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A Southwest mother of three-year-old twins is fighting for her life in hospital after she tried taking gas station kratom for pain in her leg, her relatives have said.
Amanda Goodsell, 27, had never used the over-the-counter supplement before, but she was advised to take it by her husband Mike after suffering from persistent pain.
The young mother from Kingman, Arizona, took kratom gummies for about a week until July 7, when she collapsed and suffered a cardiac failure so severe doctors believed she would need a heart transplant.
Mike explained to Arizona Family that it never crossed his mind that the innocuous-sounding supplement could have such severe side effects.
'Everybody knew what kratom was,' he said. 'So I was like, "well, okay, well, here, just take this." You could just buy it at the gas station. It's not going to hurt you.'
About seven days after Amanda began taking the product, Mike found her unresponsive in their bed.
Mom placed on life support
'She was red and her lips were blue, and she was foaming,' he said. 'So I like jumped out of bed. I grabbed her and then I was trying to wake her up.'
'You freak out a little bit,' he added. 'I thought she was gone.'
Mike said Amanda was rushed to the hospital and placed on life support.
'They had to have her on a ventilator to help her breathe,' he said. 'And then they had to put her on a bunch of medications because her heart percentage was at 15.'
Kratom is legal in Arizona but heavily regulated.
The product is a herbal supplement known to trigger effects similar to opioids in higher doses, earning it the nickname 'gas station heroin.'
Miracle recovery avoids heart transplant
Amanda suffered a cardiac arrest so severe that doctors thought she would need a heart transplant - but after two weeks in hospital, a miracle occurred.
'Her heart kind of like did a miracle turnaround and the percentage came up to like a stable point,' Mike told AZ Family.
'It was a sense of relief that they told me that she didn't need one.'
Though Amanda narrowly avoided the worst-case scenario, she will still need a defibrillator nearby and heart medication for the rest of her life.
Her sister-in-law, Sherri Nelson, has launched a fundraiser to help cover the family's six-figure medical expenses, explaining that they do not have insurance.
'Amanda Goodsell is a devoted mother to 3½-year-old twins, Kaycee and Payton, and the loving wife of my nephew, Michel,' she wrote on July 9.
Family seeks help after tragedy
'Like so many families, Amanda and Michel have faced economic challenges, but their dedication to raising their children has been nothing short of inspiring.'
'Just two days ago, Amanda suffered a severe reaction to a supplement, and her heart stopped twice.'
'It was a terrifying moment for her family, and now Amanda is in the hospital on life support, fighting for her life.'
'Amanda is a wonderful mother, and her family means everything to her,' Nelson added.
'Michel and the twins need her by their side, and we would all be heartbroken to lose her.'
'We ask you to help them with these enormous expenses, to help keep this young family together, and to make sure Kaycee and Payton don’t lose their mom at such a young age.'
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