Help rehabilitate Jake!
Donation protected
Jake is the most loving, compassionate, and empathetic soul around. Every person to cross his path has nothing but positive words to say, his energy is easy to gravitate towards as he always knows how to make one laugh and smile. Everyone wants to spend time with him, especially the residents he cares for at Aegis Senior Living and Memory Care (even the Alzheimer / Dementia residents remember him, and have been asking where he is during his absence!).
Jake recently graduated with his AA in Liberal Studies + AA in Psychology, along with Drug + Alcohol Counseling certification, this semester he was going to be transferring to complete his bachelor’s degree in psychology. His life revolves around caring and helping others heal.
When Jake is not working 40-60 hour weeks, he LOVES spending time with his family, friends and co-workers, listening to music, playing video games, and reaching out to help others. People can’t help but be drawn to his loving, kind, compassionate energy and huge loving heart. Jake is beyond special; he is deeply loved and brings so much joy to the lives of others.
On May 21st, a series of unfortunate events unfolded. Jake met a couple of friends for pizza and, at some point, an incident occurred that ended in Jake badly cutting his arm and being taken to the emergency room for treatment. At the hospital Jake was sedated in order to have his arm worked on but, unfortunately, the sedation, in conjunction with the medication he is prescribed, effected his ability to breath and caused him to be intubated. This is where things took a terrible turn. The medications used to “sedate and calm” had an adverse effect on Jake and turned what should have been a quick sedation into a life-threatening situation.
Over the next 8 days in the surgical ICU, despite Jake’s mom and dad continuing to communicate with the Doctors and Nurses of the negative reactions to the medication Jake has had in the past, it was not until Jake had a fever of 106 degrees, causing heart and organ failure, him having to be put on life support, and transferred to Cardiac ICU, that the doctors acknowledged that what was happening to Jake was “not normal” and it was time for them to “think outside the box”. The doctor’s determined at this point that the medications Jake had been given had caused either Serotonin Syndrome, or Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome, both extremely rare, and both requiring different treatments. Over the next 10 days, Jake remained in CIUI at Mission Hospital on full life support and underwent a total of 4 unsuccessful attempts to remove him from the ventilator. At this point, outside help was being sought by the doctors treating Jake and, thankfully, after reviewing his case the UCLA Neuropsychology Trauma team accepted him and he was airlifted there on Monday, June 7th at 8:55 pm.
Upon arrival to UCLA, a team of neuro ICU specialists began testing Jake for everything and anything that could potentially provide answers. Multiple MRI’s, lumbar punctures, plasmapheresis, the list goes on and on and on... The EEG monitoring discovered seizures on the left side of his brain and, just as an aside, they found 2 fractures, a broken thumb and an infection in his right hand! They have been running blood tests looking for blood infections, brain infections, all the way to the total opposite end of the testing spectrum (pulling blood to test for viper venom!) As they said, they are needing to think outside of the box!
On Monday, June 14th, UCLA succeeded in safely removing Jake’s sedation, and on Tuesday they successfully removed the breathing tubes after almost 1 month. They did a Tracheostomy due to Jake’s lungs and diaphragm being compromised from a combination of double pneumonia, 4 weeks on a ventilator, and the trauma caused by 4 previous unsuccessful removal attempts. Since getting the trach and feeding tube, each day is getting a little closer to the next chapter of his healing journey and rehabilitation.
Jake is now awake and aware of where he is, and cannot stop thanking all the doctors, nurses, specialists, and therapists who walk into his room. He is overwhelmed with emotion, gratitude, and deep appreciation for everyone who is playing a role in his recovery. Even hospitalized and unable to talk, walk, drink or eat, he is showing his huge heart and loving soul, asking how his moms cancer treatment is going, asking how his neighbors cancer treatment is going, and how his residents at the senior living home are doing. Trying to crack jokes, asking if his friends got the jobs they wanted, and asking his sister about everyone she works with, and worrying that they will need help shipping + receiving products, since he usually works with them in late summer and mid-fall. His huge heart and caring soul continue to radiate through and put others first.
The recovery process is a marathon and we have only just begun. Jake will be transitioning out of ICU onto the Neuroscience + Trauma recovery unit at UCLA, where he will begin to work with the neurology team, the psych team, speech therapists, to learn to talk, eat, and drink again on top of working with physical and occupational therapists to regain his mobility and strength. Jake’s employer has been so supportive, they even extended his LTD leave an additional month to help with his insurance coverage and recovery. This is invaluable, however, the family is being told by the doctors that the next phase of Jake’s recovery could take 1-3 months to regain full mobility, swallowing and speech before he is able to get back to work and school.
The financial impact of these medical bills, extended care, and personal responsibilities are beyond our ability to comprehend and, due to the unique circumstances of Jake’s case, and the number of specialists, infectious disease doctors, neuroscientists, heart specialists, respiratory specialists, etc. called in specifically for Jake’s rare case, the bills are hard to even begin to tabulate, and most are beyond what insurance will cover. Any help will go such a long way to help support Jake during this next chapter of recovery and healing.
The family is already experiencing high medical bills due to Jake’s mom going through chemo and radiation this year for Cancer and having just started on a 12-month cycle of immunotherapy. Jake’s mom and dad are driving to UCLA every day to be with Jake and actively participate, alongside his medical team, in his recovery process and sister is going to him every night after work to be with him too so he is not alone.
We are asking, if you are able, to donate to Jake’s GoFundMe. Any amount is appreciated, and we cannot thank you enough for taking the time to read and share Jake’s story. Most of all though, thank you for the continued love, prayers, healing energy and thoughts you have all been sending. As the doctors explained to Jake this week, this next chapter will be a rollercoaster of emotions, and to expect some very high high’s and very low lows. We know the road will not be easy, and we also believe that if anyone can pull through this, it is Jake!
THANK YOU to all the doctors and nurses in the CICU at Mission Hospital for supporting Jake and helping get him to UCLA.
THANK YOU to all the Doctors, Nurses, and Specialists at UCLA Neuropsychology Trauma unit and the AirLift team of doctors who got Jake to UCLA safely and were able to successfully get him off Life Support within 12 days. Exactly 29 days after being admitted to the ICU at Mission Hospital, and 21 days of Life Support. Thank you for taking such great care of Jake, for helping support Jake, reminding him he is loved, he is safe, and he is STRONG!
THANK YOU to the doctors, specialists and specialized therapy teams who will be working with Jake on this next chapter of his recovery and healing starting the week of June 21st.
Jake recently graduated with his AA in Liberal Studies + AA in Psychology, along with Drug + Alcohol Counseling certification, this semester he was going to be transferring to complete his bachelor’s degree in psychology. His life revolves around caring and helping others heal.
When Jake is not working 40-60 hour weeks, he LOVES spending time with his family, friends and co-workers, listening to music, playing video games, and reaching out to help others. People can’t help but be drawn to his loving, kind, compassionate energy and huge loving heart. Jake is beyond special; he is deeply loved and brings so much joy to the lives of others.
On May 21st, a series of unfortunate events unfolded. Jake met a couple of friends for pizza and, at some point, an incident occurred that ended in Jake badly cutting his arm and being taken to the emergency room for treatment. At the hospital Jake was sedated in order to have his arm worked on but, unfortunately, the sedation, in conjunction with the medication he is prescribed, effected his ability to breath and caused him to be intubated. This is where things took a terrible turn. The medications used to “sedate and calm” had an adverse effect on Jake and turned what should have been a quick sedation into a life-threatening situation.
Over the next 8 days in the surgical ICU, despite Jake’s mom and dad continuing to communicate with the Doctors and Nurses of the negative reactions to the medication Jake has had in the past, it was not until Jake had a fever of 106 degrees, causing heart and organ failure, him having to be put on life support, and transferred to Cardiac ICU, that the doctors acknowledged that what was happening to Jake was “not normal” and it was time for them to “think outside the box”. The doctor’s determined at this point that the medications Jake had been given had caused either Serotonin Syndrome, or Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome, both extremely rare, and both requiring different treatments. Over the next 10 days, Jake remained in CIUI at Mission Hospital on full life support and underwent a total of 4 unsuccessful attempts to remove him from the ventilator. At this point, outside help was being sought by the doctors treating Jake and, thankfully, after reviewing his case the UCLA Neuropsychology Trauma team accepted him and he was airlifted there on Monday, June 7th at 8:55 pm.
Upon arrival to UCLA, a team of neuro ICU specialists began testing Jake for everything and anything that could potentially provide answers. Multiple MRI’s, lumbar punctures, plasmapheresis, the list goes on and on and on... The EEG monitoring discovered seizures on the left side of his brain and, just as an aside, they found 2 fractures, a broken thumb and an infection in his right hand! They have been running blood tests looking for blood infections, brain infections, all the way to the total opposite end of the testing spectrum (pulling blood to test for viper venom!) As they said, they are needing to think outside of the box!
On Monday, June 14th, UCLA succeeded in safely removing Jake’s sedation, and on Tuesday they successfully removed the breathing tubes after almost 1 month. They did a Tracheostomy due to Jake’s lungs and diaphragm being compromised from a combination of double pneumonia, 4 weeks on a ventilator, and the trauma caused by 4 previous unsuccessful removal attempts. Since getting the trach and feeding tube, each day is getting a little closer to the next chapter of his healing journey and rehabilitation.
Jake is now awake and aware of where he is, and cannot stop thanking all the doctors, nurses, specialists, and therapists who walk into his room. He is overwhelmed with emotion, gratitude, and deep appreciation for everyone who is playing a role in his recovery. Even hospitalized and unable to talk, walk, drink or eat, he is showing his huge heart and loving soul, asking how his moms cancer treatment is going, asking how his neighbors cancer treatment is going, and how his residents at the senior living home are doing. Trying to crack jokes, asking if his friends got the jobs they wanted, and asking his sister about everyone she works with, and worrying that they will need help shipping + receiving products, since he usually works with them in late summer and mid-fall. His huge heart and caring soul continue to radiate through and put others first.
The recovery process is a marathon and we have only just begun. Jake will be transitioning out of ICU onto the Neuroscience + Trauma recovery unit at UCLA, where he will begin to work with the neurology team, the psych team, speech therapists, to learn to talk, eat, and drink again on top of working with physical and occupational therapists to regain his mobility and strength. Jake’s employer has been so supportive, they even extended his LTD leave an additional month to help with his insurance coverage and recovery. This is invaluable, however, the family is being told by the doctors that the next phase of Jake’s recovery could take 1-3 months to regain full mobility, swallowing and speech before he is able to get back to work and school.
The financial impact of these medical bills, extended care, and personal responsibilities are beyond our ability to comprehend and, due to the unique circumstances of Jake’s case, and the number of specialists, infectious disease doctors, neuroscientists, heart specialists, respiratory specialists, etc. called in specifically for Jake’s rare case, the bills are hard to even begin to tabulate, and most are beyond what insurance will cover. Any help will go such a long way to help support Jake during this next chapter of recovery and healing.
The family is already experiencing high medical bills due to Jake’s mom going through chemo and radiation this year for Cancer and having just started on a 12-month cycle of immunotherapy. Jake’s mom and dad are driving to UCLA every day to be with Jake and actively participate, alongside his medical team, in his recovery process and sister is going to him every night after work to be with him too so he is not alone.
We are asking, if you are able, to donate to Jake’s GoFundMe. Any amount is appreciated, and we cannot thank you enough for taking the time to read and share Jake’s story. Most of all though, thank you for the continued love, prayers, healing energy and thoughts you have all been sending. As the doctors explained to Jake this week, this next chapter will be a rollercoaster of emotions, and to expect some very high high’s and very low lows. We know the road will not be easy, and we also believe that if anyone can pull through this, it is Jake!
THANK YOU to all the doctors and nurses in the CICU at Mission Hospital for supporting Jake and helping get him to UCLA.
THANK YOU to all the Doctors, Nurses, and Specialists at UCLA Neuropsychology Trauma unit and the AirLift team of doctors who got Jake to UCLA safely and were able to successfully get him off Life Support within 12 days. Exactly 29 days after being admitted to the ICU at Mission Hospital, and 21 days of Life Support. Thank you for taking such great care of Jake, for helping support Jake, reminding him he is loved, he is safe, and he is STRONG!
THANK YOU to the doctors, specialists and specialized therapy teams who will be working with Jake on this next chapter of his recovery and healing starting the week of June 21st.
Organizer and beneficiary
Camryn O'Brien
Organizer
Dana Point, CA
Pandora Hanes
Beneficiary