Serena's fight
Donation protected
(Edited on 10/19/18 due to typing errors and inserting updated information regarding son-in-law's employment status)
Hi. My name is Johnna. This is extremely hard for me, but me and my family are in need of help. This may not be the right time, but I don't know when it would be. Our need is due to a recent devastating medical crisis. Please take the time to read my story even though it is a lengthy one.
Please let me introduce my beautiful 28 year old daughter Serena. The moment she was conceived she became the center of my world. She is a daughter, a mother, and a wife. She has been a loving, vibrant, and incredibly strong young woman , and she has worked very hard to be the the best woman she can be. She is young and shouldn't be dealing with fight that she has been having to fight to live.
On 9/17/18 our lives were turned upside down when my daughter was diagnosed with stage C congestive heart failure. Since that day we have received more and more bad news, it seems, daily regarding Serena's heart. We learned from the electrocardiogram her ejection fraction is 10%. Her heart is significantly larger than it should be (cardiomegaly), and her abdomen along with her chest cavity is filled with fluid (minimum 12-15 lbs. of fluid). When a person develops congestive heart failure, they experience swelling in their extremities. Serena has not had any swelling because all the retention is in her chest and belly. She was ordered several medications to treat her conditions, but because her heart is extremely weak, oral medications are ineffective. We also found out that she has severe pulmonary hypertension. This has caused her to be in extreme pain 100% of the time, and even though she gets enough oxygen, it is hard for her to breathe. She has some good days but only for a few hours. A typical day consists of her being able to be up and about for about 2-3 hours, then she has to rest. On those good days she can speak without gasping, but on her bad days she can't speak with out gasping in between words.
Up until her initial diagnosis, we knew nothing about heart disease much less what ejection fraction was. Ejection fraction is the function level the left ventricle is functioning. Serena's heart is not doing it's job, and because her heart is so weak, oral medications are ineffective.
Her blood pressure is constantly fluctuating between very high blood pressure to bottoming out. She has been experiencing vertigo majority of the time which causes her to be unsteady on her feet as well as confused. We strongly believe she can no longer be home by herself. My son-in-law has been having to take time off from work which is at risk of it costing him his job. I am the only one who is able work and provide for our family along with assuming responsibility for their bills.
The next step for Serena is to travel to a neighboring town to have a temporary lvad (left ventricle assisting device) implanted to help her heart not fight so hard as well as remove the fluids, so she will be in the hospital for approximately a week. After the Lvad is removed, she will have a pacemaker/defibrillator implanted. If oral medications continue to be ineffective, she will then be referred to a transplant center to get registered on the transplant waiting list.
I don't know the future is to come, but since we don't know what destroyed her heart, we don't know if it can get any strength back. I don't want to lose my daughter, and will do everything it takes to get her healthy and strong again.
Again, I don't know what goal I should try achieve for Serena's medical crisis and my family, but in the week or two we will have to arrange for travel, meals, and lodging while Serena's surgeries begin. If she is referred to a transplant center, the expenses will dramatically increase and I won't have the means pay for those expenses.
Thank you for reading my story. Any contribution big or little will be very much appreciated.
Hi. My name is Johnna. This is extremely hard for me, but me and my family are in need of help. This may not be the right time, but I don't know when it would be. Our need is due to a recent devastating medical crisis. Please take the time to read my story even though it is a lengthy one.
Please let me introduce my beautiful 28 year old daughter Serena. The moment she was conceived she became the center of my world. She is a daughter, a mother, and a wife. She has been a loving, vibrant, and incredibly strong young woman , and she has worked very hard to be the the best woman she can be. She is young and shouldn't be dealing with fight that she has been having to fight to live.
On 9/17/18 our lives were turned upside down when my daughter was diagnosed with stage C congestive heart failure. Since that day we have received more and more bad news, it seems, daily regarding Serena's heart. We learned from the electrocardiogram her ejection fraction is 10%. Her heart is significantly larger than it should be (cardiomegaly), and her abdomen along with her chest cavity is filled with fluid (minimum 12-15 lbs. of fluid). When a person develops congestive heart failure, they experience swelling in their extremities. Serena has not had any swelling because all the retention is in her chest and belly. She was ordered several medications to treat her conditions, but because her heart is extremely weak, oral medications are ineffective. We also found out that she has severe pulmonary hypertension. This has caused her to be in extreme pain 100% of the time, and even though she gets enough oxygen, it is hard for her to breathe. She has some good days but only for a few hours. A typical day consists of her being able to be up and about for about 2-3 hours, then she has to rest. On those good days she can speak without gasping, but on her bad days she can't speak with out gasping in between words.
Up until her initial diagnosis, we knew nothing about heart disease much less what ejection fraction was. Ejection fraction is the function level the left ventricle is functioning. Serena's heart is not doing it's job, and because her heart is so weak, oral medications are ineffective.
Her blood pressure is constantly fluctuating between very high blood pressure to bottoming out. She has been experiencing vertigo majority of the time which causes her to be unsteady on her feet as well as confused. We strongly believe she can no longer be home by herself. My son-in-law has been having to take time off from work which is at risk of it costing him his job. I am the only one who is able work and provide for our family along with assuming responsibility for their bills.
The next step for Serena is to travel to a neighboring town to have a temporary lvad (left ventricle assisting device) implanted to help her heart not fight so hard as well as remove the fluids, so she will be in the hospital for approximately a week. After the Lvad is removed, she will have a pacemaker/defibrillator implanted. If oral medications continue to be ineffective, she will then be referred to a transplant center to get registered on the transplant waiting list.
I don't know the future is to come, but since we don't know what destroyed her heart, we don't know if it can get any strength back. I don't want to lose my daughter, and will do everything it takes to get her healthy and strong again.
Again, I don't know what goal I should try achieve for Serena's medical crisis and my family, but in the week or two we will have to arrange for travel, meals, and lodging while Serena's surgeries begin. If she is referred to a transplant center, the expenses will dramatically increase and I won't have the means pay for those expenses.
Thank you for reading my story. Any contribution big or little will be very much appreciated.
Organizer
Johnna Arredondo
Organizer
Alamogordo, NM
