A Woman In The ICU Had No Clue That Her Husband Was Conspiring With Hospital Staff

No one could’ve foreseen this just a few years ago — probably not even Colette. And even if she had known at one point or another that she wasn’t feeling right, she likely could not have guessed the extent to which her health had deteriorated. Ultimately, then, Colette’s physician would be left to deliver the bad news. 

Colette found out what was going on around the holiday season in 2020. Back then, she was told that she had a condition called pulmonary hypertension. It’s pretty uncommon on the whole, but its effects can be really rough on the body. That was something Colette and her family were about to find out.

In simple terms, pulmonary hypertension is a progressive disease that raises blood pressure in the arteries — specifically the ones that travel to your heart and lungs. There are plenty of signs to watch out for, if you know what you’re talking about. Colette may even have experienced some of them herself.

According to the Mayo Clinic, tiredness, breathing trouble, chest pains, and heart palpitations are just some of the potential symptoms of pulmonary hypertension. It’s a scary disease. And if Colette and her husband went on to research the condition, she may have learned a few other details that left her in shock.

For starters, pulmonary hypertension is incurable. And to make matters even worse, folks aren’t always diagnosed quickly. In some extreme cases, in fact, it has taken years for this diagnosis to be reached. Yet while the prognosis for people with the condition used to be rather grim, it is better these days. Colette would have been relieved about that.

The website Pulmonary Hypertension News has provided some optimism by mentioning the results of a study that occurred in Taiwan. According to the researchers’ findings, more than 60 percent of the pulmonary hypertension sufferers surveyed were living on for at least another decade past diagnosis. That could have given Colette some hope, right?

Maybe she’d be just as lucky, then. Maybe Colette would be treated early and avoid the worst symptoms. But here’s the thing — her fight against this horrible disease turned out to be particularly grueling. Only a matter of months after she received her diagnosis, Colette was admitted to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago.

Colette was brought in at that time because she needed a double-lung transplant. Surgical procedures don’t get much more major than that. But before anything could be done, her physicians made yet another worrying discovery. It seems pulmonary hypertension had caused even more damage to Colette’s already fragile body.

What did that mean for Colette? Well, alongside the double-lung transplant, she would now require two new kidneys. We can’t even imagine what went through her head after hearing that news. And for a while, all she and her loved ones could do was wait and pray. But those donated organs needed to turn up soon — before it was too late.

Yet five months after getting that diagnosis, there were still no suitable organs available for Colette. In the meantime, then, she had essentially been a permanent resident of the Chicago hospital. And while you wouldn’t blame her if she had felt upset or angry about her situation, Colette isn’t that type of person.

Far from it. Colette actually had an optimism that defied the severity of her condition. And that positive attitude started to have an impact on others. This kind of endless positivity was probably a source of encouragement to her husband. It even became a much-needed pick-me-up for the hospital staff.

Like other doctors and nurses around the world, the team at Northwestern Memorial has had to deal head-on with the COVID-19 pandemic. The folks in the ICU have been pushed especially hard, too, and that’s taken a severe toll on their bodies and minds. But then Colette showed up.

Occupational therapist Kari Brouwer revealed just that when she was interviewed by WGN-TV. “It’s been kind of a sad place for a while. It’s a very heavy feeling down here. [But Colette has] definitely been a reminder of what we’re doing here and why we’re all working so hard,” she said in October 2021.

Kari was even more glowing in her praise when she issued a statement to People that month. The ICU worker said, “Colette is a wonderful human. [She] knows when you’re having a rough day. She said to me, whenever she goes for a walk, she walks past patient rooms and prays for each one of them. She also prays for the nurses and rehab staff.”

That’s not all Colette’s done since arriving at the Chicago hospital. No, she hasn’t just prayed for the hardworking folks in the ICU. She’s also attempted to connect with them during heartwarming bedside chats. “I just talk. I ask them how they’re doing,” she told WGN-TV. Could this have been the behavior that inspired her husband to start conspiring with the staff behind the scenes?

“Yeah, I know they go through COVID,” Colette added of the hospital team. “But [I] just [try to bring] a little sunshine in their day, you know.” You’d never guess that this woman was waiting on double-lung and kidney transplants, right? Talk about selflessness. And it seems that the ICU staff and Dennis had been talking about her.

“Having Colette in the ICU is such a bright light, and she rubs off on everyone she meets,” Kari continued in her statement to People. “She renews your hope, helps you continue with your day, and reminds you why you got into healthcare in the first place.” It even seemed as though Colette was doing a little nursing herself.

“I feel like she is just as invested in us as we are in taking care of her,” another member of staff told WGN-TV. And that’s why the workers had wanted to give something back to Colette. She’d gone above and beyond to help them, after all, and it was only fair that they do the same. So, the folks at the hospital had joined forces with Colette’s husband, Dennis.

This had happened in the summer of 2021. In August, you see, it was Dennis and Colette’s 20th wedding anniversary. And Dennis was determined to mark the special occasion with something extraordinary. “I wanted to create a memory that wouldn’t revolve around the hospital,” he told WGN-TV. But what did he have in mind?

It was something truly lovely: the staff put on a surprise vow renewal at Northwestern Memorial. This took place inside the hospital’s chapel, and Colette got her own white gown and veil. Well, it was a robe rather than a beautiful dress, but it did have the word “Bride” on the back.

A few butterfly stickers were added to Colette’s shoes as a finishing touch, too. She even had matrons of honor in the form of her personal nurse and her therapist. And when that was all put in place, Colette was ready to join Dennis at the chapel.

Happily, it all went off without a hitch. Then, once the vows were shared, Colette and Dennis marked their special occasion with a customary toast. They didn’t opt for glasses of champagne, though. Instead, the happy couple stuck to fruit juice. All in all, it was a beautiful day.

It certainly gave the ICU staff a much-needed break from the pressures of the pandemic. We can only imagine how they felt as Colette prepared for the big moment! Carey McGarvey in particular must’ve been thrilled, as she’d been by the bride’s side during her lengthy stay at the hospital.

Carey certainly had plenty of good things to say about her patient. She told People, “Even in an ICU setting, every day Colette wakes up with a smile on her face. Colette is genuine, truly cares, and gives you a nice ‘hanging out with a friend’ kind of feeling.”

Mind you, for all Colette’s positivity, she did have her own moments of struggle. She was fighting a horrible disease, after all, and she’d been waiting for months for those donor organs. Luckily, the ICU staff were there to support her during those dark periods — just as she had done for them. And Colette definitely appreciated it.

“When I had a bad day, the nurses went out [of their way] to tell me how strong I was,” Colette said to WGN-TV. And despite the challenges they’ve all faced, she and the ICU workers do still have their eyes on the future. And one thing is going to happen for certain.

Yep, once Colette’s time at Northwestern Memorial comes to an end, she intends to stay in contact with her new buddies. The feeling is very much mutual, too. But we get the impression that, until that day finally comes, Colette and the staff are going to continue leaning on one another in times of need.

Colette does have Dennis, too, and that is apparently not always the case. Physical therapist Megan Burwell told People, “A lot of these [ICU] patients don’t have visitors or family, so we’re all they have as far as physical contact and support. It’s been rewarding but also sad. All we can do is be there for them as best we can.”

“[But] Colette is a shining light,” Megan added. “She loves butterflies, so in my mind, she’s my butterfly. That’s not to say there aren’t hard days, because she’s been here for quite some time, but she remains so positive — even after a bad day. Her personality and heart are contagious.” And that’s not something you can say for everyone who ends up in hospital.

Late one Friday night in August, Trevor Walker, his wife, Rachaelle, and their three children, were finishing up errands in their hometown of Riverton, Utah. Too tired to cook dinner at home, they opted for a choice they knew their kids enjoyed. It would prove to be a drastic mistake.

After spotting the Golden Arches of McDonald's, they knew a quick and affordable meal awaited them inside. They didn't eat fast food often because, well, it simply wasn't healthy, but after the long day, they treated themselves.

Happy meals were on the menu for the children, as well as a couple of chicken sandwiches for Trevor and Rachaelle. Two Diet Cokes completed the order, and off to home they went. On the way home, Trevor sipped his drink, and within minutes, something felt wrong.

He felt woozy as he walked into his house. His vision blurred, and his limbs went numb. Trying to brush it off as a passing sensation, he attempted to answer a few emails but found his fingers wouldn't punch the right letters.

The feeling kept coming on stronger. By this time, Trevor felt as though he was about to have an extreme anxiety attack. Needing help, he texted his wife who, after eating, was working at their in-home salon.

"I am having sensation in my arms and everything is moving slowly," Trevor texted. "I’m feeling scared. I don’t know what to do. I’m so scared I’m trying to be calm. I need you." But when she finally made her way to the living room, she gasped.

There, on the floor, was Trevor's unconscious body. He'd been blacked out for almost a full minute before Rachaelle got to him. Luckily, after shaking him, Trevor roused.

Rachaelle called neighbors to watch the kids while she rushed him to the hospital for tests. As soon as Trevor arrived, doctors performed a urinalysis to see if any foreign chemicals were in his body.

A sneaking suspicion told Rachaelle something in the food caused the reaction, so she phoned her neighbor to bring the leftovers. She told them not to let the kids eat anymore until they got to the bottom of the situation.

The mother began inspecting the food for anything that might indicate it was tampered with. The sandwiches and happy meals both looked fine, but when she opened the sodas, there was a white film on top of the one Trevor was drinking.

While this discovery took place, Rachaelle was informed by doctors Trevor had traces of buprenorphine, a drug used to wean people off heroin, in his blood. The drug reacted with a medication Trevor was already using. That's when she showed doctors the soda.

The white substance in the soda cup was immediately sent to the Utah State Crime Lab after police were notified. The results proved Rachaelle's hunch about the tainted food correct: the substance was, in fact, buprenorphine.

None of the other beverages contained the drug, so it seemed like someone slipped it into the cup just before handing it off to Trevor. Police immediately contacted the Riverton McDonald's and asked for security footage.

McDonald's handed over the footage, but police realized it was from a different day. When they asked the restaurant's manager again, they were told the footage was deleted. Something fishy was clearly afoot.

Through research, police learned there was one suspected employee who had social media posts about drug usage and disrespecting customers at the Drive-Thru. They were also the manager's younger brother, which could've been why the footage was deleted.

Police interrogated the siblings, but neither said anything suspicious. However, they both quit their jobs shortly after the investigation, which raised red flags. Unfortunately, without solid evidence, police couldn't make any arrests.

Trevor saw no other recourse than to file a lawsuit against not only the McDonald's establishment that sold him the soda but against Coca-Cola and Swire Coca-Cola (the local distributor), as well. In order to best serve his case, Trevor began looking into instances of people who had sued the Golden Arches in the past. Soon, he landed on one in particular that made him do a double take.

In Quebec, Antonio Bramante got sick of his kids losing their minds over the latest Happy Meal toy. Once he noticed that these promotions were all placed at children's eye level, he filed a suit that McDonald's was unfairly marketing and exploiting youngsters. Bramante's lawsuit wasn't even the strangest the chain has seen over the years.

Ex-employee Shelley Lynn knew she wouldn't make much dough dishing out Big Macs. But she blamed McDonald's for paying her so little that she had to turn to sex work to make ends meet! Her suit got tossed out faster than a stale french fry.

At first, 79-year-old Stella Liebeck became a tabloid laughingstock when she brought McDonald's to court over a spilled cup of coffee in their drive-thru. Her case had more to it than most people realized, however.

The coffee was dangerously hot! Overheated far past a drinkable temperature, the coffee caused third-degree burns across Liebeck's pelvis. McDonald's, despite initially refusing any damages, eventually settled out of court with the elderly woman.

Made famous by the documentary of that very name, protestors Helen Steel and Dave Morris got wrapped up in a libel case that lasted seven years. McDonald's took issue with their distributing defamatory pamphlets outside their locations. It became a public relations disaster for the fast good giant.

When Trevor Walker placed his cup under a McDonald's soda fountain, he expected a fizzy stream of Coca-Cola. He never expected it to contain Suboxone, a relative of heroin. Walker had to be hospitalized after the spiked beverage made him lose feeling in his extremities.

In 2001, the burger peddlers were furious to discover a chain called McCurry offering Indian food throughout Malaysia. McDonald's won the initial ruling, but McCurry won out in the end. Because they didn't imitate McDonald's, they were free to use the "Mc" prefix.

Does a slightly overpriced sandwich constitute a $5 million class-action lawsuit? It did for Cynthia Kissner and Leonard Werner, who were irate that they didn't receive a price decrease for ordering quarters pounders with cheese — without the cheese.

You can spot those Golden Arches glowing at any time of day, but that doesn't mean they're always open. Scott Magee of Louisiana sued the chain for only having their drive-thru option available late at night, as he couldn't access it due to being legally blind.

The big secret behind Mickey D's fries is the use of animal products. To be clear, there's nothing too weird mixed in, but the spuds are cooked in beef tallow. This revelation had their phones ringing non-stop with complaints from various religious and vegetarian groups.

Webster Lucas of California accused McDonald's of causing him $1.5 million worth of "undue mental anguish." It came down to the fact that he only got one napkin! The manager initially refused his request for more, allegedly due to Lucas' race.

Ronald McDonald of Illinois wasn't clowning around when he started his own restaurant. He put his own name on the sign, which was fine until a McDonald's opened down the road! They forced Ron to drop the possessive from his name as long as they were there.

Usually, kid's shows adore McDonald's for being a huge marketing partner, but not H.R. Pufnstuf. Sid and Marty Krofft, the creators of the show, believed that the burger seller's ad agency stole from them in a big way.

Specifically, they alleged that the character of Mayor McCheese was a complete ripoff of H.R. Pufnstuf — from their big heads to the fact that they are both mayors! The courts agreed, docking $1 million from McDonald's and ending their McCheese ad campaign.

All Veronica Martin wanted on a 1999 morning was a hamburger, but one topping gave her more than she bargained for. After an overheated pickle slice slid from her bun and burnt her chin, Veronica sued the chain for $110,000.

It's obvious that chicken nuggets aren't health food, though that didn't stop New York teens from blaming McDonald's for their childhood obesity. Rejecting their claim, the court enacted "common sense consumption" laws that protect food merchants from the consequences of customers' irresponsible behavior.

Decades after businessman Vikram Bakshi brought McDonald's to India, the bigwigs wanted him out. They barred him from using the McDonald's name at his restaurants until he sold his stake, but Bakshi continued to use the Golden Arches logo until the parties settled out of court.