Nate's Recovery

Hi, my name is Allison Normington. I am fundraising on behalf of Nate Stopczynski and Katie Bartelt.

During the weekend of September 10th, Nate developed a headache that would not go away. Over the next few days, his symptoms became so concerning that Katie left work on Tuesday, September 13th and took Nate to the Edgerton Hospital ER. While Nate was in the ER, his symptoms worsened, and he quickly became confused, not knowing where he was or what was happening and could not move the left side of his body. An abnormal head CT initiated a transfer to UW-Health Hospital via ambulance from Edgerton ER. Katie and Nate's dad, Roy, were able to visit him very briefly before he went for further testing at UW-Health Hospital. The following five days were terrifying. Nate was intubated Tuesday night, and a breathing tube and feeding tube were placed. Katie and Roy could no longer visit because Nate was on covid precautions (Nate had covid earlier in the month). Over the next five days, Nate was diagnosed with a brain abscess. He was taken into surgery to drain the abscess. Due to the seriousness of his condition, Nate required invasive monitoring. A three-lumen central line catheter device was placed in his upper arm so critical medications and antibiotics could be delivered safely. A drain was put in his brain to allow fluid to be removed and a monitoring device to keep the brain pressure within normal limits. Nate developed a few complications during his hospitalization, including a blood clot in his leg that required an additional surgical procedure.

Nate was discharged from the ICU after over two weeks of critical care monitoring and treatment on September 30th, 2022. Nate will be going to inpatient rehab for further care and extensive therapy. Currently, there is no timeline or timeframe for Nate to return to work.

I am Katie's cousin. Katie and Nate have been together for over eight years. They have a beautiful home in Edgerton, Wisconsin and two crazy rescue pups. Katie and Nate are both very hard workers, wonderful friends and supportive to their families.

Nate and Katie are fiercely independent. Accepting money via donations is something that Nate and Katie would NEVER ask for; however, the reality is that his medical bills will likely be extremely high due to the invasive monitoring this brain abscess has caused. Any funds raised would go directly to Katie and Nate to put towards medical bills and household bills so that they may be able to maintain their home and focus on a speedy recovery.