Donation protected
In May of 2019, Amber Coleman (our dear friend and co-worker) was diagnosed with ALS/Lou Gehrig’s disease. ALS is a progressive, fatal neuromuscular disease that slowly robs the body of its ability to walk, speak, swallow and breathe. Please join us in praying and supporting Amber and her family during this journey.
A little bit about Amber (written by Amber):
The most important thing for anyone to know about me is that I am the mother to two very sweet, caring, and compassionate children...my "monsters". As of today Brother is 10, Sissy is 7...and they dont know yet that anything is wrong other than Mommy's hand doesnt work. I am also a wife, married in 2007 to my best friend, Jesse. We've seen our fair share of battles, but this will by far be the toughest yet. Thankfully there's no one I'd rather pick up my battle axe and run into war with.
Born and raised in Brandon, Mississippi, I will forever be a Bulldog at heart. Raised by my grandparents, I had an extraordinary childhood. I played nearly every sport imaginable, but my love was soccer. I co-captained the Lady Bulldog soccer team my senior year, and that is still a proud accomplishment for me even a decade later. I was on the local swim team, ran track, played basketball, etc. Then, there was my second love, horses. I spent most of my free time at a local farm spending as much time as I could with my friends...two legged and four.
I graduated with honors, then promptly blew a full ride scholarship. It took me several years, but I eventually went to tech school at Virginia College Tech for Automotive Collision and Refinishing. I had a love for welding and painting, unfortunately I never did anything with this passion. Eventually, I landed a job in mental health where I stayed for right at a decade. At 32, I decided to return to college. I was accepted into the Radiology program at Itawamba where I graduated and passed my registry exam only 1 short year ago. For the past year I've served my community while working in my local emergency room full time.
Her Story (written by Amber):
2018, my last semester or two of radiology school, I started noticing my right hand was acting funny. My fingers were slower than normal and my grip was weaker. I brushed it off as nothing to worry about and went on about my life. As the months went on, I noticed it was getting worse. My fingers felt stiff, I could hardly write, and I started having twitches in my muscles. Carpal tunnel. I was, after all, a secretary for years...and a goalie before that. My wrist was just giving out and inflamed. Still, I brushed it off.
Around Thanksgiving 2018, I started having what I thought was sinus issues. It seemed like I constantly had drainage in the back of my throat. It started off subtle enough. My throat/nose would clog, my speech would go haywire, I could clear my throat and then be okay for a while. This, however, continued to get worse to the point that some days I could hardly understand myself.
Finally, April 2019 I'd had enough and decided to get seen about. I made an appointment with the orthopedic and the ENT. Problems solved, right?
The orthopedic appointment came, and the doctor asked my issues while doing a physical exam. He felt like I probably had a pinched nerve in my neck so he ordered an mri. On mentioning a slight balance issue, he ordered a brain mri as well.
The ENT appointment was about as uneventful as I was just prescribed an allergy pill, nose spray, and sinus rinse.
It ended up being over two weeks before I was able to get my mri's done. My insurance seemed to take forever giving the preauthorizations.
The day before my appointment, our mri tech found me in the ER. They were slow and wanted to know if I'd like to go ahead and do it. Sure! Little did I know, about an hour later, my world would be sent into a tailspin.
I had my scans, then proceeded to bebop around the corner to my radiologist to see if he saw a pinched nerve. He spun around as I poked my head in. In short, the conversation went something like this:
Radiologist: Amber, this could be something serious. I think you have ALS.
Me: (No idea what that is.)
Radiologist: Lou Gehrig's disease?
Me: (Still nothing)
Radiologist: Amber, this could be terminal.
Me: (waiting for him to say just kidding! You have a pinched nerve.)
...but, he didn't. My radiologist who is normally a really chill laid back guy proceeded to unintentionally scare the shit out of me while making me promise to go to UAB, Memphis, or anywhere with a neurology team.
So, the next morning I headed to Jackson where I ended up spending the next 10 days in St. Dominic.
The Diagnosis (written by Amber):
I'm heartbroken.
I'm angry.
I'm disappointed.
I'm scared.
...I have ALS.
Today was my follow up with one of the best neurologists in my state, and it did not go as I had hoped.
I was told at 36 years old that I can no longer work...that I have to sign up for disability. I am a work horse, I was raised to work, to earn my own...and that is being taken away from me.
While I'll automatically be approved for disability due to my diagnosis, it will be at LEAST 5 months before any benefits begin...on top of that, my family loses their insurance since their insurance was provided by my job.
I'm being referred to Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL...and beginning treatment with the only 2 medications available for ALS...and we will have no insurance to help cover it.
I'll be traveling to Jackson once a month for a while...and we're likely going to have to sell our home and property to move closer to treatment as I progress.
I had been trying to avoid accepting what was coming, but it hit me in the face today.
There is no cure.
The best I can hope for is that I have a non-rapid progression.
A little bit about Amber (written by Amber):
The most important thing for anyone to know about me is that I am the mother to two very sweet, caring, and compassionate children...my "monsters". As of today Brother is 10, Sissy is 7...and they dont know yet that anything is wrong other than Mommy's hand doesnt work. I am also a wife, married in 2007 to my best friend, Jesse. We've seen our fair share of battles, but this will by far be the toughest yet. Thankfully there's no one I'd rather pick up my battle axe and run into war with.
Born and raised in Brandon, Mississippi, I will forever be a Bulldog at heart. Raised by my grandparents, I had an extraordinary childhood. I played nearly every sport imaginable, but my love was soccer. I co-captained the Lady Bulldog soccer team my senior year, and that is still a proud accomplishment for me even a decade later. I was on the local swim team, ran track, played basketball, etc. Then, there was my second love, horses. I spent most of my free time at a local farm spending as much time as I could with my friends...two legged and four.
I graduated with honors, then promptly blew a full ride scholarship. It took me several years, but I eventually went to tech school at Virginia College Tech for Automotive Collision and Refinishing. I had a love for welding and painting, unfortunately I never did anything with this passion. Eventually, I landed a job in mental health where I stayed for right at a decade. At 32, I decided to return to college. I was accepted into the Radiology program at Itawamba where I graduated and passed my registry exam only 1 short year ago. For the past year I've served my community while working in my local emergency room full time.
Her Story (written by Amber):
2018, my last semester or two of radiology school, I started noticing my right hand was acting funny. My fingers were slower than normal and my grip was weaker. I brushed it off as nothing to worry about and went on about my life. As the months went on, I noticed it was getting worse. My fingers felt stiff, I could hardly write, and I started having twitches in my muscles. Carpal tunnel. I was, after all, a secretary for years...and a goalie before that. My wrist was just giving out and inflamed. Still, I brushed it off.
Around Thanksgiving 2018, I started having what I thought was sinus issues. It seemed like I constantly had drainage in the back of my throat. It started off subtle enough. My throat/nose would clog, my speech would go haywire, I could clear my throat and then be okay for a while. This, however, continued to get worse to the point that some days I could hardly understand myself.
Finally, April 2019 I'd had enough and decided to get seen about. I made an appointment with the orthopedic and the ENT. Problems solved, right?
The orthopedic appointment came, and the doctor asked my issues while doing a physical exam. He felt like I probably had a pinched nerve in my neck so he ordered an mri. On mentioning a slight balance issue, he ordered a brain mri as well.
The ENT appointment was about as uneventful as I was just prescribed an allergy pill, nose spray, and sinus rinse.
It ended up being over two weeks before I was able to get my mri's done. My insurance seemed to take forever giving the preauthorizations.
The day before my appointment, our mri tech found me in the ER. They were slow and wanted to know if I'd like to go ahead and do it. Sure! Little did I know, about an hour later, my world would be sent into a tailspin.
I had my scans, then proceeded to bebop around the corner to my radiologist to see if he saw a pinched nerve. He spun around as I poked my head in. In short, the conversation went something like this:
Radiologist: Amber, this could be something serious. I think you have ALS.
Me: (No idea what that is.)
Radiologist: Lou Gehrig's disease?
Me: (Still nothing)
Radiologist: Amber, this could be terminal.
Me: (waiting for him to say just kidding! You have a pinched nerve.)
...but, he didn't. My radiologist who is normally a really chill laid back guy proceeded to unintentionally scare the shit out of me while making me promise to go to UAB, Memphis, or anywhere with a neurology team.
So, the next morning I headed to Jackson where I ended up spending the next 10 days in St. Dominic.
The Diagnosis (written by Amber):
I'm heartbroken.
I'm angry.
I'm disappointed.
I'm scared.
...I have ALS.
Today was my follow up with one of the best neurologists in my state, and it did not go as I had hoped.
I was told at 36 years old that I can no longer work...that I have to sign up for disability. I am a work horse, I was raised to work, to earn my own...and that is being taken away from me.
While I'll automatically be approved for disability due to my diagnosis, it will be at LEAST 5 months before any benefits begin...on top of that, my family loses their insurance since their insurance was provided by my job.
I'm being referred to Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, FL...and beginning treatment with the only 2 medications available for ALS...and we will have no insurance to help cover it.
I'll be traveling to Jackson once a month for a while...and we're likely going to have to sell our home and property to move closer to treatment as I progress.
I had been trying to avoid accepting what was coming, but it hit me in the face today.
There is no cure.
The best I can hope for is that I have a non-rapid progression.
Organizer and beneficiary
Jenny Hollis Carter
Organizer
Steens, MS
Amber Coleman
Beneficiary