Nicholas Perez emergency medical expenses

On February 22, 2024 our son Nicholas Perez experienced an unforeseeable medical emergency. Our 14 year old son, Nicholas suffered a severe stroke in his kidney, spleen, and a massive stroke in the brain. Our son has been left paralyzed on the right side of his body and no longer has the ability to dress himself, go to the restroom by himself, and walk. Our son is currently also experiencing mixed aphasia as a result and his language is not always clear, coherent, and concise. Since his emergency I have been unable to work and now that the doctors have diagnosed Nicholas with a very rare autoimmune disease called APS (Antiphospholipid Syndrome) our son’s future prognosis is still very unclear and tentative. The doctors have also found further evidence of clots in his heart and potentially in the small vessels behind his eyes. The Neurologist at Texas Children’s hospital have told us that Nicholas will be at risk of developing life threatening strokes for the rest of his life, but are optimistic with proper treatment and a healthy lifestyle he can keep his disease in check. It is still too early to say if he will ever walk again or be able to do the things that he was able to do before he suffered these strokes. As you can imagine our families whole life has been turned upside down. If you had asked us if our son would be suffering and experiencing all of this a month ago we would have looked at you like you were crazy. Unfortunately with APS there are no warning signs and the doctors have said he will always be at risk of experiencing another stroke and they cannot say when or where or exactly if it will happen. As you can imagine I have been unable to work and my husband is now the sole provider for our family. I am now our son’s full time caregiver. Nicholas will need intravenous treatments now and even when he is able to go home, out patient rehabilitation, regular follow up visits with Rheumatologist, Cardiologist, and Optometrists. Nicholas is no longer able to return back to school this school year, and will now be required to do Homebound through his High school. Not only did this dramatically change his life but it changed our whole families lives. We have always worked hard to support our children, but now we are at the mercy of the state and the government hoping we can get some help and assistance as this was a life changing hardship none of us saw coming. Nicholas’ current situation has now greatly effected our ability to bring in the income we once relied on. I hope that this finds you empathetic to our plight. We just ask that you take all the information provided and consider helping our family in this time of need. We are holding on to our faith and the wonderful rehabilitation team at Texas Children’s Hospital to get our son back on his feet walking, talking and functioning the way he did before this occurred. My sweet boy is definitely a fighter and hasn’t let this get him down. I honestly don’t know how he does it because I would have broken down within the first few days if it had been me. My baby however is a strong, kind hearted, gentle giant if you know my Bear then you know he would do anything for his friends and family. Any contributions received will go to pay for Nicholas’ growing hospital bill and any special rehabilitation equipment and DME he may need once he is able to get home. It will also help cover the cost of transportation to and from Nicholas’ future appointments following his discharge as there will be many future follow up visits he will need and continued monitoring for the rest of his life. Unfortunately we still don’t know when that will be because Nicholas still has a long road ahead of him but with all the love and support he has received we know he can do it. We won’t stop fighting for our sweet boy until he is home and better. We appreciate everyone who has helped us so far. We cannot express in words our love and gratitude for you all it has really helped our family and Nicholas more than you can ever know.

The Perez Family