On April 1st my mom started to experience extreme neck and back pain. When this only began to worsen over a few days, I flew to Vegas where she lives and we went to the emergency room thinking it may be a sprain or small fracture in the worst case. Once imaging was complete, the culprit turned out to be an infection near her spine in her neck. She was given surgery the next day to clean out the infection with hopes that would be the end of it. This was unfortunately not the case.

After she didn’t respond as we had all hoped to the first procedure, she received another surgery much like the first, as well as multiple blood transfusions. Over the next couple weeks, she gradually grew stronger with a few very hard days in between. Right when we thought she was almost out of the woods and may be able to come home, it was determined through further imaging that the infection had spread to her spine and she needed a much more invasive (and ultimately life-saving) emergency surgery.

While she is very fortunate to be alive and is on the mend, she is still not yet in the clear. The pain is still tremendous and navigating this has been a journey for her most of all, and all who care about her. To know my mom is to love her. She was a single mother to me through my childhood, has worked her ass off her entire life and supported herself since she was a teenager. Before this incident she was juggling multiple jobs and has acted as the sole caretaker for my elderly grandmother for about a decade.

With that being said, even though she is fortunate to have health insurance, over a month in the hospital is not cheap. Additionally, there is no way to tell yet just how long her recovery will be, and in turn, how long it will be until she can go back to work fully. My mom is someone who doesn’t ask for help, sometimes to her detriment, and even in the most desperate hour of her life does not want from anyone. I as her daughter however, want to be able to support her in any way that I can, but know that she will need so much more help than I am able to provide.

I am in no way oblivious to the fact that times are tough, and finances are a struggle for many right now. I have very little expectations here, but want to be able to provide my wonderful momma with some relief once this nightmare is over. Anything at all helps.

With extreme gratitude,

Dakota