Jackie Miller James, who markets herself as a digital creator in the beauty, lifestyle, and “real talk” spaces, has fallen into a coma after reportedly rupturing an aneurysm at nine months pregnant.
The influencer’s sisters Natalie and Nicelle shared the devastating news earlier this week through a new GoFundMe page, titled “Support Jackie’s Long Road to Recovery.”
The pair revealed that, just one week shy of her due date, James suffered “severe brain bleeding and injury” after an aneurysm ruptured. Luckily, her husband, Austin, found her “immediately” and she was rushed into a simultaneous emergency C-section and brain surgery.
The specifics of her aneurysm were not released, but, in general, an aneurysm is what you get when the wall of an artery has weakened, which allows it to “balloon out,” according to the American Heart Association. In this case, the artery was in James’ brain. When an aneurysm ruptures, or bursts, it causes a hemorrhage, or significant bleed.
At the time the fundraiser was published, James remained in a medically induced coma, 12 days after the initial incident and following five total procedures on her brain. They say she’s expected to remain in the ICU for weeks, and the hospital for months. Her newborn daughter also remains in the NICU due to the traumatizing nature of her birth.
James’ sisters also shared that, if they’d been just a few minutes later in arriving at the emergency room, they believed they would have lost both mother and baby. Still, they say they’re “optimistic she can beat the odds by surrounding her with the right specialists and methods of therapy.” Their note continued, ‘While the road will be long, we are committed to bringing Jackie home to her daughter and husband.”
The family expects costs to skyrocket for speech therapy, physical therapy, home modifications, and other alternative therapies, though they won’t know exactly what is required until they can evaluate the “severity of her deficits.” If any funds go unused, they say they’ll be donated to “similar families in need or related charities.”
In just three days, the family has raised $160,536 of their $250,000 goal. If you’d like to contribute to James’ recovery, you can do so here.
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