Three weeks after her “favorite day,” the day she brought her baby home, Jennifer Shimmel started bleeding. “There was quite a bit of blood,” said her husband, Eric. “That was definitely scary.”
The couple rushed to the hospital. There, the medical team told Jennifer she needed emergency surgery to remove part of the placenta that was left behind. Four days later, Jennifer was still in the hospital. “It was supposed to be an outpatient procedure, but unfortunately, there were some complications and I ended up losing a decent amount of blood,” said Jennifer. As Eric waited, a doctor pulled him aside. “Hey, things didn't go as planned. She actually bled a lot more than we thought,” recalled Eric. “Your mind kind of goes in all directions.”
During her time in the hospital, Jennifer received two blood transfusions. The impact was almost immediate.
“They really helped me be able to recover, be able to care for my baby, be able to breastfeed my baby, and finally get back to feeling like myself,” she said.
For Eric, the experience changed everything. “It's not until you really need blood, and you see your wife kind of gray and not looking well … When your loved ones need it, it really makes you grateful for other people taking the time to donate and help others,” he said. Throughout it all, Jennifer’s parents were by their side, helping care for Jennifer and Eric’s daughter, Paulina, supporting Jennifer and stepping in wherever needed.
For Jennifer’s father, John Perras, the moment carried a deeper meaning. A longtime volunteer, blood donation advocate and Versiti board member, he had spent more than 30 years supporting the mission. “You never dream that this is going to happen to your family,” said John. “When this occurred and we found out that Jen needed blood, it was like, ‘All right. This is not a problem. It's going to be there.” And when Jennifer needed it most, it was.
Today, Jennifer is back home with Paulina, embracing life as a new mom and soaking in everything they nearly lost.
Because of blood donors, a frightening moment became a future – one she now gets to share with her daughter.
People need people, make a difference in someone’s life by donating blood.
We must rely on each other for the gift of blood, and patients in your community rely on the generosity of Versiti’s blood donors to help. Please consider scheduling an appointment to donate. If this is your first time, donating blood is quick, easy and relatively painless. And, it is a great way to give back and help patients in your community.
