A Kansas mother is fighting for recovery after a lakeside family trip took a devastating turn when she was bitten repeatedly by spiders.
Britagne Miller had been relaxing near a campfire with her husband, Jake Miller, and their four children at Cheney Lake in May when around 15 spiders reportedly crawled onto her and started biting her.
At first, she did not realize how serious the situation would become. But four days later, she developed a severely painful bruise near her calf that rapidly got worse.
“This one kept swelling and swelling, and it was like, you know, a fire stir that’s metal,” she previously recalled to KAKE.
“It was like shooting down my leg into my foot, and it felt like it was being stabbed.”
Her condition deteriorated so badly that she had to be taken to Wesley Hospital in Wichita, where doctors found a collection of blood clots in her leg linked to the bites. During emergency surgery, surgeons removed nearly 300 milliliters of blood clots and inserted a drain to aid healing. The issue was serious enough to require emergency surgery.
Doctors believe the mom was bitten by brown recluse spiders, venomous spiders native to Kansas. While brown recluse spider bites can range from mild skin irritation to severe infections, they can cause rare but serious systemic complications including blood clotting disorders and hemolysis, or destruction of red blood cells.
On a GoFundMe page, Jake explained that the procedure became even more dangerous because Britagne is living with end-stage liver disease and pre-existing blood clotting disorders.
“This made surgery and routine care far more dangerous — doctors warned she could bleed out,” he wrote on the fundraiser.
“Multiple doctors told us she might have only days to a month to live and recommended hospice after just two weeks in the hospital.”
He also said she later developed sepsis, as well as staph and gram-negative bloodstream infections, forcing doctors to carry out two bedside procedures to remove dead skin while also placing her on more antibiotics.
The dad continued: “She refused to give up. She told the doctors she would fight to live as long as she could for her family, and she insisted they do everything possible to save her.”
Although Britagne survived the first stage of the medical emergency, her husband said she still has a long road ahead.
After spending 10 days in intensive care, Miller was discharged from the hospital on July 11 and continues recovering at home. Doctors have said she will need a liver transplant, but that operation will not take place until she is strong enough and her blood clotting and other lab values stabilize, which may still be months away.
Jake has stayed with his wife throughout the ordeal, but during that time he also lost his job while caring for their four children.
With medical expenses mounting and the household income reduced, he said the family has been left in a very difficult financial position.
At the time of writing, the fundraiser had received substantial donations.
Jake added: “Asking for help is one of the hardest things we’ve ever had to do. But right now, our family needs it.
“My wife, Britagne, is the strongest person I have ever known. She is an incredible woman, an amazing mother to our four beautiful children, and the person who held our family together.
“If you’ve ever met Britagne, you know she always puts others before herself. She has a servant’s heart and has spent her life caring for the people she loves.”