A Melbourne husband and father has pleaded for help after his wife woke from a nightmare, struggling to talk – and was later revealed to have suffered multiple strokes.
29-year-old Jules Lucas’ wife Sherie, 28, experienced the distressing episode just days before doctors discovered she had a tumour in her brain.
‘She jolted up muttering frantically about a strange nightmare and weird headache that she had and then went back to sleep,’ Jules explained on a fundraising page set up for the couple.
Jules Lucas (pictured right) has set up a Gofundme account to raise funds for urgent surgery to save his wife’s, Sherie, (pictured left) life
‘I want my wife to still be here to see our two year old daughter grow, I want to grow old with her, I want to have more children with her and be a real family again,’ Jules wrote
When the pair woke the next morning, Sherie started saying that she didn’t feel well, was slurring her words while struggling to get ready and was soon talking about a pain in her head.
‘I became concerned and organised my mother in-law to come around and take her to the hospital while I stayed home and looked after our 10 month old daughter,’ Jules explained.
‘For the next few days, she was sent to three different hospitals and her condition rapidly deteriorated until finally, after several hospitals and doctors later, we had found out that she had had a stroke caused by a brain cavernous hermangioma located in her cerebellar.
‘This is where it all started to fall apart.’
The cerebellar is the area of the brain that controls coordination and balance.
For the next following weeks Sherie remained in hospital as she waited to be moved into rehab.
‘Please help me save my wife. There is not much i can offer you in return other than as many updates on the situation and my eternal gratitude,’ he said
Jules explained on the page that in January 2016 he came home from playing a gig at the pub when Sherie spoke of a ‘weird headache’
‘This whole time not really having any solution to the illness we kinda [sic] just continued [to] attempt to live life as best we could,’ Jules said.
‘But I want my wife to still be here to see our two year old daughter grow, I want to grow old with her, I want to have more children with her and be a real family again,’ Jules continued in the heart wrenching post.
‘I want to see Sherie happy, healthy and be her old self again.’
Sherie started saying that she didn’t feel well, was slurring her words while struggling to get ready and was soon Sherie started talking about a pain in her head
Later in the year,the family tried to get their life back on track and Jules explained that things were starting to feel ‘normal’.
‘We had been told not to worry by the doctors that Sherie’s chances of having another stroke again were very slim,’ he said.
‘Pushing herself to the point of near exhaustion, she attempted to remain the caring mother provider and wife I was lucky to have.’
Later in the year the family tried to get their life back on track and Jules explained that things were starting to feel ‘normal’
Unable to run their hairdressing business any more they were forced to sell, but on the day of the settlement Sherie suffered another stroke and more bleeding from her cavernoma.
This time they rushed Sherie straight to hospital and she was put back into rehab.
‘A few months had passed and Sherie had returned to what had become her new ‘normal’ and we had the amazing news that Sherie had fallen pregnant and we were going to have our second child!’ Jules explained.
‘We were absolutely stoked after a horrific start to the year that there was something positive in our lives.
‘Unfortunately in October 2016, we had a miscarriage and lost the baby.’
‘Pushing herself to the point of near exhaustion, she attempted to remain the caring mother provider and wife I was lucky to have,’ Jules said
Although the couple were heartbroken by the news, Sherie later found another job in hairdressing and was taking her daily medication.
Her health seemed manageable and she was now ‘working within her limits’.
‘Unfortunately in March 2017, this year, Sherie had another stroke and a further bleed from the cavernoma,’ Jules explained.
‘Her deficits became stronger and she could no longer work.’
Sherie found another job in hairdressing and was taking her daily medication – her health seemed manageable and she was now ‘working within her limits’
‘We were absolutely stoked after a horrific start to the year that there was something positive in our lives’
‘The catch is that if the cavernoma bleeds again it could cause disablement where Sherie will be in a wheel chair for the rest of her life, or worse, kill her,’ Jules wrote.
At this point the family decided to move into Sherie’s parents house as they couldn’t afford to live on one wage.
The couple were then recommended well-known neurosurgeon Dr Charlie Teo who performs surgeries on people that have been told they were inoperable.
The couple have been recommended a well-known neurosurgeon named Dr Charlie Teo who performs surgeries on people that have been told they were inoperable
Sherie sent letters to Dr Teo’s rooms at the Prince of Wales Private Hospital in Sydney telling him her story and four days later she was contacted and told that she was a great candidate for surgery.
‘So myself, Sherie and her mum jumped on a plane to Sydney from Melbourne to meet Dr Teo,’ Jules explained.
‘He felt that he could easily remove the cavernoma from her cerebellum with a 50/50 chance of Sherie needing rehabilitation afterwards. This was thrilling news.
‘DrTeo also said Sherie needs this surgery urgently. Especially because Sherie has already had multiple bleeds, the next bleed could end her life.’
Sherie sent letters to Dr Teo’s rooms at the Prince of Wales Private Hospital in Sydney telling him her story
Although there is now hope, the couple have to raise $100,000 AUD to be able to afford surgery in Sydney.
‘Please help me save my wife. There is not much I can offer you in return other than as many updates on the situation and my eternal gratitude,’ Jules pleaded.
‘You are just… helping me keep the love of my life alive and giving my perfect kid the chance to grow up knowing her mother.’
Jules Lucas has set up a Gofundme account to raise funds for urgent surgery to save Sherie’s life.