Cailyn's Chiari and Syringomyelia Journey!

Hi! My name is Cailyn! I am a mother to a beautiful 4 year old boy who my entire world revolves around! I am also a chemist and love to learn all things science. I have started this fundraiser to aid with my medical condition that has turned my life upside down at the age of 27. The last few years, I have had chronic headaches, numbness in my extremeties, extreme fatigue, nausea, vomiting, light sensitivity, tension and constant pain in my neck and shoulders, to name only a few! I've been to the ER several times having stroke-like attacks. I've been misdiagnosed with "migraines", several times, only to finally get a proper diagnosis a few months ago. An MRI has revelealed I have chiari malformation and syringomyelia...Now what do these BIG, SCARY medical terms mean? Basically, my brain is sinking down into my neck which is acting like a plug and blocking my spinal fluid flow. Think of a plug you put in the bath tub to stop water from draining! My cerebellum (the back part of the brain) is acting as a plug and stopping my fluid from flowing around my brain properly. As a result of this, I have developed a cyst in my spinal chord that is 5.2 cm long and growing. The medical treatment here in the United States for this condition is essentially removing a part of your skull and the top part of your cervical spine! How scary! I am very much afraid to have such a mutilative procedure done that has a high complication rate. My son needs me, and I do not want to risk my life trying to improve the quality of it...As a scientist, I question everything. I have done extensive research, and the decompression surgery is the only option in the United States. HOWEVER, there is a neurosurgeon in Barcelona that conducts a minimally invasive procedure. His procedure could give me my life back and not involve removing parts of my skull and spine. I am a very independent person that hardly asks anyone for assistance, but the surgery is not covered by insurance, so here I am sharing my story with you all, hoping you can help me. I will miss work traveling to Barcelona as well as having to pay for the travel and procedure.My son has never been away from me for more than a day, so this will be challenging on both of us, but my condition is progressing daily and compression of the vital organs in the brain can have serious and sometimes fatal consequences which I live in constant fear of. Thank you so much for taking the time to read my story. I hope you all have a wonderful day.