Nicole (Nikki) Ballard Nicole Ballard

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The morning of April 27 Nikki's husband Greg, woke up to find Nikki unresponsive and not breathing.  He performed CPR and called 911, shortly thereafter she was transported to the emergency room at University of Chicago Medicine.  What we know now is that Nikki remains in critical condition,  she was intubated in the ER  and on a ventilator to support her breathing.  She has not been awake since the morning of the 27th and she is heavily sedated.  They think that pressure in her lungs caused by difficulty breathing (hyperventilation syndrome paired with sleep apnea), and extra fluid in the body caused the right side of her heart to malfunction which led to cardiac arrest.  They are performing tests including EEG and MRI to see if there has been an impact on her brain.   

Please keep Nikki in your thoughts and your prayers.  She is a beautiful person and we all love her so very much!   Will continue to keep you posted as we find out more. 

Nikki's sister,
Pam