Kristen Miller/Guillain-Barre

Kristen Miller is a 38 year old Mother of three and expecting baby number four.  She recently began experiencing strange symptoms such as hand numbness and a change in her vision along with unusual pains. Motivated by her desire for a healthy pregnancy she immediately went to her OB, eye doctor and even the ER. Her symptoms were vague at first and she was told it was likely due to normal changes in the body during a pregnancy. She went home and knew pretty quickly that something was very wrong. She suddenly became paralyzed and unable to walk and started having trouble swallowing. She was ultimately admitted to the hospital and diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome. This is an immune system response where the peripheral nervous system is damaged causing excruciating pain and loss of body movement. Kristen was admitted to the ICU due to difficulty breathing and choking leading to a fear of aspiration. She ultimately had to undergo both IVIG and plasmapheresis treatments. She has just been released from the hospital after 40 days. During her admission there were several "close calls" where she actually  feared that she would not make it out. She has lost 30 pounds since this began and has extremely weakened muscles. Her fine motor skill will need extensive therapy. She will be attending outpatient therapy three times a week for the foreseeable future. Kristen previously worked fulltime and is trying to recover quickly so that she can return to work. Any donations would help this family to pay their mortgage, pay bills and buy groceries. The need is urgent so any  contributions would be greatly appreciated.