Hope for Jaci
Donation protected
Jaci was born February 9th 2020 and diagnosed with infantile spasms (infant epilepsy) on September 23rd 2020. Luckily, her mother Kaitlyn noticed changes in Jaci and took her to the local ER immediately. From there, she was sent by ambulance to CHOP, the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. After an ambulance trip and being in the hospital for 4 days, along with the medication needed to help treat her - the medical bills are piling up.
Jaci had blood work, MRIs, multiple EEGS and genetic testing done on her. She was given very high doses of steroids and is responding well to her treatment. This isn’t the end for the family, it’s just the beginning of a long road of therapies, medication, brain scans, testing and more.
What happened to Jaci doesn’t look like a normal seizure. Her amazing mother Kaitlyn had to go off her motherly instincts that something was wrong. Her doctors keep saying how lucky they are that she caught it so early, as if it went untreated it would cause irreversible developmental and intellectual disabilities.
This seizure can look slightly different per kid, like a crunch, a head bob, or in Jaci’s case, eyes rolling back with arms flailing out wide. Infantile spasms happen when falling asleep, waking up, or during sleep. It usually starts between 4-8 months of age to every 1/2000 babies. And again, if it’s not quickly treated it can cause lots of damage.
We share this information in hopes of spreading awareness of infantile spasms. For all the parent/caregivers out there: if something seems odd or off, always call the pediatrician, go to the ER, take action. Don’t wait for it to be too late!
If you could support our GoFundMe by making a donation and then sharing it with your network, we would greatly appreciate it. Kaitlyn lost her job during the pandemic and now has to stay home as a full-time caregiver, taking care of Jaci and her 2 year old son, Jayden. While Kaitlyn and Alex do have health insurance, their deductible is $9000 a year so just between the remainder of 2020 and Jaci’s testing and appointments in the beginning of 2021, it will cost $18,000 out of pocket.
I know that money can be tight, so please know that even $5 helps her get closer to their goal! Let me know if you have any questions and I’ll be happy to answer them.
Jaci had blood work, MRIs, multiple EEGS and genetic testing done on her. She was given very high doses of steroids and is responding well to her treatment. This isn’t the end for the family, it’s just the beginning of a long road of therapies, medication, brain scans, testing and more.
What happened to Jaci doesn’t look like a normal seizure. Her amazing mother Kaitlyn had to go off her motherly instincts that something was wrong. Her doctors keep saying how lucky they are that she caught it so early, as if it went untreated it would cause irreversible developmental and intellectual disabilities.
This seizure can look slightly different per kid, like a crunch, a head bob, or in Jaci’s case, eyes rolling back with arms flailing out wide. Infantile spasms happen when falling asleep, waking up, or during sleep. It usually starts between 4-8 months of age to every 1/2000 babies. And again, if it’s not quickly treated it can cause lots of damage.
We share this information in hopes of spreading awareness of infantile spasms. For all the parent/caregivers out there: if something seems odd or off, always call the pediatrician, go to the ER, take action. Don’t wait for it to be too late!
If you could support our GoFundMe by making a donation and then sharing it with your network, we would greatly appreciate it. Kaitlyn lost her job during the pandemic and now has to stay home as a full-time caregiver, taking care of Jaci and her 2 year old son, Jayden. While Kaitlyn and Alex do have health insurance, their deductible is $9000 a year so just between the remainder of 2020 and Jaci’s testing and appointments in the beginning of 2021, it will cost $18,000 out of pocket.
I know that money can be tight, so please know that even $5 helps her get closer to their goal! Let me know if you have any questions and I’ll be happy to answer them.
Organizer and beneficiary
Annie Delre
Organizer
Trenton, NJ
Kaitlyn Cardona
Beneficiary