Okay so here we go. My mom was a star athlete growing up, she set records in college that still stand as a track and cross country star. She got endorsements from senators, was appointed to The Naval Academy, (although she elected not to attend) and was every coach's dream come true. When she turned twenty three in 1991, a congenital defect in her spine presented itself. She had brain stem compression, and after a grueling surgery to fuse her neck she was put on life support. She recovered from that surgery fairly well, and was still able to bike, coach cross-country, and have a successful career as a teacher for middle school kids with emotional disorders and learning disabilities.
In 2010, she required another surgery. Now her neck is fused from the skull base to c-5. IInitially she was able to continue working, until in 2011, she got rear-ended. It wasn't a bad accident, but it was enough to severely jar her neck, resulting in over $80,000 in medical bills. She was forced to retire from a career she loved and to apply for disability in order to provide for me. We had left my abusive father in 2008, and he has never payed child support.
Since 2012, my mom's condition has gotten worse. She frequently has what we have taken to calling 'can't-move headaches,' when her nerve pain is so severe that she is bedridden for days on end. Despite seeing physical therapists weekly, she has been relegated to walking with forearm crutches, as issues with her nervous system have left her unable to balance. Her pain is at an average of 6/10 every day. She can't lift anything over a few pounds or bend to pick up dropped items with our risking one of her debilitating headaches. She has tremors in her hands and muscle atrophy in her arms.
Last August her sister died leaving my 16 year old cousin an orphan. My mom gladly took him in, and we have no regrets. But she is paying for him to live with us with money she doesn't have. My meager college fund went to providing for him, and now we are borderline broke. She has never been in debt, has never been dependent on anyone else despite being a single mother on disability. We are now being forced to consider taking out a loan against the house in order to get her a service dog.
Since 2012, I have been doing everything I can to reduce her pain level, from opening doors to retrieving the remote from across the room because moving is to painful for her. But I can't do this forever. I have to go to college and cultivate my own career, and that means leaving both home and my mom. We try to be positive but she and I are both terrified of her future. She's been battling depression for years and without kids to care for, she's worried that she may not even get out of bed most days. She needs someone to help her, but she still has the spirit of an all-star athlete and she hates the idea of being dependent on someone.
Enter service dog. It is possible to get a dog for free if you are willing to wait for 5-6 years, but I'm leaving for college in two and I can't leave her alone. I know I'm asking a lot, but to have a dog by the time I leave costs $20,000, and that's just for the dog. We have to pay to fly to visit the dog several times over the course of his training, and then for the transportation of the dog as well as the inevitable vet bills. It's going to be an expensive and hard journey, but once she gets this dog (pictured in his training vest), I can leave knowing that she won't be all alone. If she falls then the dog can get help from our neighbors. If she drops something the dog can spare her an immobilizing headache by picking it up. If she begins to lose her balance the dog can brace her so that she doesn't get injured. The dog can do most of the physical things I do for her, so that I can have peace of mind for her safety as I begin adulthood.
As soon as we have access to them I will post photos of her X-rays to show the hardware that resides in her neck. I wish we didn't have to depend on the generosity of strangers, but circumstances have left this as our only option.
As cliché as it sounds, if everyone that sees this donates the spare change on their cabinet then we have a chance of making this work. Even if it's one dollar that's one dollar less of debt. Please just give what you can, and if you can't then tell someone else about this that maybe can.
Thank you,
Jules M Riddle, daughter of Julie H Riddle