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For several years Mary Snyder had on and off chest pain. Doctors could never really pinpoint what it was from and just dismissed it as something to do with her lupus. She began to work around it - more strolls, less hikes, taking the stairs at a slower pace, and not carrying her daughter, Hannah, around as much.
During her pregnancy with Hannah, she had a debilitating episode that lasted a month and half and randomly went away. She was able to function okay with her new limitations, until her recent pregnancy with Jamie. About halfway through the pregnancy, her chest pain/shortness of breath came on strong and never really went away. She delivered Jamie in March, and her hope was that after the postpartum hormones settled down, she would miraculously go back to normal. She had some good days, but her bad days definitely outweighed the good.
Towards the end of August, her condition significantly worsened. She was not able to care for Jamie and Hannah. She could not even walk up and down the stairs without feeling like she was going to pass out. If she did walk upstairs, it would take her ten minutes of panting to recover. All she could do was walk from her bed to her bathroom...and barely that. This whole time she had been calling to try to get into her cardiologist but had no luck. Finally, she was able to get an appointment and have some tests performed.
On September 10th, she had a right heart catheterization done to test the pressures in her heart. They found her pulmonary artery pressures were extremely high - causing her tricuspid valve to have severe regurgitation. The right side of her heart was only able to pump 50% of what it should be doing. The cardiologist told Mary and Hayden that her heart was in such bad shape that he wanted to send her to Seattle immediately (via medivac) for inpatient treatment. They spent the night in the ICU in Anchorage and the next morning they wrapped her up like a burrito, shoved her into this tiny plane, and off to Seattle they went.
When they arrived in the University of Washington ICU they were swarmed by doctors and nurses. Everything went into motion pretty quickly which is exactly what she needed. The pulmonary hypertension specialist (there is no such specialist in Anchorage) said she has the worst type of pulmonary hypertension and at the worst stage. He told her that if they didn't start aggressive treatment, she would likely not last a year. That was a bit of a gut punch.
Part of the treatment would be a vasodilator that would need to be continuously infused into her blood stream for the rest of her life. They inserted a central line catheter below her right clavicle, which she calls her “new buddy,” and will likely be permanent.
The doctors also wanted to get the lupus under control with a six month regimen of high dose steroids and low dose chemo once a month. Since starting treatment she has had a lot of nausea and various side effects, but she is breathing so much better and her heart rate is now normal. The plan is to find the right dose for the Remodulin infusion medication and then she can be discharged. Things are uncertain how well she will recover, but at this point she is able to walk easier, grateful to be alive, and can’t wait to be with her babies once again.
Mary shared, “It has been hard to be away from Jamie and Hannah. I am so blessed to have a great support system to help our family through this challenging time. It has been a whirlwind and I could use all the support and love anyone is willing to give me - and my family.”
Many of you have expressed interest in helping monetarily, so we are setting up this Go Fund Me account for this purpose. It’s too soon to know the exact cost of the medical bills for the emergency airlift transport from Anchorage to Seattle, the two week stay in the hospital (including over a week in ICU), and ongoing medical expenses with her current treatment plan. Mary and Hayden will appreciate any donation you feel comfortable sharing with this precious family in their time of need.
Thank you for your prayers and continued support.
During her pregnancy with Hannah, she had a debilitating episode that lasted a month and half and randomly went away. She was able to function okay with her new limitations, until her recent pregnancy with Jamie. About halfway through the pregnancy, her chest pain/shortness of breath came on strong and never really went away. She delivered Jamie in March, and her hope was that after the postpartum hormones settled down, she would miraculously go back to normal. She had some good days, but her bad days definitely outweighed the good.
Towards the end of August, her condition significantly worsened. She was not able to care for Jamie and Hannah. She could not even walk up and down the stairs without feeling like she was going to pass out. If she did walk upstairs, it would take her ten minutes of panting to recover. All she could do was walk from her bed to her bathroom...and barely that. This whole time she had been calling to try to get into her cardiologist but had no luck. Finally, she was able to get an appointment and have some tests performed.
On September 10th, she had a right heart catheterization done to test the pressures in her heart. They found her pulmonary artery pressures were extremely high - causing her tricuspid valve to have severe regurgitation. The right side of her heart was only able to pump 50% of what it should be doing. The cardiologist told Mary and Hayden that her heart was in such bad shape that he wanted to send her to Seattle immediately (via medivac) for inpatient treatment. They spent the night in the ICU in Anchorage and the next morning they wrapped her up like a burrito, shoved her into this tiny plane, and off to Seattle they went.
When they arrived in the University of Washington ICU they were swarmed by doctors and nurses. Everything went into motion pretty quickly which is exactly what she needed. The pulmonary hypertension specialist (there is no such specialist in Anchorage) said she has the worst type of pulmonary hypertension and at the worst stage. He told her that if they didn't start aggressive treatment, she would likely not last a year. That was a bit of a gut punch.
Part of the treatment would be a vasodilator that would need to be continuously infused into her blood stream for the rest of her life. They inserted a central line catheter below her right clavicle, which she calls her “new buddy,” and will likely be permanent.
The doctors also wanted to get the lupus under control with a six month regimen of high dose steroids and low dose chemo once a month. Since starting treatment she has had a lot of nausea and various side effects, but she is breathing so much better and her heart rate is now normal. The plan is to find the right dose for the Remodulin infusion medication and then she can be discharged. Things are uncertain how well she will recover, but at this point she is able to walk easier, grateful to be alive, and can’t wait to be with her babies once again.
Mary shared, “It has been hard to be away from Jamie and Hannah. I am so blessed to have a great support system to help our family through this challenging time. It has been a whirlwind and I could use all the support and love anyone is willing to give me - and my family.”
Many of you have expressed interest in helping monetarily, so we are setting up this Go Fund Me account for this purpose. It’s too soon to know the exact cost of the medical bills for the emergency airlift transport from Anchorage to Seattle, the two week stay in the hospital (including over a week in ICU), and ongoing medical expenses with her current treatment plan. Mary and Hayden will appreciate any donation you feel comfortable sharing with this precious family in their time of need.
Thank you for your prayers and continued support.
Organizer and beneficiary
Mary Snyder
Beneficiary