Help Greg Recover
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On August 3rd, Greg Aucoin had just started his days off. That morning his fiancée Tara Ridley was getting ready for work along with their 18-month-old daughter Abigail. Greg woke up with the onset of numbness in his extremities and went to the hospital for the first time. That night the symptoms progressed and he couldn’t walk. Within 48 hours he was suffering from paralysis from the neck down and was diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS). Greg was transferred to the ICU at his local hospital in Fort McMurray to begin treatment. After several weeks of treatment with some improvement in his legs, he started to lose feeling in his face and suffered liver damage from the medication. The decision was made to transfer him to Edmonton to being Plasmapheresis treatment.
Guillain-Barré syndrome is a rare but serious autoimmune disorder in which the immune system attacks healthy nerve cells in your peripheral nervous system. It causes numbness, weakness and can lead to paralysis. It can happen to anyone. There is no known cause of it, it’s typically triggered by a virus like a cold or flu.
With no immediate family close by and Tara supporting Greg as he started recovery, she had to make another tough decision, to send their 18-month-old daughter Abigail to live with her parents in BC so could focus on Greg’s health and offer Abigail stability. Greg was admitted into the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital in Edmonton in mid September.
During the 2 months in which Abigail was away, Tara has had to return to work full time in Fort McMurray to support the family. She has had to move their home as they lived on the 4th floor of a walk up and they needed to be on the main floor not knowing what Greg’s condition would be when he was released. Between working full time and travelling to Edmonton to be with Greg, its was very unstable as all 3 family members were separated.
Abigail is back with her mom now but sadly, due to schedules and everything that has happened; she has only been able to see her dad once in person. She doesn’t understand why her dad won’t hold or play with her and she’s not quite sure why he won’t pick her up. Facetime has been their greatest resource as they have dinner dates almost every night.
It’s been 12 weeks since he was first admitted. Greg has continued to see progress with his lower body and face. He is still waiting for his body to start to heal and have the nerves working in his arms and hands. He has more movement than he did when he was first diagnosed but not much. Unfortunately, with GBS there’s no real time line of recovery and everyone’s case differs in severity & response to treatment.
There is a long road ahead of physical therapy and work to rebuild all the muscle mass, strength and fine motor skills. There is no estimated timeline for Greg to return to work. He’s expected to make a full or close to full recovery, however the strength in fine motor skills are still questionable. The financial impact of Greg’s illness has and will continue to have tremendous impact on their family. The current hope is to have Greg home for the holidays.
Please help to support Greg, Tara and Abigail as they continue to battle this illness together as a family. Thank you so much for your support, please share their story.
Guillain-Barré syndrome is a rare but serious autoimmune disorder in which the immune system attacks healthy nerve cells in your peripheral nervous system. It causes numbness, weakness and can lead to paralysis. It can happen to anyone. There is no known cause of it, it’s typically triggered by a virus like a cold or flu.
With no immediate family close by and Tara supporting Greg as he started recovery, she had to make another tough decision, to send their 18-month-old daughter Abigail to live with her parents in BC so could focus on Greg’s health and offer Abigail stability. Greg was admitted into the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital in Edmonton in mid September.
During the 2 months in which Abigail was away, Tara has had to return to work full time in Fort McMurray to support the family. She has had to move their home as they lived on the 4th floor of a walk up and they needed to be on the main floor not knowing what Greg’s condition would be when he was released. Between working full time and travelling to Edmonton to be with Greg, its was very unstable as all 3 family members were separated.
Abigail is back with her mom now but sadly, due to schedules and everything that has happened; she has only been able to see her dad once in person. She doesn’t understand why her dad won’t hold or play with her and she’s not quite sure why he won’t pick her up. Facetime has been their greatest resource as they have dinner dates almost every night.
It’s been 12 weeks since he was first admitted. Greg has continued to see progress with his lower body and face. He is still waiting for his body to start to heal and have the nerves working in his arms and hands. He has more movement than he did when he was first diagnosed but not much. Unfortunately, with GBS there’s no real time line of recovery and everyone’s case differs in severity & response to treatment.
There is a long road ahead of physical therapy and work to rebuild all the muscle mass, strength and fine motor skills. There is no estimated timeline for Greg to return to work. He’s expected to make a full or close to full recovery, however the strength in fine motor skills are still questionable. The financial impact of Greg’s illness has and will continue to have tremendous impact on their family. The current hope is to have Greg home for the holidays.
Please help to support Greg, Tara and Abigail as they continue to battle this illness together as a family. Thank you so much for your support, please share their story.
Organizer and beneficiary
Gail Rendek
Organizer
Calgary, AB
Tara Ridley
Beneficiary