Ronnie on the road to recovery

As I was in progress of being the best version of myself both mentally and physically, out of nowhere I was put on a medical anomaly journey.

I’m a professional tattoo artist in Las Vegas and I stay active by training in Muay Thai. I enjoy this outlet as it keeps the mind and the body sharp.

Very long story short:

Along with abdominal pain, I developed shivering spells and fevers that progressively got worse over the course of 3 days, so my wife Brittany, took me to the ER.

I spent a week at one hospital with no conclusive answers after running a litany of tests, procedures, and having a ridiculous amount of blood drawn along with spending 2 days sedated and on a ventilator. Their best guess was pneumonia so that’s what they treated me for. Once discharged, they told me to discontinue antibiotics I was given at my initial ER visit one day prior to being admitted.

Within 24 hours of being discharged, I started developing the shakes which turned into shivering spells and brought on fevers as high as 104. I started sleeping outside on my porch with blankets in the hot, Vegas summer sun to try and get warm. Then I would soak through all my clothes from sweating so much. After Brittany found me on the porch looking like death, she brought me to a different ER. I was admitted for Sepsis Shock and I tested positive for a blood infection that contained 2 different types of bacteria and a fungus along with finding a blood clot in my lungs. The last thing they found was a pocket in my IVC behind my liver which could be a blood clot or abnormal gas.

After spending 2 weeks in the hospital and pinpointing the medications needed to treat the infection, I was sent home with a PICC line, IV antibiotics and countless oral meds including blood thinners and blood pressure meds. All the while still trying to recover from pneumonia. I’m told I will need to follow-up with a liver transplant surgeon as my abnormality and negative images of my entire body has left the doctors puzzled and no one in Southern Nevada is qualified to consult on this issue, so I’m being referred to a surgeon who is primarily in California.

I am to be on the IV meds for another 5 weeks at home and cannot tattoo while I’m receiving treatment. I also have to take a break from Muay Thai for the 6 months I’ll be on blood thinners. Imaging will be done to keep an eye on the blood clot and my IVC.

This journey which has spanned a month so far but has felt so much longer, has resulted in my losing 20 pounds during my 6 day stay at the first hospital and gaining 2 pounds back while at the better hospital for 2 weeks. I’m left with no known source or cause, but hoping this strict course of meds where I’m needing an infusion every 4 hours, will resolve the issue.

The medical bills have started to come in and are quickly piling up along with the normal bills that don’t stop just because of health issues which has led to starting this Go Fund Me.

Any help is greatly appreciated and I will continue to post updates on my social media accounts as well as on this page.

I also want to thank everyone who prayed, sent positive vibes, and checked up on Brittany and I during this ordeal. The ongoing support we’ve received has no doubt helped with trying to keep a positive mindset. Big shout out to Sean Dowdell and Club Tattoo who have been beyond amazing and supportive in my unexpected absence.