Stacy's Story
Stacy Bortel attributed her shortness of breath to anxiety; the 49-year-old wife and mother from Ohio had just unexpectedly lost her stepfather.
But a trip to urgent care ultimately turned into 104 days in multiple Ohio hospitals. Stacy’s symptoms were actually caused by a fungal pneumonia that led to acute respiratory failure that nearly took her life.
Stacy was hospitalized early on at St. Vincent Medical Center in Toledo and when her condition deteriorated, she was transferred to Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus, which offered a higher level of care – including organ transplantation.
“The doctor told me he was losing hope she would recover,” said her husband, Brian. “He said it would probably be a double lung transplant.”
Stacy was already on a ventilator when she arrived at Wexner. There, she was also connected to extracorporeal membrance oxygenation (ECMO), a life support machine that took over the functions of her heart and lungs. She spent the next five weeks sedated as she battled complications. Brian was always by her side, talking to her, encouraging her, even singing to her.
“It crushed me. We’ve been together since high school,” he said. Remembering the darkest days, “I started to think the worst. It was hard not to … but then I saw her slowly start to progress.”
Three months after her first trip to the hospital, Stacy improved enough to come off the ECMO. A ventilator still kept her alive. She couldn’t talk, was malnourished from being fed by a tube for so long and was too weak to walk or even stand. Still, Brian was so certain she would fight her way back that he bought her, her sister and their mom tickets to see Pink – one of her favorite artists – in Detroit seven months later.
She transferred to Select Specialty Hospital – Columbus Victorian Village, a critical illness recovery hospital, for extended healing. Her goal was to go home to Brian and their dog, Cena.
A physician-led, interdisciplinary team collaborated to help her achieve that goal.
When she arrived at Select Specialty Hospital, Stacy was now awake and, understandably, afraid of what her future looked like. She began the hard work toward recovery.
Her first milestone came quickly. Every day she participated in breathing trials -- going off the ventilator for increasing amounts of time so that she had to breathe on her own. This gradually built Stacy’s lung function and capacity.
“I was determined I was getting off that ventilator but it’s scary because once that comes off, you have to breathe. You have to be able to do it,” Stacy recalled.
She did it, and one week after admission, the ventilator was gone.
Stacy was also talking, thanks to a special valve that connected to her tracheostomy tube and pushed air through her vocal cords, allowing speech. A speech-language pathologist worked extensively with Stacy on exercises to strengthen her throat muscles. Several times a week, the pathologist and dietitians would evaluate Stacy’s ability to safely swallow, helping her progress from liquids to pureed foods to a regular diet. Stacy was so happy when she could eat her favorite cheddar and broccoli soup that Brian brought her.
Stacy had lost a significant amount of weight and muscle from being immobile for so long. Every day, Stacy’s care team put her to work with exercises to recondition her body.
“There were lots of therapists coming in and helping,” she said. “Helping me get out of bed, helping me sit up, walking up and down the hall, going up and down stairs.”
One of her favorite memories is when therapists took her outside for the first time in months and she breathed fresh air and felt the warmth of the sun on her face.
Throughout her recovery, Brian and Stacy’s mother rented a house near the hospital and were a constant presence. Her father traveled weekly to see her. Brian and Stacy’s son, Jacob, was a frequent visitor and their daughter, Ashley, who is in the U.S. Air Force, sent Stacy a stuffed bear for Valentine’s Day that, when squeezed, played Ashley’s voice saying, “I love you, Mom.”
She squeezed that bear a lot.
Stacy said she couldn’t have gotten through her illness and recovery without the steady encouragement of loved ones, including her siblings and their families.
Three weeks after admission, Stacy was strong enough to go home. She continued to recover in outpatient rehabilitation.
Not only did she make it to the Pink concert, but she and Brian flew to Las Vegas twice – once to celebrate their 25th anniversary and later, to celebrate Ashley’s 21st birthday. While there the second time, they also renewed their wedding vows.
Stacy commended her care team at Select Specialty Hospital, particularly the nurses.
“They are the heroes,” she said. One experience still touches her heart. Early on, when she still struggled to talk, she was having a lot of anxiety one night. She called Brian but Brian couldn’t understand what she was saying.
A nurse came in her room.
“He got Brian to understand that I needed him to come first thing in the morning, that I was upset and anxious. He explained to Brian that he gave me something to help me sleep but told him, ‘She needs you as soon as you can get here,’” Stacy said. “Brian told me to have a good night, that he loved me and that he’d see me soon.”
She pointed out that the nurse could have told her to hang up the phone and go to sleep, since visiting hours were over.
“But he didn’t,” she said. “He helped me.”
But a trip to urgent care ultimately turned into 104 days in multiple Ohio hospitals. Stacy’s symptoms were actually caused by a fungal pneumonia that led to acute respiratory failure that nearly took her life.
Stacy was hospitalized early on at St. Vincent Medical Center in Toledo and when her condition deteriorated, she was transferred to Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus, which offered a higher level of care – including organ transplantation.
“The doctor told me he was losing hope she would recover,” said her husband, Brian. “He said it would probably be a double lung transplant.”
Stacy was already on a ventilator when she arrived at Wexner. There, she was also connected to extracorporeal membrance oxygenation (ECMO), a life support machine that took over the functions of her heart and lungs. She spent the next five weeks sedated as she battled complications. Brian was always by her side, talking to her, encouraging her, even singing to her.
“It crushed me. We’ve been together since high school,” he said. Remembering the darkest days, “I started to think the worst. It was hard not to … but then I saw her slowly start to progress.”
Three months after her first trip to the hospital, Stacy improved enough to come off the ECMO. A ventilator still kept her alive. She couldn’t talk, was malnourished from being fed by a tube for so long and was too weak to walk or even stand. Still, Brian was so certain she would fight her way back that he bought her, her sister and their mom tickets to see Pink – one of her favorite artists – in Detroit seven months later.
She transferred to Select Specialty Hospital – Columbus Victorian Village, a critical illness recovery hospital, for extended healing. Her goal was to go home to Brian and their dog, Cena.
A physician-led, interdisciplinary team collaborated to help her achieve that goal.
When she arrived at Select Specialty Hospital, Stacy was now awake and, understandably, afraid of what her future looked like. She began the hard work toward recovery.
Her first milestone came quickly. Every day she participated in breathing trials -- going off the ventilator for increasing amounts of time so that she had to breathe on her own. This gradually built Stacy’s lung function and capacity.
“I was determined I was getting off that ventilator but it’s scary because once that comes off, you have to breathe. You have to be able to do it,” Stacy recalled.
She did it, and one week after admission, the ventilator was gone.
Stacy was also talking, thanks to a special valve that connected to her tracheostomy tube and pushed air through her vocal cords, allowing speech. A speech-language pathologist worked extensively with Stacy on exercises to strengthen her throat muscles. Several times a week, the pathologist and dietitians would evaluate Stacy’s ability to safely swallow, helping her progress from liquids to pureed foods to a regular diet. Stacy was so happy when she could eat her favorite cheddar and broccoli soup that Brian brought her.
Stacy had lost a significant amount of weight and muscle from being immobile for so long. Every day, Stacy’s care team put her to work with exercises to recondition her body.
“There were lots of therapists coming in and helping,” she said. “Helping me get out of bed, helping me sit up, walking up and down the hall, going up and down stairs.”
One of her favorite memories is when therapists took her outside for the first time in months and she breathed fresh air and felt the warmth of the sun on her face.
Throughout her recovery, Brian and Stacy’s mother rented a house near the hospital and were a constant presence. Her father traveled weekly to see her. Brian and Stacy’s son, Jacob, was a frequent visitor and their daughter, Ashley, who is in the U.S. Air Force, sent Stacy a stuffed bear for Valentine’s Day that, when squeezed, played Ashley’s voice saying, “I love you, Mom.”
She squeezed that bear a lot.
Stacy said she couldn’t have gotten through her illness and recovery without the steady encouragement of loved ones, including her siblings and their families.
Three weeks after admission, Stacy was strong enough to go home. She continued to recover in outpatient rehabilitation.
Not only did she make it to the Pink concert, but she and Brian flew to Las Vegas twice – once to celebrate their 25th anniversary and later, to celebrate Ashley’s 21st birthday. While there the second time, they also renewed their wedding vows.
Stacy commended her care team at Select Specialty Hospital, particularly the nurses.
“They are the heroes,” she said. One experience still touches her heart. Early on, when she still struggled to talk, she was having a lot of anxiety one night. She called Brian but Brian couldn’t understand what she was saying.
A nurse came in her room.
“He got Brian to understand that I needed him to come first thing in the morning, that I was upset and anxious. He explained to Brian that he gave me something to help me sleep but told him, ‘She needs you as soon as you can get here,’” Stacy said. “Brian told me to have a good night, that he loved me and that he’d see me soon.”
She pointed out that the nurse could have told her to hang up the phone and go to sleep, since visiting hours were over.
“But he didn’t,” she said. “He helped me.”