Prayers For Avery
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Around 4:40 am on September 8, 2020, I found Avery unresponsive in bed. Her head was tilted up, her tongue was sticking out of her mouth, and her eyes were rolled in the back of her head. I immediately dialed 911 and proceeded to do CPR. I waited about 5 to 7 minutes until the paramedics arrived to take over. They shocked her to get a pulse and heartbeat and rushed her to the emergency room at Children’s National Medical Center in DC. I made it to the hospital around 5:30 am and the code team were still performing CPR. They had to shock her again and I heard they also did it in the ambulance on their way to the ER. It wasn’t until 6 am that they got a stable heartbeat and pulse to move her up to the ICU. She had developed arrythmias or extra irregular heartbeats. Her body was without a good oxygen flow for roughly 75 to 80 minutes. Because of that, her brain was severely damaged.
She was in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit overnight until she was cleared for COVID. She was then transferred to the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit the next morning. She was on a ventilator to help her breathe and on other machines to help her other organs function. They had to focus mostly on the heart and the brain. She had tons of EKGs and EEgs to keep a close view on both organs and plan her care accordingly. A MRI was done on the brain during its peak swelling stages. From those results, the neurologists strongly believed that Avery would not be able to see, move, eat or interact with others on her own ever again. Due to the irregular heartbeats, the cardiologists believed that there was a strong chance that Avery would have another cardiac arrest but wouldn’t be able to be revived from it. So they recommended a defibrillator to be placed inside of her chest to send a shock to the heart whenever an irregular heartbeat occurred or if the heart ever stopped.
Avery is no longer on any machines. She is breathing on her own and her organs are functioning on their own. She now has a G-tube for nutrition since she is not eating on her own. She underwent a heart procedure, an ablation, where all the tissues causing the irregular heartbeats were destroyed. Since then, we have not seen any. However, there has been an increase of “neurostorming” episodes or medically termed as Paroxysmal Sympathetic Hyperactivity. Symptoms include overly exaggerated cries, increased heart rate, increased blood pressure, sweating, and muscle posturing. It is off and on for hours. She has been given tons of meds to try to loosen her tone.
On October 15, 2020, we finally reached REHAB!! We are currently an hour away at the Kennedy Krieger Institute. We are set to be there for 8 weeks so far. The discharge date will depend on Avery’s progress. In rehab, Avery is dealing with physical therapists, occupational therapists, recreational therapists, neuropsychologists, behavior psychologists, and of course nurses and pediatricians.
The road to recovery has been stressful; just dealing with the emotional part of the process. It still has other factors that we have to put into play. I am currently on unpaid Family Medical Leave. We have the insurance that is covering most of the expenses but we are still looking at a very expensive recovery. This fund is created to cover Avery’s medical expenses during and after her hospital/institution stay. We are currently in the process of finding a new home that is spacious, wheelchair accessible and ADA compliant. We have to get medical equipment that she will need such as hospital bed, wheelchair, car seat, meds, diapers, etc. We also will need to have a nurse in the home for 8 hours, either during the day so I can work or during the night so I can sleep. There will be no 24 hours nurse help.
This fund will also support Avery’s younger sister, Zola. Zola witnessed the entire trauma that dreadful morning and has been coping on her own terms. It will provide counseling for the both of us as we prepare ourselves for Avery’s arrival back home and her future.
Everything is still in process and nothing is set in stone. We thank everyone for their continued prayers and blessings. Your prayers have got us here.
We want complete healing of Avery’s body. She deserves this miracle. So please continue to pray for Avery and our family.
If anyone wants to send cards, letters of encouragement, gift cards, toys or anything to Avery or Zola, please send it to the below address:
Cornesha Ward
3401 East West Highway
Apt. G66
Hyattsville, MD 20782
You can also donate via cashapp - $CorneshaWard or paypal -paypal.me/wardc8
She was in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit overnight until she was cleared for COVID. She was then transferred to the Cardiac Intensive Care Unit the next morning. She was on a ventilator to help her breathe and on other machines to help her other organs function. They had to focus mostly on the heart and the brain. She had tons of EKGs and EEgs to keep a close view on both organs and plan her care accordingly. A MRI was done on the brain during its peak swelling stages. From those results, the neurologists strongly believed that Avery would not be able to see, move, eat or interact with others on her own ever again. Due to the irregular heartbeats, the cardiologists believed that there was a strong chance that Avery would have another cardiac arrest but wouldn’t be able to be revived from it. So they recommended a defibrillator to be placed inside of her chest to send a shock to the heart whenever an irregular heartbeat occurred or if the heart ever stopped.
Avery is no longer on any machines. She is breathing on her own and her organs are functioning on their own. She now has a G-tube for nutrition since she is not eating on her own. She underwent a heart procedure, an ablation, where all the tissues causing the irregular heartbeats were destroyed. Since then, we have not seen any. However, there has been an increase of “neurostorming” episodes or medically termed as Paroxysmal Sympathetic Hyperactivity. Symptoms include overly exaggerated cries, increased heart rate, increased blood pressure, sweating, and muscle posturing. It is off and on for hours. She has been given tons of meds to try to loosen her tone.
On October 15, 2020, we finally reached REHAB!! We are currently an hour away at the Kennedy Krieger Institute. We are set to be there for 8 weeks so far. The discharge date will depend on Avery’s progress. In rehab, Avery is dealing with physical therapists, occupational therapists, recreational therapists, neuropsychologists, behavior psychologists, and of course nurses and pediatricians.
The road to recovery has been stressful; just dealing with the emotional part of the process. It still has other factors that we have to put into play. I am currently on unpaid Family Medical Leave. We have the insurance that is covering most of the expenses but we are still looking at a very expensive recovery. This fund is created to cover Avery’s medical expenses during and after her hospital/institution stay. We are currently in the process of finding a new home that is spacious, wheelchair accessible and ADA compliant. We have to get medical equipment that she will need such as hospital bed, wheelchair, car seat, meds, diapers, etc. We also will need to have a nurse in the home for 8 hours, either during the day so I can work or during the night so I can sleep. There will be no 24 hours nurse help.
This fund will also support Avery’s younger sister, Zola. Zola witnessed the entire trauma that dreadful morning and has been coping on her own terms. It will provide counseling for the both of us as we prepare ourselves for Avery’s arrival back home and her future.
Everything is still in process and nothing is set in stone. We thank everyone for their continued prayers and blessings. Your prayers have got us here.
We want complete healing of Avery’s body. She deserves this miracle. So please continue to pray for Avery and our family.
If anyone wants to send cards, letters of encouragement, gift cards, toys or anything to Avery or Zola, please send it to the below address:
Cornesha Ward
3401 East West Highway
Apt. G66
Hyattsville, MD 20782
You can also donate via cashapp - $CorneshaWard or paypal -paypal.me/wardc8
Co-organizers (9)
Cornesha Ward
Organizer
Hyattsville, MD
Sandie Subratie
Co-organizer
Jockquelene Mitchell
Co-organizer
Cherry Smith
Co-organizer
Evander Ward
Co-organizer