Ke’Mora was blessed with good health. My daughter has never had to stay in the hospital and only visited to get yearly check-ups and shots for school.
On September 20, 2018 she came home from school and threw up. We thought maybe she had over heated at school and let her rest the rest of the evening. For the next 5 days she barely moved. It was hard for her to even shower due to lack of energy. She said her chest hurt, she felt dizzy, and nauseated.
After day 5 my husband and I decided to take her to the emergency department. At that point she could barely walk but we encouraged her that the stomach bug wasn’t affecting her legs and she trudged in the hospital with me. I still feel really upset that I didn’t know she was that weak.
The doctor looked her over and still he even thought it was a stomach bug. He did mention that her heart rate was abnormal but when he checked her chart the check in nurses had recorded a normal heart rate.
No EKG or scan were offered instead he gave her a rapid strep test that came back negative.
He sent us home with instructions to bring her back if she ever got a fever or didn’t feel better in two days.
Exactly two days later she went into cardiac arrest in the back seat of the truck while I was driving. She spent 15 minutes on the side of the road with no pulse and barely breathing.
The EMTs got a pulse after shocking her heart and took her back to the emergency department. At the hospital she went out 3 more times before she was placed on life support and a ventilator.
After a week in ICU she was released to a floor called the step-down-unit. She started therapy and learning to do basic things again like eating and washing her face.
Once all her medication was reduced and she was medically stable they released her to inpatient rehab where she learned to shower, wash her hair, and walk again.
She has started back at school half-days until she regains her strength. She still goes to outpatient therapy 3 times a week. She also is taking heart medication and blood pressure medication. We are not sure if she has to be on them for the rest of her life.
I’m so thankful she got another chance at life. God really blessed our family.
We need to raise awareness about this disease called Myocarditis, so other children do not almost die before they are diagnosed and treated!
