heck know our God. That evening they placed a hummingbird to drain fluid from her brain and gave her medications to sedate and stabilize her.
On March 4th, we waited for mom's blood pressure to stabilize and for her to become responsive to their neurological tests before they could do the angiogram and attempt to place the coil to clot the aneurysm. If the coil wasn't an option they would have to do a craniotomy. In the interim, we also learned of three additional aneurysms that will need to be addressed down the road as they aren't as urgent as the one that bled. Around 3pm, mom was finally cleared for her procedures. The angiogram showed a positive outlook for the coil placement which went beautifully!
In the days following mom has been weened off of all of her medications with the exception of Tylenol and blood pressure medication as needed. She can open her left eye sometimes and seems to recognize us mouthing "love you" and making a kiss face in response to a kiss blown at her. The nurses do pain tests when she is being stubborn and won't give them a thumbs up to which she started responding "ow." It's so hard and heartbreaking to watch, but a really good sign.
We have been told to expect a hospital stay of at least three weeks with a long road of healing and therapy beyond that. We want to make sure our dad can focus all of his energy into mom's healing and recovery and doesn't have to be too concerned with the financial side of this difficult time. Thank you so much for your prayers and support! You all have been a tremendous blessing! If you're interested in getting more updates on Mama Donna we have a Caring Bridge site we have linked below.
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/donnafowler
Let us tell you about our mama, Donna. She's unlike any other. If you've been lucky enough to spend even five minutes with her you know how unique she is. Her love is intrinsic and her warmth is infectious. She's adopted people into our family as far as our memories stretch. Bloodlines are no boundary for our mom who regards the baristas in the Starbucks drive-thru as "ours." She's the woman who gets stuck in the chip aisle at Smith's with a lonely 85 year old woman who needs company and someone to complain to. Mom will listen to her cares for 30 minutes and offer to pray with her when she's done. My parents have had more people live with them over the years than we can count. They are our constant examples of Jesus's love. It is because of our mom that we know just how graceful and merciful our Heavenly Father is.
On Tuesday, March 3rd, around 4:30 pm mom told dad to pray for her and immediately passed out. They were driving around to pray for everyone in their lives (it's a regular thing they do) which meant they were in close proximity to Presbyterian Hospital. Dad rushed to the ER and carried mom inside upon arrival. At Presbyterian, mom received a CT scan that reveal her aneurysm. She was promptly transferred to UNMH for care as Presbyterian no longer has a Neuro department. Within an hour we were pulled into a consultation room where we learned that our mom had a subarachnoid aneurysm and the road ahead would be long and tumultuous. BUT! We know our mama, and we sure as heck know our God. That evening they placed a hummingbird to drain fluid from her brain and gave her medications to sedate and stabilize her.
On March 4th, we waited for mom's blood pressure to stabilize and for her to become responsive to their neurological tests before they could do the angiogram and attempt to place the coil to clot the aneurysm. If the coil wasn't an option they would have to do a craniotomy. In the interim, we also learned of three additional aneurysms that will need to be addressed down the road as they aren't as urgent as the one that bled. Around 3pm, mom was finally cleared for her procedures. The angiogram showed a positive outlook for the coil placement which went beautifully!
In the days following mom has been weened off of all of her medications with the exception of Tylenol and blood pressure medication as needed. She can open her left eye sometimes and seems to recognize us mouthing "love you" and making a kiss face in response to a kiss blown at her. The nurses do pain tests when she is being stubborn and won't give them a thumbs up to which she started responding "ow." It's so hard and heartbreaking to watch, but a really good sign.
We have been told to expect a hospital stay of at least three weeks with a long road of healing and therapy beyond that. We want to make sure our dad can focus all of his energy into mom's healing and recovery and doesn't have to be too concerned with the financial side of this difficult time. Thank you so much for your prayers and support! You all have been a tremendous blessing! If you're interested in getting more updates on Mama Donna we have a Caring Bridge site we have linked below.
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/donnafowler
Fundraising team (5)
Taya Fowler
Organizer
Albuquerque, NM
Malea Fowler
Team member
Josh Fowler
Team member
Elia MacCubbin
Team member
Chris Fowler
Team member