Help Anaira fight Lyme & Co-Infections
Donation protected
Hi everyone. My name is Ariana & as most of you know, my daughter Anaira has been very sick. I’m starting this to help raise funds for a continuation of proper medical treatment in which insurnace does not cover.
My daughter Anaira is 9 years old and has been suffering with medical issues that no covered medical dr under our insurnace could figure out.
A little back story….
- When she was 2 she had a tick on her that left a bullseye when she was not in my care; instead she was with other family for a holiday in which they did not want to seek medical help. When I demanded to get her back early and seek medical help I took her to the hospital in which she was treated for Lyme disease. She was given cefUROXime for 14 days. She started the medicine late due to it being a holiday weekend, pharmacy being closed by the time we were discharged from a hospital and then the pharmacy having to special order the medicine. I was told the medicine would kill off the Lyme and she would be fine.
After that she started to have extreme behavioral & sensory issues with food/clothes in which drs kept brushing off. They were blaming her behaviors on her age, then deaths in the family, moving homes & covid.
- In December 2023 she got a flu shot for the first time since she was 5 years old. After her flu shot her body went haywire. She was extremely sick, in and out of hospitals missing a lot of school. She had trouble walking and became wheelchair bound for a while.
She’s had X-rays, MRI, loads of blood work in which drs kept saying were “normal” other than severely low vitamin d. No one could figure out was wrong. One Dr asked if she was faking it while another Dr said she was doing it for attention. When she’s unable to stand without help she can’t even use the bathroom properly or shower on her own in which I have to help her. I told drs that there’s no way in the world is she faking this.
- The third hospital we went to diagnosed her with Functional Neurological Disorder (FND). However, after reviewing her chart I noticed she had high levels in her blood that clearly showed inflammation and infection but the specialist at hospitals kept saying it was normal. It made no sense! After researching FND, talking to other people that suffer with it and watching videos; something in my gut told me that it was not FND. My daughter did not resemble other people I saw suffering with FND. I’ve also spoken to other people from all around the world who also said their kids or themselves were wrongfully diagnosed with FND. FND is supposed to be a diagnosis of exclusion for when all test come back normal. But even bloodwork at the hospitals showed issues, her brain MRI showed issues with her basal ganglia yet drs at well known children’s hospitals kept insisting FND; which wasn’t even following the proper protocol for that diagnosis. I’ve tried getting 2nd & 3rd opinions from other drs covered by our insurance, however FND was like a red flag in her chart. The drs didn’t want to put the time and effort in to prove that the diagnosis was wrong.
- From that point forward I knew I had to fight, but carefully because one doctor was already asking me extensive questions as if my daughter was a Munchhausen by proxy victim. That was far from the case!!! I just knew something was wrong even though doctor after doctor said there wasn’t.
- After posting her story on Facebook, TikTok & Instagram a lot of people reached out to me. So many people insisted I pursue further testing because they also did not believe she had FND.
- Her pediatrician was the only Dr that believed something was seriously wrong and tried ordering as much test as possible that insurnace would approve. Anaira had episodes that looked like slight seizures, extreme fatigue, loss of focus, bags under her eyes, rashes on her face. A Lyme test was ran per my request in which only one band came up positive on the western blot. If you do research, the western blot is outdated and does not detect, chronic Lyme that has been in your system for years. Due to only one band coming up positive she was deemed negative by LabCorp. Therefore, insurnace would not test further for co-infections related to Lyme which have the same symptoms she was experiencing.
- I sought out a functional medicine dr that specializes in Lyme disease, co-infections of Lyme & other toxins.
Our first visit was April 2024. It was the first time a specialist had listened to everything, asked questions, looked at video evidence & reviewed all prior testing.
He did not want to jump the gun and give any diagnosis without proper testing but forewarned me that testing to find the root cause of Anaira’s issues would be costly but he’s almost positive that what she was experiencing was not FND. For the first time I felt heard.
We sat down and agreed on a few test that I could afford at the time to get the ball rolling.
We are still waiting for a few more results and still have to return to do a few more test in less than a month; however as of May 7th, Anaira has officially been diagnosed with Bartonella, Lyme disease C6 Peptide, & Babesia. There is high possibility for further diagnoses once the rest of the results come back and more testing is done.
These three serious infections are something that have been causing a lot of major issues in her life. Some days are better than others but her bad days have her suffering beyond imagination. She’s suffering with altered states of mind, anxiety, loosing her hair, episodes of being unable to walk, sensory disturbances, headaches, fevers, vomiting, sore throats, having a limited appetite and much more.
- The dr visits alone are $399 each visit. That does not include any tests that have to be ran or any medical treatment to help her which is in the thousands. Her first appointment alone was close to $1,000 after I factor in the cost of a few blood panels & urine samples we ran. Everything is out of pocket unfortunately. I know it’s embarrassing for me to admit I need help & seek it, but I know that this is not something I can do on my own unfortunately therefore I’m asking for help. So if you can find it in your heart to help, it would be greatly appreciated. Any amount would help tremendously to offset the cost for her testing, treatment, & travel.
- I miss my sweet little girl that was full of life all the time. Now every day is like rushing roulette. Her symptoms start suddenly and with no warning. Sometimes they last a few hours, few days or a week at a time. She’s been suffering for a long time and the longer we wait for treatment, the worse it gets. It’s predicted that she’s had these infections since she was 2 and the majority of her symptoms were laying dormant. So we’ve already missed out on important time frames which is going to make this even harder to fight.
With proper care, we can get her better so she can live a happy healthy lifestyle with less flair ups. She misses cheerleading & tumbling and wants to be healthy enough to return.
- I post as much updates as I can on TikTok, Facebook & Instagram.
My username is red_rapunzell
- If you want to donate but prefer not to use gofundme I have the following platforms
Venmo - apjg1014
Cash App - $apjg1014
Just put in the memo “Medical Help For Anaira”
- Thank you for your continued support on all my social media platforms, checking in on us, sharing her story, prayers & donating to this gofundme. It means so much to us.
Love, Ariana & Anaira
Organizer
Ariana Gossard
Organizer
Browns Mills, NJ