Be as strong as a RIVER! Help River's fight!

In January, River was an overall healthy 1 year old. She had just celebrated her first birthday with friends and family. She was walking, starting to talk, and even starting to use the potty! She loved spending time with her brother, Preston. She was an absolute daddy's girl with her father, Logan and she was her Mom, Brittany's best friend. She loved being outside and couldn't get enough of her horses and dogs.

That all changed at the beginning of February. On February 5, River aka “Goose”, started to show symptoms of a cold or flu. She had a small fever but was still a happy toddler. The next day she started to walk funny. She was stiff and would wobble around the house when walking. She would scream uncontrollably and grab at her neck anytime she laid down or got a diaper change. It was clear her neck was painful. She was getting stiffer and stiffer.

February 8th, she was taken to Cooks Children’s Hospital in Prosper, TX. She was taken for an MRI, with a concern for Meningitis. Instead, they found a bone infection. Goose was admitted to the hospital where she stayed for 4 days.

River was sent home after her stay with 3 months of oral antibiotics. Some pain was to be expected, but they thought she was on the mend. The symptoms then started getting worse. There was more crying and more stiffness. By 2/15 she appeared to be having trouble breathing and was crying in pain. Tylenol and Motrin didn't help. Goose was taken back to the ER.

They immediately had to lower her blood pressure by giving her Fentanyl, Morphine and Ativan. She received a CT Scan and it showed that the infection had worsened from the previous MRI scan. She was admitted to the hospital for the night. It was clear that River needed to see more specialized doctors. The decision was made to transfer River back to Cooks Children's hospital. She was transferred via ambulance this time to Fort Worth where they began a regimen of strong antibiotics. She was taking antibiotics strong enough to kill MRSA.

The doctors hoped they would see improvement on her scan done 2/20. Instead they saw the infection in her neck spreading to other discs. The neurologists from River’s medical team put River in a C-collar, concerned about the weakening of River’s discs. She can’t turn her neck. This infection is causing disc degeneration.

February 21st, River had a PICC line placed. She had a great doctor that ordered a biopsy. He was fighting to find an answer. Unfortunately, he went on scheduled leave. River received a new doctor who canceled the biopsy. She felt that they should wait to see if the infection got worse. The infection is only showing up on imaging and is not showing up in blood work. River’s mother was not keen on River having to wait for more diagnostics. She felt like River was being used as a lab rat and was being forced to get worse before receiving more testing. River’s nurses agreed with Brittany and River’s case was escalated to the medical director.

Currently, River is in limbo. Doctors are saying she will need to be in the hospital for at least another 3-4 weeks IF they can figure out what the mystery bacteria is. Until they can, the timeline is unknown. Brittany is working on getting River a new doctor who will continue with the original doctor’s plans to find an answer. Otherwise, River will be transferred to a different hospital with more expertise.

Insurance is covering the bare minimum. The bills are adding up. River’s parents have also had to get a hotel room close to the hospital to be able to switch who is with her. River can only have 1 visitor (parent) there at a time and is in strict isolation.

We appreciate anyone who can help River at this time. Everything helps. All funds will go directly to River’s hospital bills and expenses during her stay.