First post:
May 19, 2022 Latest post:
May 23, 2022
Mary’s Journey
Dear Friends and Family,
As many of you know, our dear, dear Mary Rita Pearson was diagnosed with interstitial lung disease 11 years ago. It is a disease with an unknown cause, unknown treatment, and unknown cure. Overtime the lungs become scarred and thickened making it more difficult for oxygen to pass into the bloodstream. The average survival for people with this disease is usually 3-5 years. So, our Mary has been blessed to beat the disease for as long as she has under the circumstances. Sadly, this past year, she has been succumbing to this insidious disease needing to first be on occasional oxygen, then constant oxygen, and now hospitalized since May 9 because she can’t get enough oxygen in a home setting. She is unable to even brush her hair without getting short of breath. Her having fainted upon standing up late last fall, resulted in a broken neck which required her to be under anesthesia for over 6 hours. Mary truly believes this incident caused her disease to progress at a more rapid rate. The prognosis is grim, 3 to 5 months is what they are saying, but of course we are all hoping and praying for much longer.
Since Mary has been hospitalized the staff have performed several tests to determine if there is anything at all that could be done to improve her condition. Unfortunately, they found nothing so she will be going into hospice. Hospice provides many services she will be able to take advantage of. Our greatest hope is that they can get her oxygen high enough to allow her to go home.
When Mary’s oxygen improves to the magic level and she returns home, we are organizing a food train, and a schedule for those who want to visit. Our mission is to make Mary’s time positive, special, and beautiful sprinkled with laughter, love, and happy reminiscences. Stay tuned for more specifics.
In the meantime, please keep Mary, Brian, Ben and their families in your prayers and good thoughts during this truly difficult time. Remember how precious each and every day is!
On behalf of Team Mary, I submit this entry!
Getting cards is one way to brighten Mary's day! 1482 17th Street NW, New Brighton, MN 55112
Kay MillerWelcome to our CaringBridge website. We are using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. We appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement. Thank you for visiting.
