Brad's Back Surgery

Hello, my name Taegen Burritt, and I'm raising funds for my husband Brad's back surgery, which is happening in Germany this Fall (dates to be determined soon, we will keep you updated). We have four children between the ages of 22 and 14. He tries but struggles to keep up being active with the kids and is living in daily, chronic pain.

Brad has been dealing with lower back pain for over 15 years, and his back pain has increased drastically the past few years. He requires surgery on three discs in his lower back. Canada has very few surgical options. The main option is a multi-level fusion in his lumbar spine. Brad is too young for a fusion which will severely limit his mobility. After years of asking doctors, various professionals, and our own searching for options, Brad was told of one doctor who may do disc replacements in Canada. Wait times are very long, 18-24 months, just for a consultation. There is no guarantee of the surgeon approving the procedure on multiple disc levels (which Brad needs) and what the wait time would look like. More years of waiting would be increasingly detrimental.

Brad works hard to live normally, work, play and be out with the family. However, this is a knock against him in the triage questions as he is working, walking and trying to be active. Brad is in pain every day and on medications for pain that make him forgetful, dizzy, and sleepy. No amount of meds, physio, massage or other treatments will fix the issues (and these treatments are not free in our Canadian system). They only manage pain and that isn't working. After much research in and outside of Canada we have concluded that the best option for disc replacement surgery is in Germany. It will give him the best chance to live pain free with mobility for the remainder of his life, which will hopefully be a long one!

I will have to take time off work to support my husband and be his travel companion to Germany. Along with the cost of the surgery, there will be travel costs, accommodation, and time off work for recovery as he works on getting back to normal.

We appreciate your support for our family. We will give you updated reports on how Brad is doing before, during and after treatment on this platform. It has been a long road dealing with Brad's chronic pain, not knowing how to help him, and any contribution would be so very appreciated. The cost is great, but we see the benefits as greater. Thank you from the bottom our our hearts.

Gratefully,

The Burritt Family