In November 2021, a household go to in Kansas Metropolis marked the start of a life-changing journey for Jarrid Matthews. Initially struck by a persistent head chilly, a routine go to to the physician rapidly escalated right into a collection of occasions that might check his braveness and endurance. Jarrid remembers, “On January sixteenth, I went to the physician to get some antibiotics, however they needed to do some blood work as a result of I didn’t look properly. They instantly got here again and mentioned my liver enzymes weren’t good and that they needed to do additional testing. Little did I do know, that was the start of the top of life as I knew it, and all the things was about to vary.”
After a number of days, the docs knowledgeable Jarrid that he was in end-stage liver failure on account of an autoimmune illness and that he would want a liver transplant instantly. After months of being out and in of the hospital, insurance coverage was accredited on Halloween evening. Jarrid explains, “I used to be positioned on the transplant record. Two days later, I obtained a brand new liver. It was one of the crucial emotional days of my life as I bought a second probability at life.”
The transplant was a hit however, sadly, didn’t mark the top of Jarrid’s medical challenges. After just a few weeks of remedy, they despatched him house to proceed house remedy and learn to handle diabetes, because the anti-rejection remedy brought about extreme hypoglycemia. By the start of December, Jarrid was beginning to really feel like himself once more. Nevertheless, quickly after, he developed an insufferable headache that despatched him again to the hospital: “I had contracted a extreme case of fungal spinal meningitis, which led to extreme fluid buildup in my stomach and decrease extremities and finally causes Afib and coronary heart failure in mid-January,” says Jarrid.
One February morning, Jarrid discovered himself struggling to get off the bed on account of extreme atrophy. He took one step, utterly misplaced his steadiness, and smashed onto the ground, breaking his tailbone and hitting my head. He was having a stroke affecting his left facet.
After working exhausting in inpatient remedy simply to make use of his left hand once more, he was discharged on March 19 in a wheelchair and started six weeks of house remedy.
He progressed into having the ability to transfer round with a walker, and he graduated into 12 weeks of cardio rehab to make sure his coronary heart was okay. However his final aim was to stroll once more. He explains, “By late June, the PT clinic I used to be referred to advised me they couldn’t get me into bodily remedy till mid-September, and just for sooner or later per week. I discovered that unacceptable, so I got down to discover a bodily remedy location that might settle for me sooner. I discovered PT Options of Shawnee Mission, and since July 7, 2023, I’ve gone three days per week with out lacking a session.”
On March 23, 2024, Jarrid accomplished a 5K in 47:06, a monumental achievement that stands as a beacon of hope and inspiration for all of us. He expresses, “I’m residing proof that in the event you put your thoughts to one thing, you possibly can obtain something.”
Jarrid’s exceptional journey from close to demise to new beginnings highlights the facility of resilience and the significance of searching for the proper help. If you happen to or somebody you realize is dealing with related challenges, don’t wait. Discover a clinic close to you and uncover how we may also help you obtain your objectives, regardless of how daunting they might appear. Let Jarrid’s journey encourage you to take step one towards your personal triumph.