Isabella's Journey: Recovering After Stroke

For those who know my sister Isabella, you know she is someone who would give the shirt off her back to a stranger who needed it. Isabella has a heart of gold and constantly puts others before herself. In 2018, Isabella was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. Although only a teenager at the time, Bella took this life-altering diagnosis on courageously and never let her disease hold her back from doing what she loves most. Headstrong and fearless, Isabella is always diving headfirst into new passions and teaching herself new things. Whether she's playing guitar, piano, singing, or mastering a new artistic media skill, Bella stays busy in her creativity and puts her all into making art. When she wasn't expanding her talents or making adventures with friends, Isabella worked as a Youth Development Professional at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Siouxland, where she devoted herself to the children she worked with and encouraged kids to express themselves through art and music as well.

All of that changed for her on August 3rd, 2025, when she woke up unable to speak or use her right arm. Without hesitation, our mom called 911, and Bella was taken to the Emergency Room, where she was then life-flighted to Avera Hospital. The following morning on August 4th, Isabella suffered a major stroke.

Doctors acted quickly as there was a blood clot that had wedged itself into her carotid artery, blocking blood from getting to her brain, paralyzing the right side of her body, robbing her of her ability to speak, and causing vision loss. The damage to her brain was catastrophic, and her brain began swelling dangerously. She underwent a craniotomy, a life-saving surgery to remove part of her skull and relieve the pressure.

While that saved her from further damage, the stroke affected the entire left half of her brain, leaving her right side paralyzed and unable to talk without difficulty as she now suffers from aphasia. Now she begins her slow and difficult journey to recovery.

Isabella was recently transferred out of the intensive care unit and is now at Avera's Rehabilitation Center in Sioux Falls. While she's slowly regaining her ability to speak, Isabella is working in intensive speech and physical therapies throughout her days.

As you can imagine, Bella has been unable to work during this time. The mounting medical bills are overwhelming, and there’s no clear end in sight. She will need years of therapy to continue on her path to recovery.

Isabella is surrounded by an incredible network of friends who have been unwavering in their support. We are so grateful for every single one of them, as this has been a challenging time for all of us. But despite our best efforts, navigating government assistance programs is slow—everything takes months, sometimes up to a year, just to be considered. While we have done our best to visit her every day and stay as long as we can, family members have financially taken a toll themselves with travel expenses, hotels, and taking time off of work.

After much thought and reflection, we’ve come to the point where we need to ask for help. If you are able, even the smallest donation would mean the world to Bella and to our family. Your generosity will go directly toward her care, her support, and will make an enormous difference in her journey toward healing. Thank you for taking the time to read this, and for considering a way to support my sister during this incredibly difficult time.