Help Jen & Her Family on the Long Road to Recovery

Jen remains in critical condition in the ICU. She is on a ventilator, constant dialysis, a temporary pacemaker, and powerful antibiotics. Doctors are working hard to rid Jen’s body of a blood infection, stabilize her blood pressure, and assess organ damage. What began as a relatively asymptomatic infection has turned into septic shock, multi-organ failure, and emergency open heart surgery.

Just 3 months ago, Jen's 20-year dream of becoming a mother was finally realized when she gave birth to her daughter, Graysen. There was a scare that led to Graysen being admitted into the NICU upon delivery. She spent 10 days in the hospital before she was finally able to go home. After that, Jen and her fiance, Ryan, looked forward to their life together raising their newborn.

On Christmas day, Jen came down with flu-like symptoms. Two days later, she was in the ER with a temperature of 103. She was told that she had a virus and a benign infection. The doctor gave her antibiotics and sent her home. On January 3rd, Jen was back in the ER with a persistent fever and worsening fatigue. The same diagnosis was given and Jen insisted that something else was wrong. The doctor gave her a stronger antibiotic and recommended that she follow up with her primary care physician if symptoms didn't improve soon.

On January 11th, Jen was finally able to be seen by her primary care physician. At that time, Jen still had a fever but her fatigue had progressed and she was hardly able to walk. The doctor recorded extremely low blood pressure and recommended that she be taken immediately to the ER and for every test available to be ran. After checking in to the hospital, they suspected septic shock and Jen was rushed into the ICU where they began running numerous tests.

The next morning, after medications failed to raise Jen's blood pressure, the cardiologist ran further tests and determined that she must undergo emergency open heart surgery to have a chance at surving the weekend. At 11:00 am, Jen began what turned out to be a 7-hour surgery to replace her aortic valve and repair a hole in her heart. During surgery, her kidneys and liver started shutting down. Luckily, the doctors were able to stabilize her enough to complete the operation.

After surgery, Jen was awakened just long enough for her doctors to make sure she was responsive and then she was put back to sleep. At a minimum, she will remain sedated over the next few days as her body and her medical team try to fight the infection and keep her stabilized through the damage that had already been done.

As she fights for her life, please keep Jen, Ryan, Alyssa, and Graysen in your prayers. We humbly ask for any assistance you may be able to provide to Jen and Ryan during this incredibly difficult time. We will periodically provide updates during the tough road ahead. Please share with your friends and family.