Samantha Ruf, Mom of Three, Open Heart Surgery
Donation protected
My sister Samantha is a loving wife, mother to 3 beautiful girls, photographer, and she needs our help! She is always a giver, raising money for other families in need, never asking for anything in return. Now, my sister and her family are in need of support and I am hoping to help them out, as they have done for so many others.
As many of you know, my sister, Samantha has been suffering with misdiagnosed medical problems for almost a year. From passing out multiple times per week, being unable to stay upright without her blood pressure dropping, being extremely out of breath, tired, weak, etc. On November 30th she suffered a mini stroke while driving, luckily, while on the phone with me. She was taken by ambulance to the hospital where they discovered that her heart rate was all over the place and suggested she get an echocardiogram bubble study to look for a hole in her heart. In the meantime, she suffered another mini stroke that following Saturday while trying to access her port.
She had the bubble study echo done, that following week and it showed she in fact did have a hole in her heart. They advised to have the port removed ASAP and it was removed the following day to reduce the risk of more strokes. The port was originally placed thinking all of her symptoms were due to a hydration problem. The doctors reassured her that it was likely just a small PFO (patent formen ovale) which are fairly common and that they can be closed via catheter closure device rather than open heart surgery to prevent more strokes. The thing was, small PFOs don’t cause the symptoms she was having. They can cause strokes but it doesn’t explain any of her other symptoms that she was displaying.
They then placed a 14-day heart monitor until she could be seen by the cardiologist. She suffered another mini stroke right before Christmas, which then led Cardiology to order a transesophageal echocardiogram prior to her appointment with the cardiologist, instead of waiting until after the appointment. That procedure showed she did have a hole as seen on the original echo but it is not a PFO, it is an Atrial Septal Defect (ASD) with insufficient rim on one side. She is currently in Hawaii for her husbands job, but has little to no support system to help her through the long road she faces ahead. In addition, due to this not being quite as simple as originally thought with a PFO, she really wants and needs to be treated at the Cleveland Clinic, where they have some of the best heart surgeons in the country and where her family is close by to help care for her and her children during her long recovery.
The only thing holding her back are finances. She has always been able to provided income for their family with her photography career. However, having been unable to steadily work for almost a year, they have drained their savings due to a MOUNTAIN of medical bills, getting out of state second opinions, medical travel expenses, paying for childcare due to her passing out and unable to safely care for their 2 year old, etc. Her husband is unable to take off any more work, still needing to pay their growing bills, and already taking off time during her medical emergencies.
We really need to get her to Cleveland to get the best medical care, and getting this all taken care of once and for all. Any help that you can offer, they will be so very grateful for. Thank you all so much for the continued prayers and support for my sister! I will update as often as I can.
As many of you know, my sister, Samantha has been suffering with misdiagnosed medical problems for almost a year. From passing out multiple times per week, being unable to stay upright without her blood pressure dropping, being extremely out of breath, tired, weak, etc. On November 30th she suffered a mini stroke while driving, luckily, while on the phone with me. She was taken by ambulance to the hospital where they discovered that her heart rate was all over the place and suggested she get an echocardiogram bubble study to look for a hole in her heart. In the meantime, she suffered another mini stroke that following Saturday while trying to access her port.
She had the bubble study echo done, that following week and it showed she in fact did have a hole in her heart. They advised to have the port removed ASAP and it was removed the following day to reduce the risk of more strokes. The port was originally placed thinking all of her symptoms were due to a hydration problem. The doctors reassured her that it was likely just a small PFO (patent formen ovale) which are fairly common and that they can be closed via catheter closure device rather than open heart surgery to prevent more strokes. The thing was, small PFOs don’t cause the symptoms she was having. They can cause strokes but it doesn’t explain any of her other symptoms that she was displaying.
They then placed a 14-day heart monitor until she could be seen by the cardiologist. She suffered another mini stroke right before Christmas, which then led Cardiology to order a transesophageal echocardiogram prior to her appointment with the cardiologist, instead of waiting until after the appointment. That procedure showed she did have a hole as seen on the original echo but it is not a PFO, it is an Atrial Septal Defect (ASD) with insufficient rim on one side. She is currently in Hawaii for her husbands job, but has little to no support system to help her through the long road she faces ahead. In addition, due to this not being quite as simple as originally thought with a PFO, she really wants and needs to be treated at the Cleveland Clinic, where they have some of the best heart surgeons in the country and where her family is close by to help care for her and her children during her long recovery.
The only thing holding her back are finances. She has always been able to provided income for their family with her photography career. However, having been unable to steadily work for almost a year, they have drained their savings due to a MOUNTAIN of medical bills, getting out of state second opinions, medical travel expenses, paying for childcare due to her passing out and unable to safely care for their 2 year old, etc. Her husband is unable to take off any more work, still needing to pay their growing bills, and already taking off time during her medical emergencies.
We really need to get her to Cleveland to get the best medical care, and getting this all taken care of once and for all. Any help that you can offer, they will be so very grateful for. Thank you all so much for the continued prayers and support for my sister! I will update as often as I can.
Organizer and beneficiary
Victoria Swartwood
Organizer
Lake City, PA
Samantha Ruf
Beneficiary