Help Todd Stein Get Head Pain Relief Nerve Surgeries in Ohio

Hi! Todd M. Stein here.

(TL;DR: I have nerve surgeries scheduled to reduce/possibly eliminate my head pain. I’m asking for donations to help my family better afford medical expenses & travel for these surgeries and required follow up appointments in Ohio.)

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I battle multiple chronic health/pain conditions. Some chronic pain conditions impact specific points/spots/areas while others are considered “body-wide” and yet others are called “migrating” because they, literally, “move around the body.” I battle all three types.

Over the years, people have asked if there’s anything they can do to help us. While we truly appreciated past offers, we typically declined, because we don’t like asking for help. So much so that I can’t believe I am setting up this GoFundMe to ask for money to help us afford medical & travel expenses related to a potentially life-changing set of surgeries next month (June)...but, here I am…

I/we could really use your help and will, sincerely, appreciate anything you are able & willing to donate. “Every single dollar will truly help!”

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I found a surgeon who (after I spent months qualifying to be seen and over a year qualifying for surgery), approved me for six surgical procedures: bilateral greater & lesser occipital (4), and right temple (1), nerve decompression surgeries to try to eliminate (or, at least, reduce) pain related to the occipital nerves which involve the base of my head where it connects to the neck/spine, up the back of my head, across the top of the head, down the forehead to just above my eyebrows. The right temple surgery has the potential to stop/minimize pain in that spot. The surgeon will also transplant fat from elsewhere in my body to help pad/protect my occipital nerves (1). These surgeries are sometimes colloquially referred to as “migraine surgery.”

Admittedly, in the spirit of full transparency, these six surgical procedures (all to be done on 6/25/25) won’t help other unrelated pain (ie: fibromyalgia, spinal arthritis, etc.), but these surgeries offer potential major relief from chronic head pain which, currently, is the worst of my pains.

The surgeon reports a “94% success rate.” “Success,” here, is defined as lessened (up to elimination of) head pain related to the nerves described.

This could be LIFE CHANGING for everyone: for me (as a patient and, separately, as a Dad/husband/son/brother/friend/human…) and for my family (who have unfairly but willingly sacrificed so much because of the lack of my income & abilities due to my chronic illnesses). (Plus, let’s face it: living with me in constant pain cannot be fun or easy.)

The surgeon told us the initial recovery period can be four to six weeks and we won’t truly know the “final results” until three, up to 12, months post-op.

I am hoping for enough relief to allow me to “simply move.” You see, I (literally) spent the bulk of the last 10 years in my house (in bed or on the couch/recliner) because of the excruciating to debilitating chronic pain that hurts too much to “simply move.” (Obviously, I have not been able to work for years. I’ve tried.) The goal of being able to “simply move” is to give me a chance at building up strength & endurance to become active again. I hope to be able to start walking/exercising, return to physical therapy, spend quality time with family & friends, regain some core strength — I also want to lose the obnoxious amount of weight I’ve gained, improve my overall health &, eventually, return to the workforce (in some capacity)…all so I can simply live my life and be there for my family.

So…what does, “I am asking for donations to help fund my medical & travel expenses” mean? (How will your donations be used?)

•Travel & lodging cost money. A lot of money. (Even for medical travel. This is not a “vacation.”)

•This trip, we will be in Columbus for 6-10 days, at minimum. That means 6-10 nights lodging in Columbus (we’ve been connected with OSUWMC’s preferred lodging vendors which offer discounts to OSU patients, but it’s still a lot of money on top of life’s regular expenses).

•Sitting in a car triggers increased pain so we break up the ~11 hour one way trip over two days. That adds lodging & meal expenses (but is less expensive than us flying & renting a vehicle and isn’t as hard on my body as plane seats & dealing with airports).

•Fuel/gas.

•2-3 meals/person/day for Marnie & myself (restaurants are expensive but a necessity, at times, when traveling; we are getting a rental with a kitchen to help minimize meal costs).

•Copays for the meds I will be prescribed post-op in Ohio.

•The above is just for this trip. I already have three follow up appointments scheduled (more may be added later) which means more lodging, travel, food, etc. expenses for those appointments’ trips.

•While Marnie has great insurance coverage through her amazing job, we will have copays and out-of-pocket medical expenses in addition to our actual travel expenses. The surgeon, anesthesia and facility fees are not going to be free or cheap. (“Priceless,” yes, if it works, but still “expensive,” coming out of our one income family - even after insurance.)

•While I am legally “disabled,” I have never received any disability, unemployment, or other government or private benefits or compensation (in part due to how our, now former, CPA handled the accounting for my small businesses). (Again, we are grateful for Marnie’s job.)

Excluding the four trips and related expenses we’ve already incurred for this, prior to the upcoming surgery trip in June, I am guesstimating a conservative/tight budget of ~$5,710.00 for medical travel and our share of medical expenses for the surgery trip and the required & scheduled follow up appointment trips. (We also already pay over $7,000.00/year out of pocket for my other chronic illnesses’ appointments and medications.)

All of that, combined, is why, unfortunately, I need to ask for help…and…

I HATE ASKING FOR HELP.

I have not asked for help the last decade being unemployed or the last ~20+ years that I’ve dealt with growing health concerns. I am asking now…

Will you please help me and my family?

Anything & everything will help. Nothing is too small or too big. (While we can use your help, please, only donate if you can afford it and truly want to help us.)

”Every single dollar will truly help!” Any part of our total medical & travel costs for this potentially life changing set of surgeries and follow up appointments that is raised here through donations will be a HUGE HELP and go a long way towards helping our family better afford this opportunity.

Thanks, in advance, for your consideration, possible donation & your ongoing support (not just for me, but for my family, also).

Here’s hoping for some relief. For all of us. Finally.

Respectfully,

Todd M. Stein

PS - for those curious…

”Why Ohio?”

Because no one in the entire state of Iowa performs occipital decompression surgery and this surgeon was there when it was first performed and learned from the original surgeon. He, himself, is now a world renowned surgeon and professor at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center. Dr. Jeffrey Janis is his name. Feel free to look him up. I will also share some links to info about him and the surgeries in a future post.

If you actually read this far: THANK YOU!

—TMS

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