Love & Support for the Lofgren Family

Hello, my name is Amber. I'm married to a wonderful man and I'm a mother to 4 beautiful girls. What I'm about to write next is really hard. It's a painful subject and close to my heart. My life story is entwined here, and to share it openly is emotionally hard.

Medically my life has taken a left turn. I've had a couple surgeries this year. The most impactful one I had was a left hip reconstruction. This was my second major hip surgery in 4 years due to a labral tear. I want to be upfront, honest and say that I need to ask for financial support for myself and my family of 6 because of my medical situation. I never expected to be in this position.

What happened is that my recovery journey has not gone smoothly these last few years. My first surgery 4 years ago was a labral repair which ended up shredding to pieces. Major Complex Tearing was the official diagnosis that resulted in my need for a reconstruction. I’ve found myself in a challenging place as my body is not working the way that it should. Based on the expected recovery time-frame my orthopedic surgeon provided from my hip reconstruction I should have transitioned from a wheelchair to a walker to a cane by 6 months post-surgery. I'm officially past that 6 month time-frame and my orthopedic surgeon has stated I'm essentially wheelchair bound.

Little things. Simple things. Everyday things that most people don't think twice about I'm struggling to accomplish. Getting dressed. Putting on socks and shoes. Getting meals to the table without making a big mess. Standing to wash dishes. Even doing laundry is such a momentous task it takes 3-4 days to do a single load from start to finish. All I know is I want to go to bed when my body is exhausted. My husband misses the old me and says I'm extremely limited by my physical. I agree.

I have numbness over my outer (lateral) thigh. I have difficulty extending my ankle (dorsiflexing) against any resistance on the left. I have difficulty getting myself bathed, dressed, into and out of bed or a vehicle by myself as I have to have help lifting my leg(s) up and getting them positioned. Bending over causes headaches and/or dizziness and I have to be careful I don't fall over because balance is an issue especially when I'm being transferred. I even ended up in the hospital due to a fall for a week. To say this has been a hard year doesn’t even cover what's been going on.

I love reading, gardening, baking and basically doing anything outside. Some of my favorite things are horseback riding, camping and canoeing. I'm a highly driven and independent individual that loves to try new things. I'm unable to do these in my current situation.

I’m in my early 30’s and my four young girls whom I love dearly don’t understand why their mother can’t partake in normal activities like going to their sports practices, school concerts or get down to play on the floor with them. My heart longs for the day where I will once again read them a bedtime story with warm, lap snuggles without enduring immense pain.

My daily life consists of physical therapy, occupational therapy, caring for my family as best as I'm able, and trying to put on a strong front for my 4 young girls. This is not something that a mother wants to admit to as I do not have any idea why I'm going through all this. It rips my heart into tiny pieces and tears me up inside because my girls do such a wonderful job trying to take care of their mother, when in fact it's supposed to be my job. They are so precious.

I've been struggling with ongoing pain and deconditioning. I went back to my local clinic for guidance. With very little answers and more questions than I've ever had, I've started investigating underlying causes and scheduling medical appointments to be seen by more specialist departments than I knew existed.

Would you please encourage me and support my rehabilitation so that I can support my family, myself and do the things I love again and more?

Please know that any funds received would be used to help obtain therapy, medical supplies, equipment, and/or additional support systems to set up our home that I need to function. To help support my physical well-being and allow me to gain independence in my own home. I'm in need of financial support to pay off medical debt that has already been obtained.

I'm asking openly as this GoFundMe would allow me to purchase items to assist me in my daily living tasks that would give me freedom to attend my children’s activities, go grocery shopping and get to my own doctor’s appointments.

I would be beyond grateful. It would change my world and my family’s world for they love me, dearly. Thank you for your support.

Yours Truly,

Amber