Matthew and Jennifer Abbess

This is my son-in-law, Matthew. He is one of the most patient, loving, humble, and selfless human beings I know. He is always willing to give the shirt off his back to anyone who needs it.

For the last five years, he has had a condition called gastroparesis which essentially means his stomach is paralyzed and does not contract to help empty food normally through his digestive tract. After a long journey of ups and downs, he had been seeing some improvement with the help of a gastric stimulator which assists in alleviating the symptoms of gastoparesis such as nausea and vomiting. This past December, Matthew contracted a stomach bug which has caused his symptoms to return in full force. The gastric stimulator currently is not helping him, and he has been vomiting everything that he eats and drinks by mouth ever since.

Due to the lack of nutrition, he hasn’t been able to work as often to help support himself and his wife, my daughter, Jennifer. He recently had a J-tube placed to provide some nutrition and help him gain some energy, along with the hopes to be able to work at least a little bit. He’s had some setbacks with an infection which has kept him out of work longer.

Due to the severity and unpredictability of his gastroparesis diagnosis, it is unknown when he will be able to work, or for how long. This leaves his wife to be the sole provider for their family.

Pending insurance approval, Matthew is to start IVIG (intravenous immunoglobulin) infusions soon. His doctors believe he has an autoimmune disorder which causes fibrotic tissue in his stomach, and the hope is that these infusions will allow the tissues in his stomach to more or less “normalize,” allowing the gastric stimulator to work effectively.

If there is anyone who can help to alleviate the financial burden for my kiddos that his illness has caused, it would be greatly appreciated. All donations will go directly to Matthew and Jennifer to pay for not only medical expenses and trips to Louisville, Kentucky, for treatment, but also the expenses of daily living such as rent, bills, groceries, etc.

We ask for prayers of total healing, comfort, and peace of both Matthew’s body and mind during this time.