A loving family of 3 who need your help

As many of us know, life doesn’t always go as planned. Yet we still avidly try to be strategic with our every move so that we live the best life. This is especially true for most people when it comes to creating life. One of my dear friends who is one of the hardest, most determined woman I know had a plan when she found out she was going to be a mommy. The day Nelovie and her boyfriend Drew found out they were going to be parents, was one of the happiest days of their lives. They couldn’t wait to start the next chapter of their lives. The excitement and planning had begun, and at 14 weeks they had found out that their precious baby was a boy, Asher!

Over the next 25 weeks Nel began experiencing immense discomfort and nausea, that quickly escalated into debilitating dizziness. She was instructed to go home during her shifts at work, 3 times. At 19 weeks Nel had developed a condition called SVT (Supraventricular tachycardia) and her heart rate sky rocketed to 230. She had to visit the emergency room a couple of times due to this worrisome side effect during her pregnancy. She had no control of the episodes, and not only was it terrifying for her, she was constantly concerned for her sweet baby boy growing inside of her.

Shortly into her second trimester Nel was forced to be off work per her cardiologist because even the slightest physical activity could increase her heart rate, at times, to dangerous levels. Thankfully, at 40 weeks and 2 days her body fought hard to keep her baby safe, and her water broke. Nel and Drew were so excited! Over the next 24 hours of labor, there was no significant progression. The next step was a c-section because of the risk of infection for the baby due to the water breaking several hours prior. This was not planned, and became very real and scary, but Drew and Nel were ready to meet their son. The c-section brought some complications that led to excessive bleeding and Nel requiring a blood transfusion. Although Nel’s pain was intense, she was in awe over her beautiful baby boy, Asher. They then spent that night getting to know each other and snuggling as much as they could. His Daddy even introduced him to UFC.

The next day the nurses came in to do the heal stick on Asher. One of his amazing nurses noticed a hematoma on his left arm. It went from his elbow to his shoulder. The pediatrician was called, and it was decided he needed to be rushed to Lutheran General NICU right then and there. They were devastated. It was a nightmare they had not anticipated. Their hearts were completely broken. The moment he left the hospital was the worst day of Nel’s life, to be separated from her new born baby. Daddy went with Asher and was by his side every moment. It was the only thing that made it manageable for Nel. She couldn’t go because her pain was out of control given all of the complications she had endured. That first night Asher was away, Nel had suffered constant bouts of vomiting and shaking spells all night long. The next morning Asher ended up having emergency surgery to relieve the pressure on his arm. He had gotten super lucky because he could have lost movement or worse in his hand and/or arm. The medical staff had then determined from there that the reason all of this had happened was because Asher has a condition called, Hemophilia A. This is a blood clotting disorder. All of this had happened because of a blood draw that hadn’t clotted correctly from his first day of life.

No one could have ever prepared these new parents for this kind of news. Drew and Nel felt after all the events that took place from start to finish, they were so very lucky. They had a beautiful healthy baby boy that eventually would be ok. After two weeks of Asher being in the NICU he finally got to come home. They could finally be a family they had been dreaming about for so long.

After all of these trials and tribulations, and knowing that there was light at the end of the tunnel, a harsh reality set in once more. When Nel attended her routine doctor’s appointment for her healing process, she found out her insurance was no longer valid. Due to her being on leave from work for months before her baby was born, and only just the start of maternity leave, her insurance had run out. They had to pay $1,200 for just one month’s premium to have adequate coverage for Nel and Asher. As of right now, Nel is still healing only being a few weeks postpartum, and medical bills for her and Asher’s surgeries and long hospital stays are drowning this family in unexpected medical bills. Nel wasn’t able to work most of her pregnancy, which put them in a very hard spot financially.

This family has endured so much in such a short amount of time. Although they are grateful that Drew is such a hard-working provider, it is hard to make do with only one income and copious amounts of medical bills that keep coming in almost daily. Any contribution would help in so many ways for this new family of 3. They have a long road ahead of them for recovery, and if anyone is willing to help, it would help eliminate some of the trying stressors, and could help them focus on healing and gaining strength they need to get back on there feet.
Thank you for your time and consideration.