Hello family and friends ,

As some of you may know, on the night of April 29, my son and I were at home, enjoying our usual time together. Little did I know, my life was about to change drastically. A few hours later, my son started complaining of a severe stomachache and even collapsed to the floor, which made it clear to me that he was in serious trouble. I rushed him straight to the hospital. He was admitted for his stomach pain, but just hours later, he ended up in the ICU.

What was meant to be a simple MRI turned into a nightmare when he began to have a nosebleed, followed by vomiting blood, which he accidentally inhaled into his lungs, resulting in cardiac arrest. He stopped breathing, and the medical team had to insert needles into both of his legs to help him breathe. They started chest compressions and gave him four doses of epinephrine, but he remained unresponsive for 12 minutes. He was intubated, and in those terrifying moments, I was filled with uncertainty about whether my child would survive. I remember seeing around 20 doctors working frantically on him while his father and I stood by, crying and worrying, desperate to be close to him. They quickly moved him to the ICU and intubated him, and we have been here ever since. Sadly, the damage to his brain was severe, leaving him with brain damage on both sides. He is unable to talk, sit up, or walk, but by the grace of God, he was intubated for six days following the cardiac arrest and stroke.

On the morning of May 7, they were able to remove the tube from his mouth, allowing him to breathe independently. The recovery process is proving to be just as challenging as the incident itself. He can form a few sentences now, but he has come to realize that he can no longer sit up or walk, which I believe is the hardest part for him, especially since he doesn’t remember the events that led to this. How do you explain such a situation to a three-year-old? All I can tell him is that he went to sleep for a while and that his brain forgot how to function, but I know deep down that he understands that this isn’t the whole truth. With that said, we have been in the ICU since

April 30, and they anticipate that we will remain here until May 18 before transitioning to the regular pediatric floor for the remainder of the month. I’m not asking for much; I’m simply seeking any small donations that could help us get through this tough time, as I won’t be able to work this month.