A Kansas mother who lost all four of her limbs due to complications after giving birth in February was celebrated after finally being released from the hospital four months later.
Brie Morgan Bauer, 35, was welcomed back to her Kansas City home to much fanfare on Wednesday, June 26, with several of her family, friends and neighbors throwing a parade to celebrate her resilience.
Bauer had been 27 weeks pregnant with her third child when she began feeling flu-like symptoms. After going to get checked out at urgent care, the doctor determined that Bauer was in labor and an emergency C-section was needed in order to save the baby, “who was in distress with every contraction,” according to a GoFundMe page for the family.
Son Beau was born on February 17, however, after losing “a lot of blood in the operating room,” Bauer’s health continued to decline and she began to suffer from organ failure and was eventually placed in a medically induced coma.
“They [doctors] advised the family that she was unlikely to make it through the night,” per the GoFundMe.
But Bauer pulled through and less than 24 hours later doctors discovered that she had “Streptococcal Toxic Shock Syndrome brought on by Strep Group A bacteria” and a condition called “disseminated intravascular coagulation” — which is a rare condition that causes abnormal blood clotting throughout the body, according to the National Institutes of Health.
As a result, Bauer had to undergo numerous surgeries to save her life, including an emergency hysterectomy and a surgery to place an ostomy, or an artificial opening in an organ of the body, because “parts of her colon had died.” She also had surgery to “repair her abdomen” and “remove dead (necrotic) tissue” caused by the sepsis, per the GoFundMe.
The “blood pressure medications keeping her alive” then began to impact her limbs due to “lack of blood flow” and it was ultimately decided that amputations needed to be made to save her limbs. She was amputated below the elbow on both arms and her right leg was amputated at hip-level, while her left leg was amputated “just above the knee,” according to the GoFundMe.
Bauer revealed on Instagram on Tuesday, June 25, that she finally “graduated“ from in-patient rehab, alongside a video of the mother of three exiting the hospital in a wheelchair after learning “all sorts of tricks for navigating everyday activities.” Several staff members at the University of Kansas Health System could be seen cheering her on as she made her way to the exit.
However, the celebrations for Bauer didn’t end there as her family, friends and neighbors also got together to celebrate her homecoming by decorating her home with orange streamers and wearing shirts with the same color — which represents limb loss awareness, according to local media outlet KCTV.
“We pulled together resources and ideas to show her how excited we are for her to be back,” Bauer’s neighbor Julia Walker told KCTV. “… People are getting their face painted, balloons and stuff. Just so this can be a really joyous, fun, celebratory event for her.”
Several people also made banners with inspirational and encouraging words for the mother.
“We wrote ‘Brie inspires us’ because she literally inspires us every day,” Alex Hicks, one of Bauer’s cousins told KCTV. “For her to have the strength that she’s had to overcome all of the odds, it’s just amazing.”
