Hope for Ryan
Donación protegida
Thank you so much for taking the time to visit! My name is Suzanne Ager, and I am raising money for a good friend of mine whose child has suffered a tragic brain injury, resulting in multiple medical issues including epilepsy, memory loss, difficulty learning and retaining information, among other challenges. Due to her son's injuries and conditions, my friend Brenda and her husband have accumulated debt from medical bills; Brenda has lost her job due to the time she needs to spend taking her son to different doctors, specialists, therapists, and psychiatrists; and the public school system where her son used to be an honor student has not been able to meet his needs up to this point. I am raising money to help Brenda pay her son's medical bills and to pay tuition for her son to attend a special school where his educational and rehabilitation needs will be met.
Ryan, a beautiful, sweet young 14 year-old boy who absolutely loves football was playing a game of backyard football in the ice-covered snow on January 2, 2014 when tragedy struck. Ryan went up to catch the football and when he landed he slid into a fence post, cracking his head like a walnut. The ambulance could not make it to a trauma hospital due to poor road conditions and took Ryan to the nearest hospital, where they did a CT scan. Ryan received 24 staples and three stiches from the large laceration and the doctors said there was no reason for further treatment--he would be fine. However, 6 months later he had a seizure, which was followed by multiple seizures. Brenda began the long road of trying to get Ryan diagnosed properly, which has required hospitalizations and tons of specialists. After three MRI's, three CT scans and two EEG’s there were findings of left occipital encephalomalacia. Encephalomalacia is counted among the most serious types of brain damage. You can imagine the devastation felt by Brenda , her husband and Ryan. Ryan has wanted to stay in public school; has wanted to be the kid he was before the accident. However, his brain injury has severely affected his ability to learn and retain information; he gets frequent migraines and occasionally has seizures, which to his teachers look like he's just spaced out, causing them to label him a problem student. Brenda gets at least one call/email a week from the school complaining about Ryan.
In spite of the medications Ryan is on for seizures, ADHD (which he did not have prior to his brain injury), his cognitive abilities continue to deteriorate. Still trying to have Ryan accurately diagnosed, Brenda and her husband took Ryan to Johns Hopkins for a third opinion in March 2015. They reviewed all of the EEG's done at other hospitals and determined that Ryan suffers from focal dyscognitive seizures (aka. epilepsy) and severe migraines.
Due to the need to take Ryan to specialists almost every week, in addition to monitoring Ryan's seizure activity and managing his medications, Brenda is unable to work a traditional full-time job. Her husband is working two jobs to trying and keep their heads above water, but it's not enough to get Ryan the help he needs medically or educationally. Ryan's behavior has also become very challenging at school and at home, due to his traumatic brain injury (TBI). He is dealing with so much, as he has been in denial about what is going on with him medically. As I mentioned above, Ryan has always been an honor student, but this year his grades have declined severely. He has memory loss and has trouble remembering what has been taught in class. Brenda and her husband are very concerned with Ryan starting high school next year and would like to get him into a residential program for the summer, which would help prepare him educationally, mentally and hopefully physically. The programs are not affordable. Brenda continues to look for full-time employment that would give her the flexibility she needs to attend to Ryan, but that could take a very long time to find. She and her husband will also need to continue taking Ryan to Johns Hopkins so they can get Ryan the care he needs before he starts high school in the fall.
I can't imagine the grief that Brenda, Ryan and her husband are experiencing, but I am hoping that we can all join together to give Ryan hope for healing and a chance at a bright future.
Ryan, a beautiful, sweet young 14 year-old boy who absolutely loves football was playing a game of backyard football in the ice-covered snow on January 2, 2014 when tragedy struck. Ryan went up to catch the football and when he landed he slid into a fence post, cracking his head like a walnut. The ambulance could not make it to a trauma hospital due to poor road conditions and took Ryan to the nearest hospital, where they did a CT scan. Ryan received 24 staples and three stiches from the large laceration and the doctors said there was no reason for further treatment--he would be fine. However, 6 months later he had a seizure, which was followed by multiple seizures. Brenda began the long road of trying to get Ryan diagnosed properly, which has required hospitalizations and tons of specialists. After three MRI's, three CT scans and two EEG’s there were findings of left occipital encephalomalacia. Encephalomalacia is counted among the most serious types of brain damage. You can imagine the devastation felt by Brenda , her husband and Ryan. Ryan has wanted to stay in public school; has wanted to be the kid he was before the accident. However, his brain injury has severely affected his ability to learn and retain information; he gets frequent migraines and occasionally has seizures, which to his teachers look like he's just spaced out, causing them to label him a problem student. Brenda gets at least one call/email a week from the school complaining about Ryan.
In spite of the medications Ryan is on for seizures, ADHD (which he did not have prior to his brain injury), his cognitive abilities continue to deteriorate. Still trying to have Ryan accurately diagnosed, Brenda and her husband took Ryan to Johns Hopkins for a third opinion in March 2015. They reviewed all of the EEG's done at other hospitals and determined that Ryan suffers from focal dyscognitive seizures (aka. epilepsy) and severe migraines.
Due to the need to take Ryan to specialists almost every week, in addition to monitoring Ryan's seizure activity and managing his medications, Brenda is unable to work a traditional full-time job. Her husband is working two jobs to trying and keep their heads above water, but it's not enough to get Ryan the help he needs medically or educationally. Ryan's behavior has also become very challenging at school and at home, due to his traumatic brain injury (TBI). He is dealing with so much, as he has been in denial about what is going on with him medically. As I mentioned above, Ryan has always been an honor student, but this year his grades have declined severely. He has memory loss and has trouble remembering what has been taught in class. Brenda and her husband are very concerned with Ryan starting high school next year and would like to get him into a residential program for the summer, which would help prepare him educationally, mentally and hopefully physically. The programs are not affordable. Brenda continues to look for full-time employment that would give her the flexibility she needs to attend to Ryan, but that could take a very long time to find. She and her husband will also need to continue taking Ryan to Johns Hopkins so they can get Ryan the care he needs before he starts high school in the fall.
I can't imagine the grief that Brenda, Ryan and her husband are experiencing, but I am hoping that we can all join together to give Ryan hope for healing and a chance at a bright future.
Organizador
Suzanne Lime Ager
Organizador
Hamilton, VA