Miracles for Melissa
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As some of you may know, my mom, Melissa Kendall, went to the emergency room on December 24, 2023, with intense neck and shoulder pain with tingling sensations. She thought this was related to her high blood pressure but by the time she was admitted to the emergency room, she had weakened limbs with intense pain. An MRI was performed, and it was found that she had a large disc herniation at C6-7 with severe flattening of her spinal cord. Within a few hours she was taken to the operating room to have an emergent Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion (ACDF). After her surgery, she was placed in Neuro ICU on a ventilator due to respiratory failure. She still has weakness in all limbs and no movement in her lower extremities. She was removed from the ventilator on December 27th. January 2, 2024, she was moved out of ICU to the hospital floor, where she began receiving some physical and occupational therapy. Plans were being made to transport her to Shepherd Hospital in Atlanta for intensive physical therapy to hopefully regain some sensation in her hands and legs. However, she has now acquired a stage IV pressure ulcer (bed sore), Covid -19 and an unknown blood infection during her hospital stay and Shepherd will not take her until these issues are resolved.
My mother was unemployed at the time of this incident and had no insurance. I have been able to obtain some insurance through the marketplace but the premiums and out of pocket expenses are very high. My mother will require ongoing therapy and personal care and will be unable to work in the foreseeable future. Please consider donating, any amount is acceptable and will greatly contribute to both my mother's and my family's peace of mind during this incredibly difficult time. You may contact
[phone redacted] or [phone redacted] to offer support too. Please remember us in your prayers.
Thank you in advance,
Sierra Sanders
Update 02/07/24: My mother is doing well considering the series of health problems she’s enduring. She is still unable to move lower extremities, has now acquired pneumonia, and her sacral wound is now infected along with her bone. They caught the bone infection in its early stages so she’s on antibiotics for now to kill the infection. She’s had a consult with a plastic surgeon to talk about placing a muscle flap over the open wound to promote healing and she will also need a colostomy bag placed in order to keep the wound from being contaminated when having bowel movements. They plan to take her back to the operating room sometime next week for more debridement of the wound and to hopefully place the colostomy all in one surgery so that the wound will be free of infection before placing the muscle flap. Please continue to pray for her and donate to her medical expenses if you’re able to! I will keep updating with more information as it is given to me. Thank you!
Updated 04/04/2024
Mom is doing well. She’s had all the surgeries she needed. Her flap is healing perfectly, colostomy is working well, and she’s finished all her antibiotics to fight the infections she had. Now she will go through intense therapy at a physical rehabilitation center. We could really use everyone’s prayers for this journey as we believe it will be the most physically and emotionally demanding part of all of this. Re learning to do things that once came so naturally to you can be challenging and I want my mother to know we are supporting her through this tough time so please continue to pray for her and donate towards her medical and therapy expenses if that’s something you’re able to do! Thank you and I will continue updating with more information as it comes.
Thank you in advance,
Sierra Sanders
Update 02/07/24: My mother is doing well considering the series of health problems she’s enduring. She is still unable to move lower extremities, has now acquired pneumonia, and her sacral wound is now infected along with her bone. They caught the bone infection in its early stages so she’s on antibiotics for now to kill the infection. She’s had a consult with a plastic surgeon to talk about placing a muscle flap over the open wound to promote healing and she will also need a colostomy bag placed in order to keep the wound from being contaminated when having bowel movements. They plan to take her back to the operating room sometime next week for more debridement of the wound and to hopefully place the colostomy all in one surgery so that the wound will be free of infection before placing the muscle flap. Please continue to pray for her and donate to her medical expenses if you’re able to! I will keep updating with more information as it is given to me. Thank you!
Updated 04/04/2024
Mom is doing well. She’s had all the surgeries she needed. Her flap is healing perfectly, colostomy is working well, and she’s finished all her antibiotics to fight the infections she had. Now she will go through intense therapy at a physical rehabilitation center. We could really use everyone’s prayers for this journey as we believe it will be the most physically and emotionally demanding part of all of this. Re learning to do things that once came so naturally to you can be challenging and I want my mother to know we are supporting her through this tough time so please continue to pray for her and donate towards her medical and therapy expenses if that’s something you’re able to do! Thank you and I will continue updating with more information as it comes.
Organizer
Sierra Sanders
Organizer
Macon, GA