Support My Mother After MRSA/Heart Surgery
Donation protected
Where We're At: 6/6/19
Thank you all for your monetary and emotional support throughout this entire ordeal. My mother, Jill, went through successful open heart surgery on May 31st that repaired her aorta and replaced her mitral valve. While her recovery has been good, it has unfortunately been slower than expected. She is now on track to leave the hospital a week later than anticipated and doctors are currently considering an additional surgery to install a pacemaker (this surgery is not nearly as invasive as the last, but still, would be quite a bummer.) Additionally, she will need help doing routine activities such as getting in and out of bed. During the surgery it was discovered that Jill still has MRSA and will need to continue taking intravenous antibiotics for 6 more weeks. Still, the worst parts are behind us.
Why We Need Help:
Medical expenses are no longer as big a worry as they were before but we now face the issue of getting Jill back to work. In the weeks and months leading up to surgery, my mother was unable to work due to the deterioration of her right eye. Her disrupted vision meant that sources of light, such as the computer monitor she uses to edit, were unbearable even with the brightness at minimum. She also had issues with depth perception and constant dizziness that made work far more difficult than usual. Luckily she was able to complete one small project before surgery but her work was soon interrupted by a two week hospital stay (not including her previous time there.) Obviously, she is unable to work from her hospital bed. We're uncertain of what her status will be when she gets home but it's probably safe to say that if she struggles with getting in bed, she will struggle with getting to work. Also, now that it's summer, I can no longer work as a substitute teacher and being my mom's nurse is about to become my full-time job. With no sources of income, we are reaching out to Jill's friends and family for support.
Background (CW: bodily fluids, medical procedures):
In the days leading up to March 30th, my mother, Jill Hughes, described feeling dizzy and having flu-like symptoms. On March 30th, her sister, Kyle, called Jill and realized that something wasn't right. Jill seemed very "out of it," had slurred speech, and couldn't answer basic questions correctly. Kyle alerted my brother, Coby, that he should check on her. After a series of phone calls between family members, we decided that my brother should go check on her (she lives alone) while I drove home as quickly as I could. Upon reaching her home, my brother noticed that her front door was left wide open and every light in the house was off. He entered her bedroom, turned the light on, and discovered our mother half-conscious in a pool of her own vomit and waste. He quickly called 911 and I arrived at the same time the ambulance did. We went to the hospital where Jill continued to seem confused, providing her mother's birthday when asked for her own and saying simply "90" when asked what year it was.
Doctors seemed perplexed for the first few days, at first diagnosing a UTI, then meningitis. At the same time, what we thought was just a bruise on her hand grew bigger and more painful while her right eye turned red and her vision began to fade. By the time she could no longer see in this eye, doctors finally discovered that MRSA spread throughout her system was to blame. After a series of more tests, the most worrying part was discovered--the MRSA had infected her heart. My mother spent 9 days in the hospital before heading home with a PICC line for intravenous antibiotics and eye drops she would have to take every hour, then every other hour, then every third hour, and so on and so forth changing the eye drop schedule weekly.
In May, after even more tests, the decision was made that my mother would need surgery. Doctors informed her that she was suffering from severe regurgitation in her aortic and mitral valves and warned her that she was at a high risk of heart attack or stroke and would need to undergo open heart surgery to correct these issues. To put her mind at ease and in case of any worst-case scenario, my brother, my aunt, and I all took turns being on 24/7 watch at my mom's house. After the surgery was moved back twice, my mother finally underwent successful open heart surgery on May 31st.
Thank you all for your monetary and emotional support throughout this entire ordeal. My mother, Jill, went through successful open heart surgery on May 31st that repaired her aorta and replaced her mitral valve. While her recovery has been good, it has unfortunately been slower than expected. She is now on track to leave the hospital a week later than anticipated and doctors are currently considering an additional surgery to install a pacemaker (this surgery is not nearly as invasive as the last, but still, would be quite a bummer.) Additionally, she will need help doing routine activities such as getting in and out of bed. During the surgery it was discovered that Jill still has MRSA and will need to continue taking intravenous antibiotics for 6 more weeks. Still, the worst parts are behind us.
Why We Need Help:
Medical expenses are no longer as big a worry as they were before but we now face the issue of getting Jill back to work. In the weeks and months leading up to surgery, my mother was unable to work due to the deterioration of her right eye. Her disrupted vision meant that sources of light, such as the computer monitor she uses to edit, were unbearable even with the brightness at minimum. She also had issues with depth perception and constant dizziness that made work far more difficult than usual. Luckily she was able to complete one small project before surgery but her work was soon interrupted by a two week hospital stay (not including her previous time there.) Obviously, she is unable to work from her hospital bed. We're uncertain of what her status will be when she gets home but it's probably safe to say that if she struggles with getting in bed, she will struggle with getting to work. Also, now that it's summer, I can no longer work as a substitute teacher and being my mom's nurse is about to become my full-time job. With no sources of income, we are reaching out to Jill's friends and family for support.
Background (CW: bodily fluids, medical procedures):
In the days leading up to March 30th, my mother, Jill Hughes, described feeling dizzy and having flu-like symptoms. On March 30th, her sister, Kyle, called Jill and realized that something wasn't right. Jill seemed very "out of it," had slurred speech, and couldn't answer basic questions correctly. Kyle alerted my brother, Coby, that he should check on her. After a series of phone calls between family members, we decided that my brother should go check on her (she lives alone) while I drove home as quickly as I could. Upon reaching her home, my brother noticed that her front door was left wide open and every light in the house was off. He entered her bedroom, turned the light on, and discovered our mother half-conscious in a pool of her own vomit and waste. He quickly called 911 and I arrived at the same time the ambulance did. We went to the hospital where Jill continued to seem confused, providing her mother's birthday when asked for her own and saying simply "90" when asked what year it was.
Doctors seemed perplexed for the first few days, at first diagnosing a UTI, then meningitis. At the same time, what we thought was just a bruise on her hand grew bigger and more painful while her right eye turned red and her vision began to fade. By the time she could no longer see in this eye, doctors finally discovered that MRSA spread throughout her system was to blame. After a series of more tests, the most worrying part was discovered--the MRSA had infected her heart. My mother spent 9 days in the hospital before heading home with a PICC line for intravenous antibiotics and eye drops she would have to take every hour, then every other hour, then every third hour, and so on and so forth changing the eye drop schedule weekly.
In May, after even more tests, the decision was made that my mother would need surgery. Doctors informed her that she was suffering from severe regurgitation in her aortic and mitral valves and warned her that she was at a high risk of heart attack or stroke and would need to undergo open heart surgery to correct these issues. To put her mind at ease and in case of any worst-case scenario, my brother, my aunt, and I all took turns being on 24/7 watch at my mom's house. After the surgery was moved back twice, my mother finally underwent successful open heart surgery on May 31st.
Organizer
Cameron Mackenzie
Organizer
Mason, OH
