Riley's Scoliosis Brace Fund

My name is Stacy Ulrich and I am the mother of 3 beautiful children.  My oldest child, Riley, was recently diagnosed with scoliosis.  This is a diagnosis that hit close to the heart, since I wore a back brace from the ages of 12 to 14 and eventually ended up having a spinal fusion at the age of 14.  Knowing the heartache and life long changes that the surgery had on my life, I do not want that for my daughter.  We decided to fight this head on and follow all of the instructions provided by her doctors.  We were told that Riley will need to get a TLSO Boston Brace (similar to what I wore years ago) and that she will need to wear it for up to 23 hours a day.  The doctor also informed us that she may need to wear this until she is 16 years old and has finished growing, which is hard for a 10 year old to hear.  With all of that news, she kept on smiling and has been optimistic throughout each appointment.  She was fitted for the brace and left the appointment with such a positive and inspriring attitude.  I wish I could say the same for myself.  When I asked how long until we would receive the back brace, I was told that they would not start making the brace until we pay for 50% of the cost up front and then we will get the brace when we pay the remaining balance.  Okay, so insurance will cover it, right?  Not a chance.  I fought with insurance for weeks before giving up that battle.  It doesn't make sense to me that Riley was diagnosed with scoliosis and is denied medical coverage for the only possible preventative treatment prior to needing a life altering surgery.  As my doctor informed me, the surgery is much more advanced then when I received it, but I still don't want that for my daughter.  She is a travel soccer player and enjoys all sports and adventure.  A brace can't stop her from being active, but a surgery definitely will.  She doesn't know that this is a financial burden on our family and I don't ever want her to know that information.  She is an extremely caring, sweet, sensitive and loving person.  If she knew about the financial stress, she would be determined to come up with some type of solution or sacrifice herself in some way in order to make life easier for us.  My daughter amazes me every day with how she is handling this situation.  She has even decided that she would like to develop a clothing line for girls that have to wear back braces.   Once that happens, we will gladly send some free shirts to our donators.  It is not like me to ask for money and I am somewhat ashamed to have to ask, but we could really use support with funding this medical brace for our daugther.  When we originally met with the doctor in February, her degree of curvature was at 26 degrees.  With every month that goes by without the brace, her curve only gets worse.  Not only that, but she may actually be able to correct some of the curve if the brace is worn as prescribed.  It would mean so much to my husband and I if you would be able to help us to obtain this brace as soon as possible.  Riley plans on decorating it to match her outfits (of course), so we will gladly share pictures and updates on her scoliosis journey.  Thanks for taking the time to read this!