Krystal Anderson was a cheerleader for the Kansas City Chiefs for many years. She passed away last month after giving birth, and her husband, Clayton, is now speaking out about her passing.
Clayton Anderson spoke about his experiences grieving the death of his Black wife in an interview that ABC News published on Thursday. Anderson also stressed the need to raise awareness about the Black maternal mortality issue in the United States.
While giving birth to a stillborn child on March 20, Krystal Anderson, who was 40 years old, died of cardiac arrest due to the full-body illness known as sepsis in a Kansas hospital, according to Clayton Anderson. The ex-Cheers cheerleader gave birth to a stillborn child in 2022.
“She was my world,… my best friend and obviously the love of my life and mother to our children,” Clayton Anderson gushed about his late wife.
He went on to talk about how health care systems handle high-risk pregnancies in general and on racial inequities in maternal health outcomes specifically.
He spoke to ABC News about his experience with Krystal, a Black woman in her 40s, and their previous loss. He explained that even with that loss, doctors would tell them not to start a plan with maternal fetal medicine or high-risk maternity doctors until week 14.huffington post
From the very beginning, he insisted, “All pregnancy is high-risk… when you’re a woman of color, or you’re older.”
“Approaching a patient with a history of loss with the same level of care as a 23-year-old in excellent health,” he continued, bringing up his wife’s case. An method that is “one-size-fits-all” is not possible.
Krystal’s healthcare facility, Advent Health Shawnee Mission, issued a statement to HuffPost reading: “Our hearts are hurting in this tragic situation.” Our goal, along with that of the independent providers who work with us, is to meet the unique requirements of each patient and give them the finest care possible.
“Our thoughts and sympathies are with those who have lost a loved one in this tragic accident,” the statement said.
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The Cleveland Clinic states that cervical cerclage helps maintain the “cervix closed during pregnancy to prevent premature birth,” and Clayton mentioned that his late wife had the operation when she was 16 weeks pregnant when speaking to ABC News. He informed her that four weeks had passed since her last appointment.
The doctors decided to put the former cheerleader on partial bed rest after problems at 20 weeks and planned to admit her to a special ward to manage a “periviable” birth at 22 weeks. According to reports, though, Krystal started experiencing back pain in her 20th week of pregnancy, and the couple hurried to the hospital.
On March 16, a physician found no signs of fetal heartbeat. Even though it took a few hours, Krystal eventually had a fever. Even though she had three procedures to treat the infection, she ultimately died from organ failure, according to what Clayton told the source.
In an interview with Kansas City’s Fox affiliate WDAF-TV last month, Clayton described his feelings of being “lost” following Krystal’s passing.
A lot of people are in this house, but it feels empty, he said back then.
Besides cheering, Krystal was a software engineer. Her obituary states that she received a patent for “developing software that assesses the risk of post-partum hemorrhage.”
Compared to white women, Black women have a CDC-recorded thrice higher risk of dying during pregnancy. In August, Dr. Tracey Sylvester, an OB-GYN from California, spoke with HuffPost on how the maternal death epidemic impacts Black parents regardless of their level of education, income, or access to healthcare.
Last month, the Kansas City Chiefs Cheerleaders’ official Instagram account shared a statement in sadness over Krystal’s passing.
Krystal reportedly attended more than 100 games between 2006 and 2011 and 2013 and 2016, according to the group.
“Her teammates, fans, and even strangers who were never strangers for long loved and adored her,” the statement stated, continuing, “We will miss her kind spirit, joyful energy, and her sparkle.”
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