Donate to Jeanette Sheldon's Healing Journey

Hello family, friends, and other kind strangers,

My name is Mindy and I'm initiating a fundraiser for my mom, Jeanette Sheldon.

On August 24th, my mom was seen in the ER at Graham Hospital and was discharged that evening with vertigo and an inner ear infection. By Monday (Aug. 26th), her symptoms had gotten much worse, and my dad took her to OSF in Peoria, IL.

Not too long after being seen in the ER at OSF, the doctors ordered many tests including labs, CT/MRI, and x-rays. Very little did we know at this point - a "waiting" game one could say.

Later that night, I got one of the scariest texts from my dad. The CT scan they did revealed 3 masses on mom's brain. So, even more tests had to be done to figure out what was going on. Additional tests and scans revealed even more spots. We now know possible malignancy including her liver, gallbladder, endometrium, and colon that are pending work-up/results.

Fast forward to Thursday (Aug. 29th), I got the most terrifying call. Mom had a stroke and needed to have emergency brain surgery and an EVD had to be placed.

Extremely thankful, the neurology team was on their "A++++" game.

We are only on day 4 of recovery and she's already beat the odds and then some. She's still very much held onto her sassy spirit, her smarts, and her long-term memory, which remains super sharp.

In tough news, the more physical effects of the stroke have left mom with some challenges. So much is still up in the air or still TBD pending biopsy results.

Due to her inability to fully move her right arm/leg and with some visual difficulties (with reading, communications, generally registering stuff on the right), we are hoping for the best with time and rehab, but also trying to be realistic about a long road ahead.

This leads me to the money of it all. I had 1000% hoped to avoid asking for wider help. Mom's transition home will most likely include: doing some home renovations, ongoing physical and occupational therapy, etc.

Those who know my mom know that she's one of the most ferociously warm, caring, and supremely independent people. This has been a life-changer for all of us, but the goal is to do everything in our power to bring her home, take care of her, and help her reclaim all the life she can. Any and everything you feel moved to share means the complete world to us.

Thank you so much, everyone

Mindy