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Guillain Barre and having a baby

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Hello, my name is Chris and I am a mother of 4. My oldest son is in the AirForce, my oldest daughter is at home, figuring things out and my two youngest daughters are in high school, one graduating this year.
This is our first time on this site to fundraise. I have donated in the past to family and friends.
It was on my heart to share this rare and crazy situation we find ourselves in. The more research I do, the more I realize we are really kind of alone out there. This is a rare syndrome that not many people ever see. It's extremely rare for a person to have it while pregnant, which makes this a little more special to bring to peoples attention.
I do want to explain a little bit about what Guillain Barre is. Guillain-Barré syndrome is a form of polyneuropathy causing muscle weakness, which usually worsens over a few days to weeks, then slowly improves or returns to normal on its own. With treatment, people may improve more quickly. In about two thirds of people with Guillain-Barré syndrome, symptoms begin about 5 days to 3 weeks after a mild infection (such as a Campylobacter infection, mononucleosis, or another viral infection), surgery, or a vaccination. In Isabel's case, she had Mono and strep that assisted in her GBS.
To begin our unexpected journey, my oldest daughter came to me in the early afternoon of December 21, 2023 stating she felt weak and could barely walk. My niece and I wheeled her, using our computer chair to the garage door and lifted her to the SUV and hauled ass to the ER. I literally was going to drop her off, as I have done in the past, not this day. I am not the most medically inclined person, I will admit. I parked as close as I could to the ER entrance and asked Bel to get out of the back seat and I would help her to walk. It was the slowest walk ever, not only that but her walk was like a little shuffle, sliding her feet. We made it about half way, and she wanted to give up, I did not understand. She was crying and saying I can't please. I asked her to focus on a bench that was close and said if we can get to that bench, I will get a wheel chair and help you get into it. It gave her a little bit of courage and we made it, actually all the way to the wheel chair. Once she was in that chair, little did I know, to this day, I would not see her walk again.
Not only is she not able to walk but a whole bunch more. It's like starting all over again. She has already been through plasma dialysis treatment and had very little improvement. Just 3 days ago, they started her on IVIG treatment, she is on her 3rd one, 4th one starting tonight. It looks like little improvement, although I've been online and it seems to take some time, the only rush is getting the syndrome, getting better is extremely slow. I am still hopeful and she is too. Now our biggest concern, is she is pregnant. All the research and things I have looked into, I have not found a person that has had this and been pregnant at the same time. This is extremely worrisome for us, not just her safety but also this precious baby growing inside.
I say all this to say, time and life is so short and so precious. Our Christmas and New Years have been spent in the ER with our oldest daughter. Time doesn't wait on anyone and GOD has special ways to tell us messages maybe we can't or won't hear, but here we are. I pray my daughter gets through this strong and that her baby gets through this strong, any little assistance helps. We have no clue yet what type of medical costs will accrue with this, we do know that she needs physical therapy, if and when we get out of the hospital. The doctors have been stating it might be challenging because she is pregnant and physical therapy won't want to "risk" it. Which is mind boggling, because I am no physical therapist, we just want to get her the help and care she needs to move on and be able to care for our grand-baby. We are extending our hands and requesting for help in any way that can be given. We are grateful for platforms like this. Thank you for listening to our story and beginning of our journey.
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Donations 

  • noreen bobrocky
    • $20
    • 1 yr
  • Sonya Kinckle
    • $100
    • 1 yr
  • Ana Rodriguez-Pollard
    • $75
    • 1 yr
  • Teresa Bailey
    • $100
    • 1 yr
  • Kimberly Johnson
    • $25
    • 1 yr
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Organizer

Christina Brown
Organizer
Duncanville, TX

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