Giselle's(Gigi) Medical Fund
Donation protected
As many of you know my daughter Giselle was born with a heart defect called Transposition of the Great Arteries. She had open heart surgery to repair her heart at 12 days old. She sees her cardiologist on a regular basis for echocardiograms, EKG's, as well as other procedures that she has had to get done through out the years.
On Tuesday, August 22nd our lives forever changed. What we thought was going to be an in & out dental procedure at Phoenix Children's Hospital, turned into the worst day of our lives. During Gigi's dental procedure, her blood pressure dropped & her heart went into an arrhythmia. The doctors were able to stabilize her to complete her dental procedure, but felt it was necessary to admit her to figure out what exactly was happening with her heart. Once they admitted her to the CVICU (Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit) her heart went back into the arrhythmia and it took them a couple hours to stabilize her again. Once she was stabilized they whisked her away to the Cath lab. The doctors wanted to take a closer look at her coronary arteries and see if they were blocked. During the Cath lab procedure Giselle went into cardiac arrest and had to be given chest compressions & CPR for 60 minutes. The doctors came out and told us that she basically had a massive heart attack and they needed to take her to the Operating Room immediately to open up her coronary arteries which were getting little to no oxygen. The doctors asked if she had showed any signs at home such as being extremely tired, complaining of chest pain, passing out, etc. Unfortunately, there were no signs and all of her
Cardiology exams always turned out well. Giselle has always had so much energy & always been so full of life!
Gigi was taken to the OR straight from the Cath lab. Her open heart surgery lasted 10 hours. The Surgeon came out and showed us a video of her procedure; her left coronary artery was getting very little oxygen and her right was not getting any oxygen. The entire medical team stressed that although this was a very scary and bad situation that we were in, her dental procedure was a blessing in disguise. They said that this episode would have eventually happened whether it was on the playground or while she was sleeping, but being at the hospital saved her life.
The first week in the hospital was a roller coaster. Even after the emergency open heart surgery that Gigi had the first night she was admitted to PCH she ended up going to the OR a total of 5 times within the first week due to different complications that she experienced.
I spoke with Gigi's surgeon a day before they went back in to close her chest up and he told me that Giselle is truly a miracle. He said given the events that occurred and the complications that came after he honestly didn't think that her heart would have any function.
Although my Gigi may have a long road ahead I am beyond thankful of the PCH CVICU medical team & staff and that a recovery road exists because of them.
We currently don't know when Gigi will be discharged from the hospital. Right now we are taking one day at a time. She is currently receiving Physical & Occupational therapy in the hospital and will have to continue once she is released. In addition, Giselle will now require long term medications to help with the function of her heart. A team of doctors will continue to monitor her closely.
We want to thank everyone for their continued prayers & support! We have truly had such a great support system through this difficult time.
A lot of people have reached out and asked about a go fund me account so they can help with medical expenses & Giselle's continued care. It hadn't crossed my mind, but given all the outpouring support we are more than grateful for those of you who would like to make a donation no matter how big or small.
We have no doubt that with the grace of God, Giselle will be back to her usual self in no time. We knew from day one that she was a true miracle. She continues to amaze us every single day with her strength, courage, & willingness to fight! The CVICU team says that Giselle's recovery will be one for the history books here at PCH. They said that her outcome is better than they could have ever imagined.
We truly appreciate your support in advance!
-Giselle & Liliana
On Tuesday, August 22nd our lives forever changed. What we thought was going to be an in & out dental procedure at Phoenix Children's Hospital, turned into the worst day of our lives. During Gigi's dental procedure, her blood pressure dropped & her heart went into an arrhythmia. The doctors were able to stabilize her to complete her dental procedure, but felt it was necessary to admit her to figure out what exactly was happening with her heart. Once they admitted her to the CVICU (Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit) her heart went back into the arrhythmia and it took them a couple hours to stabilize her again. Once she was stabilized they whisked her away to the Cath lab. The doctors wanted to take a closer look at her coronary arteries and see if they were blocked. During the Cath lab procedure Giselle went into cardiac arrest and had to be given chest compressions & CPR for 60 minutes. The doctors came out and told us that she basically had a massive heart attack and they needed to take her to the Operating Room immediately to open up her coronary arteries which were getting little to no oxygen. The doctors asked if she had showed any signs at home such as being extremely tired, complaining of chest pain, passing out, etc. Unfortunately, there were no signs and all of her
Cardiology exams always turned out well. Giselle has always had so much energy & always been so full of life!
Gigi was taken to the OR straight from the Cath lab. Her open heart surgery lasted 10 hours. The Surgeon came out and showed us a video of her procedure; her left coronary artery was getting very little oxygen and her right was not getting any oxygen. The entire medical team stressed that although this was a very scary and bad situation that we were in, her dental procedure was a blessing in disguise. They said that this episode would have eventually happened whether it was on the playground or while she was sleeping, but being at the hospital saved her life.
The first week in the hospital was a roller coaster. Even after the emergency open heart surgery that Gigi had the first night she was admitted to PCH she ended up going to the OR a total of 5 times within the first week due to different complications that she experienced.
I spoke with Gigi's surgeon a day before they went back in to close her chest up and he told me that Giselle is truly a miracle. He said given the events that occurred and the complications that came after he honestly didn't think that her heart would have any function.
Although my Gigi may have a long road ahead I am beyond thankful of the PCH CVICU medical team & staff and that a recovery road exists because of them.
We currently don't know when Gigi will be discharged from the hospital. Right now we are taking one day at a time. She is currently receiving Physical & Occupational therapy in the hospital and will have to continue once she is released. In addition, Giselle will now require long term medications to help with the function of her heart. A team of doctors will continue to monitor her closely.
We want to thank everyone for their continued prayers & support! We have truly had such a great support system through this difficult time.
A lot of people have reached out and asked about a go fund me account so they can help with medical expenses & Giselle's continued care. It hadn't crossed my mind, but given all the outpouring support we are more than grateful for those of you who would like to make a donation no matter how big or small.
We have no doubt that with the grace of God, Giselle will be back to her usual self in no time. We knew from day one that she was a true miracle. She continues to amaze us every single day with her strength, courage, & willingness to fight! The CVICU team says that Giselle's recovery will be one for the history books here at PCH. They said that her outcome is better than they could have ever imagined.
We truly appreciate your support in advance!
-Giselle & Liliana
Organiser and beneficiary
Vanessa & Daniella Ramirez on behalf of Giselle & Liliana
Organiser
Glendale, AZ
Liliana Ramirez
Beneficiary
