Tynlee’s Story

In July of 2020, our family of five was living in a 5th wheel on our land waiting for our home to be built.  The entire family became ill except me (Mom).   Piper, our oldest, was the first to become ill and she was hospitalized for 7 days.  On July 7th, she tested positive for cryptosporidium and STEC.  As each became ill, all the kids and Dad tested positive for cryptosporidium and STEC. We had purchased baby cows and they carry these pathogens.

Two weeks after Piper became ill, 9 year old Tynlee, had one day of vomiting and diarrhea.  Two weeks passed and on July 16th, she pooped pure blood every hour.   The pain was so severe, she was crying.  We took her to our local hospital and she was immediately transferred to a children’s hospital in Seattle.  After 8 days, she was sent home.  She slept all day and declined quickly.  We returned to the hospital and on July 24th, she was diagnosed with Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (HUS).  Her platelets were at 26. 

I was terrified.  Only 10% of children develop HUS.  She was so sick looking and her eyes were yellow. I thought we were going to lose her; I thought she was going to die. 

Tynlee was one of the lucky ones with HUS.  She never stopped peeing and she did not need dialysis.  She did require 3 blood transfusions. She was hospitalized for 21 days.  On August 6th, was released from the hospital.

Once back home, Tynlee did not skip a beat.  I wanted to get her a counselor, but she said she was fine.  After 6 weeks, she stopped taking blood pressure medication. We are blessed that Tynlee’s kidney’s made a full recovery.  

I on the other hand was an emotional wreck.  I suffered from severe PSTD.  I had the veterinarians come back and check the cows. They told us the E.coli 0157:H7 would never be removed from the ground. We sold the land in 2021. I was too scared to live there anymore.  In 2022, we moved to Tennessee and currently live on 4 acres. 

Tynlee is now 13 years old and doing great!  She is very bright and social and loves softball.  The only medical issue she has is gluten intolerance.  She was diagnosed with this in 2021.