Help Beth Beat The Odds
Donation protected
First, let me state that this is Amanda, Beth's oldest daughter.
For those of you that do not know, on Monday, September 9th, 2019 around 7pm the Pavlicek family got their entire world turned upside down
That day Beth Pavlicek (my mom) was at the gym doing her usual workout routine when she 'passed out.' Those at the gym thought she just had a seizure, but once the ambulance came they knew it was much more serious than that. Shortly after that the police arrived at the Pavlicek home to inform Jeff, her husband and my dad, that my mom had passed out while at the gym and was rushed to United Hospital in St. Paul. At that time, none of us had any idea what to expect.
After my dad and I arrived at the hospital and were brought back to see my mom we knew it wasn't good. We called my sister, Rachel, and the rest of our family. The doctors informed us that my mom had a giant aneurysm (over 2 cm) burst in the left side of her brain and two seizures. With how large this aneurysm was it lead to a very large amount of bleeding and swelling around the brain. She was immediately brought into surgery to coil the aneurysm, which essentially fixed it and stopped the bleeding. In addition, the left side of her skull was removed to give her brain room to swell. A photo of an MRI a day or two after the aneurysm burst is attached below. The white area is the location of the burst aneurysm and it shows the size of damage and bleeding. They called what happened a stage 5 subarachnoid hemorrhage, placing her in a very critical condition.
Following this surgery she was brought into the neurology intensive care unit so she could be well monitored and have time to heal. She has been placed on a ventilator and has a feeding tube that enters through her mouth. She is not breathing on her own, nor is she necessarily awake. She is in what is called a vegetative state.
One positive of all of this is that my mother is left handed and because the aneurysm burst in the left side of her brain, the right side of her body was affected and not her left. At this time my mom is moving her left leg and arm quite often, but not when asked to move them. Also, she has been opening her eyes and looking around. Right now, we do not know if she will ever fully wake up and if she does we do not know the impact this will all have on her physical and mental abilities.
Next week she will be having another surgery to have her ventilator no longer enter through her mouth, but instead through her trachea (in her neck). Also, the feeding tube will also be removed from her mouth and will be moved to entering through her stomach. After she is stable, she will be moving to a long term acute care center.
Below is a link to my mom's caring bridge site that I update every single day. Please, even if you do not know my mom, read her story.
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/bethpavlicek
As you can imagine an ambulance ride, a multiple week stay in an ICU, multiple surgeries, ect. is not cheap. Lucky for us, our family is insured but at this time we do not have the funds to pay for all of this. The amount of money I am asking for is what we need to cover all of these expenses and those that will come up in the future. We hate to ask for this, but this will ensure that my mother can receive the best possible care available.
We would be extremely grateful for any size of donation, large or small. Each penny will help us get closer to our goal and will make a major difference in not only my mom's life, but our families life.
Thank you all in advance. Prayers and kind thoughts are also appreciated.
For those of you that do not know, on Monday, September 9th, 2019 around 7pm the Pavlicek family got their entire world turned upside down
That day Beth Pavlicek (my mom) was at the gym doing her usual workout routine when she 'passed out.' Those at the gym thought she just had a seizure, but once the ambulance came they knew it was much more serious than that. Shortly after that the police arrived at the Pavlicek home to inform Jeff, her husband and my dad, that my mom had passed out while at the gym and was rushed to United Hospital in St. Paul. At that time, none of us had any idea what to expect.
After my dad and I arrived at the hospital and were brought back to see my mom we knew it wasn't good. We called my sister, Rachel, and the rest of our family. The doctors informed us that my mom had a giant aneurysm (over 2 cm) burst in the left side of her brain and two seizures. With how large this aneurysm was it lead to a very large amount of bleeding and swelling around the brain. She was immediately brought into surgery to coil the aneurysm, which essentially fixed it and stopped the bleeding. In addition, the left side of her skull was removed to give her brain room to swell. A photo of an MRI a day or two after the aneurysm burst is attached below. The white area is the location of the burst aneurysm and it shows the size of damage and bleeding. They called what happened a stage 5 subarachnoid hemorrhage, placing her in a very critical condition.
Following this surgery she was brought into the neurology intensive care unit so she could be well monitored and have time to heal. She has been placed on a ventilator and has a feeding tube that enters through her mouth. She is not breathing on her own, nor is she necessarily awake. She is in what is called a vegetative state.
One positive of all of this is that my mother is left handed and because the aneurysm burst in the left side of her brain, the right side of her body was affected and not her left. At this time my mom is moving her left leg and arm quite often, but not when asked to move them. Also, she has been opening her eyes and looking around. Right now, we do not know if she will ever fully wake up and if she does we do not know the impact this will all have on her physical and mental abilities.
Next week she will be having another surgery to have her ventilator no longer enter through her mouth, but instead through her trachea (in her neck). Also, the feeding tube will also be removed from her mouth and will be moved to entering through her stomach. After she is stable, she will be moving to a long term acute care center.
Below is a link to my mom's caring bridge site that I update every single day. Please, even if you do not know my mom, read her story.
https://www.caringbridge.org/visit/bethpavlicek
As you can imagine an ambulance ride, a multiple week stay in an ICU, multiple surgeries, ect. is not cheap. Lucky for us, our family is insured but at this time we do not have the funds to pay for all of this. The amount of money I am asking for is what we need to cover all of these expenses and those that will come up in the future. We hate to ask for this, but this will ensure that my mother can receive the best possible care available.
We would be extremely grateful for any size of donation, large or small. Each penny will help us get closer to our goal and will make a major difference in not only my mom's life, but our families life.
Thank you all in advance. Prayers and kind thoughts are also appreciated.
Organiser
Amanda Pavlicek
Organiser
Rosemount, MN
