Hayden's Medical

Hi, my name is Julie and I am helping fundraise for Hayden Hawkins and his mom and dad, Melissa and Chad.

On May 29, 2021, Chad and Melissa’s otherwise very healthy 19 year-old son Hayden developed extreme headaches and after several calls with advice nurses and two ER visits Hayden was diagnosed with a brain AVM (arteriovenous malformation is a tangle of abnormal blood vessels connecting arteries and veins in the brain) as well as a CVST (Cerebral Venous Sinus Thrombosis is a type of rare blood clot that forms in the venous sinuses in your brain) and he was admitted to the ICU.

Both the AVM and the CVST had swelling around them, putting pressure on his brain and putting him at high risk for hemorrhage and catastrophic stroke. They were given the news that Hayden’s case was extremely rare, if not unheard of, and it was difficult to treat. Treatment was risky and they could only wait and hope that what the medical team suggested worked.

Over the course of 15 days in the hospital, they met with a team of specialists including ICU doctors, neurologists, neurosurgeons, hematologists, and the infectious disease department. Additionally, Hayden had highly skilled ICU and PCU nurses caring for him throughout the hospital stay. Melissa, and Chad feel so fortunate to have this caring team working to treat Hayden. His case is a bit of a medical mystery and a lot of time and thought has been put into his treatment.

They still do not know the cause of the CVST and the medical team continues to work on this. Hayden is still at risk of clotting, bleeding, seizure, stroke, and hemorrhage. He continues to be monitored closely. At this time, doctors are not able to move ahead with surgery for the AVM because of the clot, so they wait, and hope for the clot to dissolve so the AVM can be addressed...soon.

In the meantime, hospital bills and insurance costs have accumulated and will continue to do so. They are also seeking input and treatment from specialists on the U.S. continent and outside of their network in general, which requires insurance that they purchased individually. The out-of-pocket deductible for this insurance is rather high, and the monthly payments for insurance to be able to seek this treatment is substantial. They would love any support you can provide as they navigate this new normal. Chad, Melissa and Hayden have deeply expressed their appreciation for all the love and support that they have received since the moment this journey began.

We will update here with any and all changes.