First post:
Jul 23, 2017 Latest post:
Aug 10, 2017
James was having a typical day on Wednesday July 19th. He was eating lunch when he suddenly starting having chest pain. His wife, Anita, rushed him to Valley West Hospital where they did a full cardiac work up. All his results came back normal. After being admitted for observation his condition started to rapidly worsen. They decided it was a neurological condition and he was immediately airlifted to Central DuPage Hospital for further care. Upon arrival there, his condition was still getting worse and he was admitted to the Neuro Intensive Care Unit. He has been sedated and intubated because his spinal cord is inflamed and is what is causing all of his symptoms. Transverse Myelitis can cause almost an endless list of severe symptoms. James has very minimal movement and his diaphragm can not function properly so he can not breathe on his own. Other problems he is having range from thermal regulation to the chest pain that he started with. He also has what is called Neuromyelitis Optic. This condition is causing inflammation in the optic nerve which is causing him to have trouble seeing or possibly not being able to see at all. All he needs from everyone is prayers! He is a very strong willed man and can make it through this! Please just Pray, Pray, Pray!! James is a very loving husband and Father of four children. He has seven grandchildren who all love spending time with him and he with them. He was a teacher for approximately twenty-five years and changed so many children's lives with his passion for passing his knowledge on. He loves boating and airplanes. History is what he is really passionate for. Overall, he is just an amazing, good hearted husband, father, grandfather, brother, uncle and man all the way around.
Saturday July 22, 2017
Posted 20 hours agoGood morning all. The neurologist came in to visit James this morning and told us that so far all of his testing for an auto-immune disorder came back negative. They are still waiting on the test result for the NMO (neuromyelitis optic). The steroids so far do not seem to be having an effect on his condition. They do not know if it has taken the actual inflammation of the spinal cord down because they want to see a physical response to the steroids first before they send him for another scan. They other treatments the doctors are talking about using are plasmaphoresis or giving him IV-IG. His over all physical state remains the same. Bless you all for your support and loving care
CaringBridge is a nonprofit social network dedicated to helping family and friends communicate with and support loved ones during a health journey. Learn more about CaringBridge.