Katie’s road to recovery

My name is Sky and I am setting up this gofundme for my mom, Katie.

My mom was diagnosed with Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PAH) This disease effects the arteries in your lungs, restricting them and making it difficult for the heart to pump oxygen rich blood into the lungs which in turn is causing the right side of her heart to fail. There are severe symptoms that come with having PAH like shortness of breathe, dizziness, fainting, fatigue, fluid retention, and several others that severely effect her daily life. It is extremely difficult for my mom to do the every day things that most of us take for granted. Walking through the grocery store, lifting or bending down, just walking out to get into the car can cause her to become extremely short of breathe and require her to wear her oxygen on most days. She is very limited physically and this has caused her to have financial difficulties because she is unable to work.

The good news is that my mom has a new team of doctors at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, including a cardiologist, pulmonologist, and many other health care providers that specialize in PAH and are dedicated to treating her with the best possible care. They have already begun her treatment plans and even have some new medications that are being shipped to her!

The treatment plan requires her to travel back and forth quite often for the next few months for injections and monitoring. It is important that she be consistent and present for all of her appointments. We are asking for donations to help finance her travel expenses such as gas, food, lodging, and other necessities as well as her necessary bills like phone and car insurance and maintenance for the next few months until she is able to get back on her feet. We understand that times are difficult for many these days and appreciate any and all donations that are given. She is very humbled by this entire experience and also so excited to finally receive the care she has been needing.

PAH is a very rare and serious disease. We encourage you to read and learn more about it to spread awareness and help others get an earlier diagnosis than most people with PAH get. PAH is not well understood or known in the medical field and often dismissed or misdiagnosed and left untreated until it’s too late. We believe more lives can be saved if more conversations between patients and health care providers about recognizing the symptoms of PAH are shared.