River Lynn’s Funeral Expenses and Medical Bills

My name is Carlee and early on in my pregnancy our baby, River Lynn Nelson was diagnosed with left sided CDH (congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia). She was monitored closely and we consulted with the best doctors in the US. Overall we were given a survival rate of 85-90%. We continued care at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia where things were pretty stable for her up to 32 weeks of pregnancy and things quickly changed. At this point River started retaining fluid in her chest and abdomen. She was diagnosed with Hydrops which is a term for fluid build up in multiple parts of the body. The doctors tapped her chest in hopes to fix the problem. A few days later it returned and the next step was placing a shunt in her chest to get rid of fluid. This procedure needed to be canceled as I had an amniotic rupture the night before. I felt like I couldn’t catch a break. The doctors felt in hospital bed rest and constant monitoring was the next steps. As a week passed I reached 34 weeks of pregnancy, previous to this River chest was tapped and they got all the fluid. We were hopeful but again her fluid was back and her heart was weakening. I went in for an emergency C section on 10/18 and delivered a 6.2 pound baby girl who was fighting for her life. We were given very low chances but still had hope she would push through.

River wasn’t expected to make it past birth but she did. She fought but as time went on got weaker and the doctors told us she was internally bleeding. With her poor blood values and multiple blood transfusions nothing was working. We let River pass at 5:57am in my arms. It was peaceful and she was free of pain or sufferings.

Seeing River, holding River and being her mom has changed my world completely. I didn’t think it would but it did. I never thought I was ready to be a mom but seeing her I was ready to do whatever it took. The amount of pain and hurt I feel/ we feel is nothing I have ever felt in my life. We are a family and will always be a family and I know River along with all the other angels will look over us, protect us and help us get through this difficult time. For everyone that has followed our girls journey, I hope her story inspired you or gave you a look into what so many families face with NICU babies, CDH babies, or any baby with an issue and they just don’t speak out about it. Your support has made us strong and helped us keep going when we had no hope and were ready to give up. River is so loved and we know she knows this.

We are asking for support one more time as we make funeral arrangements for our girl, settle all outstanding medical bills and also help with my recovery as I am out of work. This will help with bills as I have no short term disability. Again we appreciate the love and support for our family and know River is looking down on us all.