Help Chris with medical bills for Kidney Failure

In February of last year, 2023, my and my family's lives were forever changed in ways I never could have predicted. My health had been on a slow, gradual decline for about a year; nothing specific symptom-wise that I could quite put my finger on, but my energy levels were being depleted easily, and I noticed that my body was retaining fluid in my midsection, legs and feet. I didn't realize it at the time, but these were warning signs of an impending critical health crisis.

One morning in February I woke up in the middle of the night with the worst headache I've had in my life. I took several ibuprofen, but they didn't help alleviate the pain and I stayed home from work that day, and the next, desperate to find some relief. After more than 48 hours of the worst headache I'd ever had, I took my blood pressure and panicked to see it was 197/116. I called my wife, who left work and came home to take me to the hospital. From that point on, my health would never be the same.

Once admitted, my blood pressure was recorded at 210/137. They gave me several types medication to try and lower it, but none of them worked. At some point they did an ultrasound of my bladder and were shocked to find it held multiple liters of fluid. After being catheterized, CT-scanned, and having bloodwork drawn, it was determined that my body was in Acute Kidney Failure and Hypertensive Crisis. I was admitted to the Cardio-Thoracic Floor at Gilbert Regional Medical Center, where I would stay for several days. Once my kidneys had a chance to recover a little bit, my blood pressure lowered down to the 160's.

It was eventually determined that a large diverticulum on my bladder, caused by a lack of bladder urgency, as the result of nerve damage sustained in my spine, had lead to fluid backflow which slowly damaged my kidneys over time. I am in stage IV B Kidney Failure due to the irreversible damage that's been done. This was just the first of many hospital stays. By the time the year was over, I had spent around 30 days in the hospital, and had gone through 4 surgical procedures. A Foley catheter was placed that I would have for another 6 months, off and on, to ensure there was no further damage done to my kidneys and to preserve what kidney function still remained.

Once I left the hospital, I returned shortly thereafter to have stents placed. During this surgery, only one was able to be placed successfully, so 2 days later in the hospital I had a second surgery to place a nephrostomy tube through my lower back, into my left kidney, to help things drain. They also successfully placed the second stent at this time, accessed through the nephrostomy tube in my back. Unfortunately these same stents allowed Pseudomonas Aeruginosa bacteria to travel up to my kidneys and an infection developed.

In March I was admitted to the hospital for a third time, this time due to a Kidney Infection that spread to my bloodstream, causing my body to go into septic shock. I was in the hospital for close to a week, and I’m fortunate to have survived as the infection and resulting Sepsis was quite severe.

In June I had an operation reconstruct my bladder and to remove the diverticulum that was causing an obstruction. Shortly thereafter, upon returning home, I returned to the hospital once again in Septic shock. I was in even worse condition than the last time, and I couldn't stand nor walk without aid-they brought me back in a wheelchair and registered a temp of over 104.

This time I was hospitalized for 11 days between the end of June and early July. Initially I was covered in ice-packs to try and lower my temperature which was not responding to medication. Eventually my hemoglobin was so low I required a blood transfusion to prevent organ failure, and went through round the clock tests to check on my deteriorating kidney function. As sick as I was, I was also anxious to get home-but my infection was so severe that IV antibiotics were my only hope to conquer the Sepsis as it had become resistant to all forms of oral antibiotics. They placed a TAC line/Central line, implanted through my neck, that went into my heart so that I could take intravenous medicine at home to fight off my infections-this allowed me to leave the hospital, and at home my wife gave me IV antibiotic infusions every 12 hours for over 10 days.

Eventually I had the stents removed in yet another procedure. My health since the summer has stabilized somewhat, but now I’m dealing with a mountain of medical debt due to having spent so much time in the hospital. Spending over 30 days in the hospital is quite expensive, even with great insurance, and my hospital bills of around $10,000 don't even include the providers, Anesthesiologists, Nephrologist visits, and Urologist's care. I also now have multiple medications I take daily, catheters that I have to use to urinate, and regular doctor appointments. I've been left with anemia due to my Stage 4b kidney disease, and I battle daily fatigue and pain. I’ve missed over three months of work this past year due to my health and hospitalizations, which has lead to a massive amount of lost income as well.

I truly hate asking for help but at this point I don’t know what else to do. My credit cards are maxed out, and I’m receiving phone calls and mail from collections for medical bills that I simply can’t afford to pay.

Any bit of help would be greatly appreciated. The amount I’m asking for would not cover everything but would make a big difference for my family and I; I just want the best for us. It was a very difficult year for all of us, and I'm so thankful to be alive. Thank you all so very much for your help. God bless ❤️