Bryan's Big Battle

Courageous. This is the first word that comes to mind when I think about the Watkins Family. For those of you that do not know Bryan, Amanda and their twin girls Marley and Layla it is my saddened privilege to tell you’re their story. This is not your ordinary family of four that is able to carry-on the typical way of life. It is not that easy. See, Bryan is disabled from a congenital heart condition or birth defect which he was born with. This birth defect of the heart caused him to be born without a ventricle which allows your blood to properly flow through your lungs to get oxygen. Bryan literally began his fight with his first breath. This birth defect caused Bryan to have open heart surgery as an infant and he was placed on medications to help sustain his heart and prolong his life. As you could assume this would be a life-long battle. Currently, at 30 years old Bryan has a pacemaker implanted and needs to have fluid drained from his stomach frequently (every other week). Even with the pacemaker Bryan still goes in and out of flutter in which they need to cardiovert him from time to time. Every day is a battle and for this family it is an unsettling thought of what troubles tomorrow may bring. Unfortunately for Bryan and his family this story does not get better. On 1/16/17 Bryan went to Glens Falls hospital emergency room for pain in a lymph node and fever. With his complicated history Glens Falls Hospital admitted Bryan. At this point it was suspected that IV antibiotics were necessary so they were started in hopes that they would take care of the suspected infection. The antibiotics did not help any symptoms and in fact things got worse. After two weeks of multiple antibiotics, 2 biopsies, CT scans and ultrasounds revealed even more lymph nodes were swollen in other areas. All the while Bryan still had fever, night sweats, unbearable pain, more fluid retention, gout attack, enlarged spleen and dangerously low blood pressure readings. On top of the physical pain, discomfort and pure exhaustion Bryan has not been able to see his 2 kids except for being able to face time since the hospital has a policy that does not let kids in during flu season. Regardless, at this point with testing for autoimmune disorders, cancers, bacteria and fungal infections it was still unconfirmed of what exactly was causing all of this. Without any clear diagnosis and watching her husband deteriorate worse and worse each day, Amanda reached out and left a message with a cardiologist that Bryan had been seeing in Boston. The cardiologist called her back immediately and voiced his concern. He wanted Bryan to come to Boston as soon as possible to be treated there. On 1/30/17 Bryan was transported to Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Mass. (THANK YOU MOREAU EMS!) Immediately upon arrival that day Bryan met with a rheumatologist, infectious disease and his cardiologist. They asked Bryan and Amanda to be patient but told them they had faith that the team of specialists would figure out what was going on. Two days later on 2/01/17 Bryan's results from the biopsy he had under his arm came in from Glens Falls Hospital. The cardiologist in Boston delivered the news that everybody dreads and we all thought we had avoided.. cancer. Hodgkin's Lymphoma to be exact.

As Bryan and Amanda are coping with this new chapter in their lives and learning the treatment options available they have just about ZERO income coming in. Bryan has been on disability for almost his whole adult life. Not working much means less than $400 a month from social security/disability. That's right, a month. Amanda recently switched jobs to be with her family more and has not been there long enough to acquire much vacation or personal time. The little time that she had was used up within the 1st week of Bryan's stay in Glens Falls Hospital. They are currently both staying in Bryan's private room at Brigham and Women's Hospital so they are not having to pay for a place to stay however Amanda is paying for meals and medical expenses that aren't covered. There is also their home that their two girls are staying in with Amanda's mom. Between rent and utilities they are going to be set back about $1,500.00/month as long as Bryan is still in Boston receiving treatment and Amanda is there with him not working. To show our support for this family we love we would really like to see our goal reached for Amanda and Bryan to give them a little peace of mind while Bryan is fighting the battle of his life.

Thank you all so much for anything you can manage to donate. Every little bit helps and please share this with others! We will keep everyone up to date on his progress. Please keep Bryan, Amanda, Marley, Layla and their family in your thoughts. Thank you.