Helping my son with his grief

My name is Miriam Wesley, and I am setting this Go Fund Me for my son, Jared Wesley. He is in need of support that is beyond my financial means. His story is as follows:

His wife, my daughter-in-law, Sophia, became ill with what was later determined to be COVID-19 on March 10, 2021 (my birthday) and was hospitalized two days later. She was put into a medically induced coma because the virus was attacking her brain. The hospital then had her transferred to Johns Hopkins University Hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, because they were better able to treat that strain of COVID. After about four weeks of treatment, she was transferred to a rehabilitation center to help with her memory loss and to relearn how to walk.

She struggled to breathe every evening, but at that time, hospitals and rehabilitation facilities were strained due to the influx of COVID patients, so her complaints went unanswered. The day she was scheduled to be discharged from the facility, she had a heart attack. After being rushed to another hospital close to the rehab center in Baltimore, MD, where she was diagnosed with double pneumonia. She was finally discharged from the hospital on April 19th and sent home with a prescription for Oxygen her insurance company never approved to be filled. In the following weeks, Jared ended up taking her to the emergency room twice, where she was treated with Oxygen; the prescription was still pending through her insurance company.

On Mother’s Day, May 9th, 2021, she had another breathing attack, and after calling 911 for an ambulance, my son performed CPR to try to keep her alive. Unfortunately, before the ambulance arrived, Sophia died. They had been together for several years but married for the last two. Sophia was the love of his life, and he was lost without her, but what he has gone through since her death has sent him to the place where he is now.

Sophia had a tenuous relationship with her mother but still loved and supported both of her parents. Unfortunately, several issues arose when Sophia decided to end her first marriage. Her mother supported her now ex-husband, and there were multiple issues that surrounded this process, but in the end, her divorce was finalized, and she and her mother came to terms with the situation. When her parents later faced hardship, she allowed them to move into her home with Jared and her son. Once Sophia was released from the hospital, there was some tension in her relationship with her mother, but when she died, her mother started a situation that spiraled from annoying to extremely detrimental.

The day after Sophia passed, her parents set up an appointment with the funeral home. At that time, Jared was in no condition to make any arraignments or decisions. Seeing that Jared was struggling to make decisions, the funeral director gave him a release form to sign, authorizing Sophia’s father to make the funeral arraignments. Upon receiving this form, her parents moved out of the house. Unfortunately, we were not informed that this release gave her father complete control of the service and anyone who could come to the service. I found that out when I called the funeral home to finalize the date and arrange payment because Sophia had no life insurance. The funeral director told me she had not been given permission to release any information about the services for Sophia. Without this information, Jared, nor any of his family, friends they had as a couple, nor her co-workers were allowed to attend the funeral service. Also, due to the high cost of a funeral and burial, Sophia’s parents had her cremated, and they have kept her ashes. So, Jared was never able to have any closure in this devastating, life-altering event.

Jared and our family were told about the funeral in the form of a series of text messages Sophia’s mother sent us after the funeral. She sent a picture of Sophia in her casket, with a statement under the picture saying, “Jay did this.” This was the beginning of text message harassment of Jared, his family, and, I recently found out, a neighbor of Jared’s as well. Her mother usually starts sending text messages around 3 or 4 am and continues for 4 or 5 hours. I cannot repeat the filth and insults she has sent my entire family. She has poured salt into an open wound. Jared has not been able to grieve or start the healing process due to this harassment.

Upon Sophia’s death, Jared inherited her belongings. Her mother is very upset over this, as she didn’t know they were married due to their strained relationship. When they left the house, her parents had the electricity and water cut off. My daughter, Jared’s older sister and I were able to call the utility companies and have the services restored.

This past fall, Jared moved across the country to the mountains, trying to get his life back on track, but he still is suffering from depression and anxiety, and he was recently diagnosed with PTSD. His depression causes him to have severe mood swings, and he has been able to keep a job. He had a complete meltdown last week but was able to enter a treatment center and receive counseling and medication to help with his depression, anxiety and PTSD.

Due to his actions during the mental break, he is unable to stay where he was and is presently staying at a local motel. The treatment center only allowed a 5-day stay. He is currently doing outpatient treatment as he is wait-listed for a long-term treatment center. Until that time, he needs funds for lodging and transportation for his therapy appointments as he continues his treatments on an outpatient basis. If possible, he is asking for help to get a motorcycle to get around because the upkeep is less costly than a car. He also needs a laptop to have zoom meetings with his counselors. We are asking for $4,000 - $12,000. Jared is trying to heal and has finally realized he needs help to go through the grieving process properly.