Ethan suffered a severe anoxic brain injury from a non-fatal drowning on September 7, 2022 when a pool gate lock failed. While I (his mom) started CPR almost immediately after he lost consciousness, he was without a heartbeat for 19 minutes. He is a miracle in that he came back to us. But he came back with severe challenges. He is no longer mobile, he cannot talk, he has a trach and a g-tube. But he is here. And he is fighting so hard. As long as he is fighting, we are going to fight too.

Ethan has made incredible strides since his injury. His body is strong and he shows new purposeful movements and cognitive understanding every day. But the chasm between his functioning before and now, and his ability to have a life where he can make choices, is huge. And this is where we need your help.

I am a solo parent of Ethan and his twin brother. I work hard, and I leverage every insurance and government program to help support the costs of his care. And I do everything mainstream medicine tells me will help him. But it is not enough. His own neurologist has said she has nothing in her toolkit to help him heal, she can only manage issues that might spring up with medication.

I also work in healthcare. I read an interesting stat about a year ago . . . it used to take 72 years to double our knowledge in the field of medicine. Now we double it every 72 hours. There is no way that medical professionals can keep up with the latest at that pace. Nor can our oversight bodies. And so I look to families who have gone before us - what has worked, what hasn't? Where are there opportunities with low risk but that will accelerate his brain's healing? And we have found them. And you have helped us out in the past, because insurance does not yet recognize their benefit (hyperbaric oxygen treatment, stem cells, MNRI therapies, etc.).

And now I am asking for your help again. Both for a new treatment that could significantly help Ethan as well as for the most traditional of things - a wheelchair-accessible van.

First - the new treatment. It is called NeuroCytonix and it is based in Monterrey, Mexico. It uses targeted magnetic and RF waves to grow new neural pathways in the brain that leads to improved function in children with brain injuries - many with anoxic brain injuries like Ethan. They take an MRI and EEG on Day 0 and again on Day 29, not only to focus the treatments but also to measure impact. Ethan will receive 1 hour of treatment for the 28 days in-between, This could be life-altering. We are scheduled to be there this fall. But it is expensive. The first treatment costs $55k and is all out-of-pocket (plus travel expenses). I cannot be away from his twin brother for that length of time, so the whole family is relocating to Monterrey for the month.

Secondly - a wheelchair-accessible van. We need one. He is heavy and my parents can't put him in and out of his car seat. My mom is his primary caregiver (with his nurse) during the day and takes him to his appointments so I can work. For his and the adults' safety, we need a van. I already have it picked out and have funding to support 50% of the cost through various government programs and grants. But I still need to raise at least another $45k to fund the van.

For those of you doing the math, that is $100k in the next few months. That doesn't cover other out-of-pocket medical costs and ongoing therapies. I work hard, but I don't have the ability to take this on by myself. You all have been so generous with your time, prayers, healing energy and financial contributions. If you can find any way to help Ethan through your financial support, I so appreciate it. It takes a village and this village is saving my son.

And if you found this post through GFM and want to follow his progress, please check out his Facebook page at "Love and Support for Ethan's Recovery".

Thank you