A service dog for Raven

Most of you who are looking at this campaigne probably don't know me, so I will introduce myself! My name is Raven, I am 18 looking to go to college to major in biology and I love jewelry making! I also happen to have a rare genetic disease called Ehlers Danlos syndrome (EDS). Basically it means that I have a mutation in my DNA were collagen is made. Collagen is like the glue for your body, its what holds you together. Mine isn't built correctly though so things don't stay glued together. That means that many parts of my body such as my joints frequently come out. It also effects my internal organs and makes them to loose and stretchy, so many of them don't work well.  Due to this I have daily chronic pain, fatigue, difficulty standing for long periods and many other conditions caused by the EDS. One of those is Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome or POTS for short.  Because my vessels are so stretchy my blood will often pool when I stand instead of circulating. My heart then beats to fast in an effort to compensate and I will faint.  Another thing caused by the EDS is called gastroperisis. It basically means that my stomach, caused by the EDS, is to stretchy and doesn't contract correctly so food simply sits in my stomach and rots. In effect, my stomach is paralyzed. Those are just some of the conditions caused by my EDS, their are many many more that I deal with everyday. It is a very complex and ever changing disease with very little research and no treatments. I have lots of dreams that I want to accomplish while I am on this earth.  I don't want to let this disease define who I am and what I can do, but right now It does. I do my best every day to fight the symptoms and live my life but it isn't always easy. Frequently it defeats me instead and leaves me feeling very alone. When your 18 and you can't do half of the things your friends can because you will be in to much pain afterwards it really effects your view of yourself. Or when you have to think if you could even handle the rigors of college. This disease is life changing and can be very isolating. I am done letting it define me though. That is why I am creating this campaigne, it is why I am asking for your help. After talking with my doctors we decided a service dog would be a great option! Service dogs aren’t cheap though and it costs roughly $40,000 dollars to train a service dog but they usually only ask for $10,000, the rest is covered by public donations. A service dog could completely change my life. They would be able to help me walk when I am in pain, steady me when I am dizzy, pick up items so I can preserve my energy, alert to changes in my HR or blood sugar, provide pressure to ease muscle spasms, retrieve medications in an emergency and last but certainly not least be a light, a comfort in the dark times of this disease. I dog isn't a cure, It won't fix my broken genes but it will change how I live my life. It will allow me to be more "normal" to do more things and get to live a life more like my peers. All I want is to be able to do as much as I can and this dog could allow me to do that. However, I can't make this happen on my own. $10,000 is a lot of money and I need the help of all of you to do this. Any donations would be greatly appreciated! No matter the amount, every drop makes a difference. Also, feel free to go to my Etsy shop and purchase one of my bracelets that I make if that is more comfortable for you! All purchases from that shop will go towards this campaigne. The link will be at the bottom. I appreciate everyone who helps make this happen. You are not just helping me get a dog, you are giving me hope for the future. You are giving an 18 year old a portion of her life back. Something their will never me enough words to describe my thanks for.

~Sincerely, Raven