R.I.P. Cheryl Coy 2/3/55-9/21/18

  On May 31, 2018 our family had a life changing emergency, and I have created this page for my mom Cheryl Coy.  All money raised will be used to help with everyday expenses and bills (since I had to take a leave from work to care for her), and any medical expenses not covered by insurance.  Some of the money raised will be used to help me take her on her bucket list if possible as well.  I will be updating the page as often as possible as I get more information. The morning of May 31st, I went to my mom's room to make sure my mom was up for a Dr. appointment that she had for later that morning.  She had me make it for her a few days prior because on her way to work, she had gotten lost and a few days before that didn't remember leaving the house for work. She was in the bathroom, so I sat on her bed and started talking to her (like I do often), but something wasn't right.  She seemed like she was half asleep and her speech was slurring.  I asked her if she was alright and she said she didn't feel good.  By now, only after a few minutes of talking I could tell something was really wrong.  So I got up and went into the bathroom and knew right away something was seriously wrong.  When I asked again if she was ok she mumbled stroke, heart attack.  My heart dropped.  :-(  I immediately called 911 and the ambulance came to get her. When we got to the 1st hospital Tennova, I told them what happened and they rushed her to do a CAT scan.  What was already a horrible dream, turned into a my worst nightmare in an instant.  They had found a large tumor on the right side of her brain and that she had a major seizure, not a stroke or a heart attack.  They then decided she needed to be transferred to another hospital that would be able to better help and care for her, the UT Medical Center. When we got to UT they did more testing and determined that she needed surgery right away to remove the tumor.  By this time she was barely awake and hardly speaking and had lost most function in her left side.  Even though it was not a stroke, it affected her like one.  Where the tumor is located is the part of the brain that causes seizures, so she will now also be on seizure medicine for the rest of her life.  The Dr basically told me I had 3 options,  none of which would be easy.  He said they could do a biopsy to see if it was cancer, which he advised against since the tumor was about the size of an egg and the biopsy could aggravate it and make things worse.  We could leave it alone but she would live less then 6 months since he estimated it grew that large in less than 6 months.  Or her best option which would be to remove it.  How could I be left with this major decision???  This is my mom, my best friend, and NEVER IN A MILLION YEARS, would I have thought her life would be in my hands.  :-(  I decided to do what the Dr thought was best for her and to have it removed.  I'm not ready to loose my mom and will do whatever it takes to make sure she has the best chances possible!  #braincancersucks #believe #donate #cancer #medicalexpenses