Dustin’s Story

Site created on October 10, 2023


Thank you for visiting Dustin's CaringBridge page. I am using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. As you all know, Dustin is quite the social butterfly, and we both come from large families. He has made such a meaningful impact on so many people over the years through teaching, coaching, and mentoring. He has created countless longtime friendships and has always prioritized maintaining relationships over the years. Whether you've known Dustin for a day or for most of his life, you without a doubt have felt the warmth of his outgoing personality. I feel you all should know how much you mean to him, and I know he means a lot to you, too. There is power in numbers, and I truly believe the love and support that comes from all of you will get him through this.

Many of you have already reached out with care, concern, and asking to help. I truly appreciate each and every caring message and offer to help I have received so far. I imagine I will need a lot of support in the days, weeks, and months ahead. 


~Please see the Ways To Help button on the purple task bar above~ I will try to add ideas to this as needed and as often as I can.  

I also know Dustin would appreciate it if you could find the time to do one or all of the followings:  savor a moment with a friend or loved one, get outside on a nice day, enjoy a cold one (Oktoberfest is here!), pick up the book you've been meaning to read, and remember to smile and cherish one another.

Simply keeping Dustin in your heart and sending positive vibes his ways will also be an incredible amount of ongoing support.

Please don't hesitate to reach out, but just know I might be a little slow on the response time. 
  - Therese


Here's a rundown of the events up  to, 10/12/23. ~ Future updates will be added to the journal page~ 

- Wed. Oct. 4th: Dustin was feeling cold/flu like symptoms this evening - very lethargic, achy, slept a lot for the next couple of days
- Sat. Oct. 7th: We decided to go into Urgent Care as he was not improving and was feel weakness in his upper body - shoulders and arms. He had a fever, and Dr. said this presented as a bad case of the flu. He was advised to drink more fluids and try eating for strength to get over the flu. We were told to go to the ER if symptoms worsened or still no improvement after a day.
- Sun. Oct. 8th: Dustin woke up not feeling any better - weaker in his upper body, chills. I brought the kids to Sunday school. When I got home, Dustin said it has hard for him to lift his head up and his arms were much weaker. I said we need to go to the ER. We picked up the kids and went to Olathe Medical Center ER.  It was difficult for him to walk.
The time in the ER is a blur. He had lab-work, x-rays, CT scans, an IV, and a respiratory test. His effort to give deep breaths was poor. There were a lot of different Drs and nurses in and out.
Our angel of a neighbor came to get the kids around 12:30. Dustin continued to be uncomfortable and couldn't lift his arms much.  It was suggested that his symptoms were due to Guillain Barre Syndrome.  He found it difficult to speak and get a good breath. His breathing was short and became more effortful. I paged the nurse to tell her he was finding it harder to breath. The Dr and respiratory therapist consulted with neurology and Critical Care Unit Dr., and it was determined Dustin should be admitted to CCU.  I can't remember at what point they started antibiotics and immunotherapy medication called Intravenous Immunoglobulin Therapy (IVIg).
Dustin was admitted to CCU at 3pm. Dustin was very weak and could not lift his arms. The CCU Dr. and respiratory therapist advised that he should be placed on a breathing machine. He would need to be put into a medically induced coma for the breathing tube to be inserted and so that his body could rest comfortably without using up his energy to breath. Drs explained he would be under sedation and on breathing machine for estimated 5-7 days. Sedation and breathing machine periodically be lessened to see how he would do with following simple commands to give responses (blink eyes, thumbs up, wiggle toes) and to check how well he was breathing without support.  Dustin agreed to this plan, and by 3:15 he was under sedation and on a ventilator.


- Mon. Oct. 9th:  Dustin had a series of tests done. He had a spinal tap and a full body MRI done during the afternoon. I went to see him that earlier that day. When I first got there, he was somewhat alert as they had recently lessened his sedative to check his reflexes and  responses to simple commands. (The nurse said he did well with the checks.) Dustin saw me and knew I was there. His eyes started tearing up and he wouldn't look away. I talked to him for awhile, and then he closed his eyes. The CCU Dr. said he was doing fine - not better, not worse - and too soon for any prognosis. The team was still leaning towards dx of Guillain Barre Syndrome. 


- Tues. Oct. 10th: I received following updates: 
- - Labs from spinal tap showed very high white blood cell count - higher than typical for Guillain Barre syndrome. The team then started consulting with infectious disease Dr.  Further labs were sent out on his spinal fluid to try to determine what virus could be causing high white blood cell count. 
- - Neurology was still reviewing MRI - It was noted there was mild swelling in cerebellum and along the spine but nothing that gave explanation. 
- - I spoke with the Pulmonary Dr., and he was very concerned with his weakness and how that had impacted the lungs. He told me there’s no way to know what that will look like or mean long term, but that I should be prepared that this will be a much longer than anticipated process.  
- - Dustin was very out of it when I went to see him.  The nurse said he was not as responsive with the simple commands but still gave some responses. Neurology said the same - still responding to pain response checks.


- Wed. Oct. 11th: 
- - I went in mid day to see Dustin. He was fairly alert at first and looked at me and moved his eyebrows up and down multiple times. He would maintain eye contact and look around the room and over to the nurse. While there, I was informed that after the Dr.'s  decided it would be best to put in for a transfer to KU Hospital where he would receive more intensive neuromuscular treatments (including pulmonary support). The infections disease Drs would also do further, more in depth labs without having to send lab-work out of house. 
I was told approval for Dustin's transfer could take hours or days - depending on bed availability and the KU Dr's agreeing to take his case. Within 45 mins of us being there, we were told Dustin was approved for transfer to KU Hospital's Neuro Intensive Care Unit. I was uneasy with him leaving Olathe Critical Care because I did not want him to be farther away. However, I knew treatment at KU Hospital would be better suited for his condition. I told him I'd see him soon.
- - He made it safely to KU Hospital and was settled in his new room. I went to visit later that night. He was very out of it given the higher sedation for transport. I was told by Neuro ICU Dr. that Dustin's condition will be treated as an autoimmune attack on the nervous system along with further testing for unknown viruses. Additional labs will likely being done on his spinal fluid. He will have a more detailed MRI and specialized testing on his muscles and musculoskeletal nervous system.


These past few days have been incredibly difficult.  Despite the present unknowns, I am hopeful for answers and a clear plan for treatment. I am grateful that he is at a more specialized hospital. I am working towards accepting that this will likely be a longer journey than first expected.  Dustin is strong-willed and determined. He's got this.

Newest Update

- Guest Post by Maria Meek - Ways to Help! —

Journal entry by Maria Meek —

Hello Everyone,

My name is Maria Meek, and I am one of Therese’s cousins from the South. I wanted to help coordinate a list of ways for people to help support Therese, Ava, and Kellen not only for the present but also in the months ahead as the three of them adjust to life following the loss of Dustin.

 Many people have reached out to Therese saying, "Just let us know what we can do,” or “We’re here to help. Reach out with what you need.”  Therese admits it is not easy for her to ask for help. She told me she sometimes doesn’t know what all to ask for but realizes that she does need help and is very appreciative of it. As she put in her last post, Dustin told her that people will want to help her and to let them.  In efforts to take people up on their offers to help and to nudge Therese to accept that help, I came up with specific ways for people to donate money or time or both. I encouraged Therese to come up with ideas, and I added my own ideas (that I assured Therese are fine to include). I attempted to prioritize these ideas in order of need and how soon in time they are needed. All items on the list are important!

My hope is that this “Wish List” (see Giftster link below) will give people specific ideas for how to help so to make supporting the Leochners feel more personal. I’d like to make this easy for Therese as well. If you have any questions on how the Giftster site works, or if you’d like to sponsor something or help out in a specific way but do not want to sign up through the website, I am happy to help with that. PLEASE reach out to me at: mariameek3@gmail.com with any questions or suggestions.

Please note that the Giftster site (see link below) does NOT send any funds to Therese. Clicking "Purchase" or "Buy" or "Reserve" will NOT actually purchase anything. To sponsor a monetary item you will need to Venmo @Therese-Leochner or PayPal @thereseleochner. Please be sure to send Venmo or PayPal $ as "between friends and family."  - The GoFundMe site: Leochner Family Fund  is also still active and an option to lend support (anonymously or not). These funds also go directly to Therese. You can also mail her a personal check. Feel free to contact me with questions on any of this!

I had a hard time deciding on how to best organize ways to help and finding a platform, so hopefully this method works. I can make changes as needed! Also, if there is a something you’d like to help with that is not on the list, please feel free to reach out to me or to Therese.  Therese is not opposed to other ideas, and she is also fine with people forwarding or sharing this list with other people or organizations.

Therese wanted me to be clear that she does not expect anyone to give more or to feel obligated to help with these ideas. She is so appreciative of all the support she has already received. She was concerned people will think she is asking for more or for too much or putting people out, but I reminded her this is in response to people asking how to continue to help her and the kids.  It also gives people a way to express their care and to feel connected to Dustin and her and the kids. She does want to take people up on their offers, and I want people to be able to help in meaningful ways. I wanted to help in organizing support because I know how much the Leochner family means to all of us. I also know how important it is to have support in times of need.

Therese, Ava, and Kellen appreciate your support in whatever way.  Together we can help them as we honor Dustin.

Thank you,

Maria Meek

mariameek3@gmail.com

Link to Ways to Help Giftser List: Leochner Family Ways to Help Wish List via Giftster

Link to Therese's PayPal: paypal.com/paypalme/thereseleochner

Link to Therese's Venmo: Venmo.com/u/Therese-Leochner     (the last 4 of her cell # are 1280)

Link to the GoFundMe site: Leochner Family Fund

Read More of the journal titled "- Guest Post by Maria Meek - Ways to Help! —"
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