A Kentucky teacher and mom-of-two died this week after a miraculous battle with an illness that started when she went to a doctor for what she thought was a cold in May 2022.
Emily Presley, 46, was told she had an infection that landed her in hospitals for several months with soaring heart rate, crashing blood pressure, and failing lungs.
After spending four months on a ventilator that did her heart and lungs work, Emily had a double lung transplant that quickly proved unsuccessful.
Within a few days, she received another match and had a new double lung transplant that allowed her to be back home for Thanksgiving 2023 along with her husband and two children.
“I have so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving and I’m so glad my Northwestern Medicine lung transplant team could get me home to share that gratitude with my family, my friends, and the Lexington community,” Emily said at the time.
“It’s wonderful to be home with my kids and my dog.”
Emily’s health took a turn for the worse once again shortly after that; she suffered from infections and an inflammation that she couldn’t survive.
Her family announced that she died on Tuesday, at 4 a.m., surrounded by loved ones.
“Time after time she defied the odds. Who could possibly overcome such a trial. Emily,” husband Jeff Presley said.
