Donate to help Laura with her medical journey

4 years ago, my sister’s health started to decline. They have no diagnosis. She has been experiencing a long and confusing list of symptoms including massive pain, inability to move on her own, and water retention resulting in weight gain.

Since Laura has been doctoring to find a solution, she has seen multiple specialists across North Dakota and at Mayo Clinic in Minnesota. Insurance is covering most of the healthcare costs, but with travel, copays, and related expenses, money is becoming an issue for her and her husband. She is not able to get disability assistance because she doesn’t have a diagnosis. It is more difficult to manage than budgeting and planning allow with their single income. Any help they receive would cover travel and stay expenses in Minnesota since she is doctoring there, visit and medical copays at the hospital, and would go toward a new wheelchair. She needs a decent chair that will last, the one that she is using right now was an internet purchase intended for temporary use and is not ideal for long-term and regular use. They also will need to get rid of their old vehicle and buy something that will be comfortable for her and roomy enough for a wheelchair and regular travel to and from the appointments.

In 2018, Laura started having pain and numbness in her joints and extremities which slowly became more persistent. The pain migrated to her neck, and after a while, her back. It was debilitating and prevented her from going out and doing things she wanted to do recreationally as well as household chores and the daily activities of life. Her legs became heavy, and walking became difficult and painful. She also developed a loss of control over her legs and occasionally stumbled or had to stop to regain balance. In February of 2018, the lack of balance started showing up with severe dizziness. That happened once while hoverboarding and she had a vicious crash that put her in the hospital with a concussion. In September 2019, Laura lost her job that she loved because she was unable to keep up with its demands. A bruise-like mark appeared over most of her upper back which has slowly changed shape, position, and color but remains without explanation. The most outwardly obvious symptom is weight gain from water retention which has severely limited her mobility.

She has seen many specialists in 2018 and 2019 in Fargo, Bismarck, Williston, and Tioga including internalists, a dermatologist, a neurologist, a brain surgeon, an ophthalmologist, general practitioners, and an endocrinologist. In 2020, she had increased difficulty moving around and now relies on the use of a walker and a wheelchair and is incapable of standing independently. She and her husband would go for walks in the evenings using her wheelchair, but that is no longer comfortable for her. In late 2020, Laura's vision started changing, she talks about a swimming appearance, due to water swelling around her eyes, and she can't focus like she used to. Painting and creating wooden jewelry were her hobbies, but artistic pursuits are impossible now. She can't read books anymore. Depression is a constant threat. She spends most of her time alone in their bedroom. It's dark in there to ease her light sensitivity and she doesn't have much company. She has their cats and dogs as her only constant companionship. She's nearly bedridden now from the severe pain which has been constantly migrating. Lately, it is most severe in her feet and legs.

To add to the financial and emotional burden, on March 1st of this year, they had a house fire. The damage was contained, and the fire department quickly got control of the situation. Intense smoke left a soot residue throughout the house and the downstairs required a total remodel for repair. They moved into a townhouse while work was being done. The bedrooms in the townhouse were upstairs, so they had to make their bedroom in the living room downstairs. They moved out of the townhouse after two months because of lease requirements and moved into a 2nd story apartment for another 3 months. They had their own bedroom there, but Laura stayed in the apartment for nearly the entire duration of their time there because the stairs were so hard on her. Each time she left, she required a couple of days of recovery from the ordeal of going up and down the stairs. They moved back into the upstairs of the house in July, with the basement cordoned off to allow workers to continue working downstairs without worrying about the dogs.

Laura was admitted to the hospital in Tioga for 5 days in May for difficulty breathing and swelling in her legs and abdomen. She was again admitted in the middle of July for 3 days for the same reasons. Each visit helped, and she felt better, but only temporarily. She requires assistance moving and showering. Tioga has provided exceptional care, and her primary physicians Jesse Mitchell and Nancy Carlson have been extremely compassionate and helpful, but she still has been unable to find a diagnosis. In August she was accepted to Mayo clinic as a patient and on September 6th and the following week will be their second stay there. Laura will have dozens of appointments and will continue to follow up there at later dates.

Please consider donating and sharing my sister's story. Any help will be appreciated and will help ease some of the burden and stress that has come along with her health issues.