An Irish family have raised thousands in a fundraiser after their lives were changed forever when a mother got sick with the flu in December last year.
The four-month 'nightmare' began for the Carrick family when Rob found his wife Ciara coughing up blood while she was sick in bed with the flu and he realised she was "seriously ill".
The simple illness turned into something much more grave. Rob said he is "lucky that she is still alive" - but the family's world has been completely altered as Ciara developed "severe disabilities" as a result of the illness.
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The mother-of-one was rushed to hospital a week before Christmas, when doctors found she not only had the flu but had contracted Strep A and pneumonia as well.
Rob was told that bacteria had entered his wife's bloodstream, causing multiple organ failure. She was so sick that the next day the family were told that Ciara was "not going to survive" and Rob and their daughter Lily said their goodbyes.
Her husband Rob wrote on the GoFundMe page: "On Sunday the 18th of December our world was shattered when I realised my wife was seriously ill.
"She had been sick in bed with the flu and when I found her coughing up blood, I rang an ambulance. When she arrived in the hospital in the early hours of the morning she was fighting for her life. I was told she had contracted the flu, Strep A and pneumonia.
"The bacteria had entered her bloodstream and caused her internal organs to fail, causing multiple organ failure. We were told by the consultants that she was the sickest person in Ireland.
"On the second day I was told that, in the experts professional opinion, Ciara was not going to survive and I had to bring my daughter up to say goodbye. The following day, Ciara had turned a corner and began a never-ending and slow road to recovery."
After Ciara turned a corner and began the road to recovery, she was put on strong medication and was sedated for two weeks and then spent another four weeks in ICU.
She developed sepsis due to the medication she was on and needed both her feet amputated below-the-knee as well as her right thumb and tips of her other fingers on her right hand removed.
Ciara is now in recovery from the surgery and will soon go to the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Dun Laoighaire however, the family are facing a very different future as they look to take her home from hospital.
The family home and car now need to be adapted to suit Ciara's needs as she has been told she will need to use a wheelchair for the rest of her life.
In order to fund the home adaptions and the "additional financial burdens" the Carrick family are facing, Ciara's sisters-in-law launched a GoFundMe which has already raised over €30,000 out of a €15,000 goal.
Her husband Rob wrote: "We are trying to comprehend this with the realisation that my lovely wife now has severe disabilities and that my family's world has been changed forever. Some day in the future we hope that she will be able to use prosthetics but, social workers and occupational therapists have said that she will still need to use a wheelchair for the rest of her life.
"I know that this is all awful and trust me, this has been a never-ending nightmare of four months so far, but I know that I am lucky that she is still alive and she is very loved by myself, her daughter Lily and all her family and mine.
"As of today, Easter Sunday, Ciara is in hospital 112 days. We still have a long way to go, as I said above, she will need more surgery before she can go to the Rehabilitation Hospital. As I plan the home adaptations and vehicle needed, I am hoping to get any assistance from this GoFundMe so that, when Ciara is ready to come home, I will be ready to bring her home."
People can donate to the GoFundMe here.
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