January 2015
Kate Mund has lived in East Hampton her whole life. She and her 15 year old son live alone; Kate has been a seamstress for over 25 years. She recently started to lose the use of her hands and legs and on October 9, 2014 she had a herniated disc removed from her neck. Her surgeon at Stony Brook replaced the missing disc with her bone shavings and inserted a titanium brace in her neck. The surgery was a success and she was sent to a rehabilitation center.
Her recovery, unfortunately, did not go as expected and left Kate unable to use her hands or her feet; she is confined to a wheel chair and a hospital bed and is totally dependent on others for her every need.
Just before Christmas, Kate was re-admitted to Stony Brook Hospital for more tests and intravenous therapy, as autoimmune diseases were suspected.
On Christmas Eve, she was diagnosed by one of her doctors with ALS, and was given a limited time to live and was sent home.
Her sister, Lauren, has generously given up her life and business in Delaware and moved here to take care of Kate. She and Kate are not convinced that the dire diagnosis is correct; because severe tick-borne diseases can be mistaken for ALS and other ailments, Kate is continuing her journey toward recovery with upcoming appointments with her neurologist and with an infectious disease doctor who specializes in tick-borne illnesses.
We are asking those of you who know this wonderful local family to donate as much as you are able to help them through the next four months. These women are in crisis; neither Kate nor Lauren has been able to work and their everyday living is difficult, expensive and stressful.
Please help us help them.
March 5, 2015
I wanted to give you, my angels, an update! After a month and a half of waiting , I finally received 2 days of IVIG (Intravenous White Blood Cell Infusion) treatments. My neurologist requested 4 days every month for 4 consecutive months but my insurance is allowing only 2 days a month. I had 5 days of these treatments in December at Stonybrook Hospital which helped my overall strength and soreness considerably but, sadly, only temporarily. With my wonderful sister's help, I've been able to keep my soreness level down this past month with her treatments of acupunture and Chinese herbs. After rejecting Stonybrook's diagnosis in December, we pursued two other avenues suggested by local neurologists: 1) an autoimmune disorder most likely a variant of Guillain-Barre syndrome (thus the IVIG treatments); or 2) a result of several microbial infections like Lyme (thus the trip to the Jemsek Specialty Clinic in Washington D.C.). They ordered more in depth Lyme-related bloodwork and more comprehensive metobolic testing than Stonybrook would do for us. Jemsek has issued me a cyclical antimicrobial treatment protocol to address the various acute and chronic infections currently disrupting my immune system. Although I am slowly improving, I know this will be a lengthy process and I want to thank you all for your continued support. Sincerely, Kate Mund
Kate Mund has lived in East Hampton her whole life. She and her 15 year old son live alone; Kate has been a seamstress for over 25 years. She recently started to lose the use of her hands and legs and on October 9, 2014 she had a herniated disc removed from her neck. Her surgeon at Stony Brook replaced the missing disc with her bone shavings and inserted a titanium brace in her neck. The surgery was a success and she was sent to a rehabilitation center.
Her recovery, unfortunately, did not go as expected and left Kate unable to use her hands or her feet; she is confined to a wheel chair and a hospital bed and is totally dependent on others for her every need.
Just before Christmas, Kate was re-admitted to Stony Brook Hospital for more tests and intravenous therapy, as autoimmune diseases were suspected.
On Christmas Eve, she was diagnosed by one of her doctors with ALS, and was given a limited time to live and was sent home.
Her sister, Lauren, has generously given up her life and business in Delaware and moved here to take care of Kate. She and Kate are not convinced that the dire diagnosis is correct; because severe tick-borne diseases can be mistaken for ALS and other ailments, Kate is continuing her journey toward recovery with upcoming appointments with her neurologist and with an infectious disease doctor who specializes in tick-borne illnesses.
We are asking those of you who know this wonderful local family to donate as much as you are able to help them through the next four months. These women are in crisis; neither Kate nor Lauren has been able to work and their everyday living is difficult, expensive and stressful.
Please help us help them.
March 5, 2015
I wanted to give you, my angels, an update! After a month and a half of waiting , I finally received 2 days of IVIG (Intravenous White Blood Cell Infusion) treatments. My neurologist requested 4 days every month for 4 consecutive months but my insurance is allowing only 2 days a month. I had 5 days of these treatments in December at Stonybrook Hospital which helped my overall strength and soreness considerably but, sadly, only temporarily. With my wonderful sister's help, I've been able to keep my soreness level down this past month with her treatments of acupunture and Chinese herbs. After rejecting Stonybrook's diagnosis in December, we pursued two other avenues suggested by local neurologists: 1) an autoimmune disorder most likely a variant of Guillain-Barre syndrome (thus the IVIG treatments); or 2) a result of several microbial infections like Lyme (thus the trip to the Jemsek Specialty Clinic in Washington D.C.). They ordered more in depth Lyme-related bloodwork and more comprehensive metobolic testing than Stonybrook would do for us. Jemsek has issued me a cyclical antimicrobial treatment protocol to address the various acute and chronic infections currently disrupting my immune system. Although I am slowly improving, I know this will be a lengthy process and I want to thank you all for your continued support. Sincerely, Kate Mund