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My name is Paula Singer and I am doing this Go Fund Me page for my better half, Lawrence Kooger. He was recently diagnosed with a rare autoimmune condition called Granulomatosis with Polyangiitis that causes his blood vessels to become inflamed and swell until very little blood is able to pass through. It causes horrible pain, muscle wasting, organ failure and even death. It is a disease of the blood vessels but effects the entire body because it cuts off the blood supply leaving the body starved for oxygen and drowning in toxins. We almost lost him in March when he went into organ failure and his life is still in danger.
The only way to shut down the flare is to shut down his immune system. That leaves him so vulnerable to infection doctors want to keep him at home as much as possible but things have been so bad that has been impossible to do because his kidneys keep shutting down. The chemo drugs / high dose prednisone etc. are also very hard on him both emotionally and physically. At this point, he is unable to care for himself and needs a walker or wheelchair to get around. At times his grip is so weak he cannot manage a fork or tear off a paper towel. This is a 6'3" man who is used to doing heavy farm labor involving feed sacks and haybales. It is devastating to him on so many levels. His feet and legs are swollen to a point it hurts me to look at them. He is in physical agony much of the time and can only take Tylenol because anything else would put too much stress on his body to process it. The side effects of the medications and fear for the future are making things far worse.
There is hope that he can recover. It is an autoimmune condition and if the reaction can be shut down the possibility exists that he will never have a flare again if he manages his condition properly.
Until now Lawrence has managed our small farm and business because I am caretaker for an adult son who is a disabled veteran and homeschool our 11 year old daughter. At this point I am taking care of everything - business, farm work, son, daughter and dealing with Lawrence's illness that has made him so weak he is an invalid. It is an impossible situation because when we most need money I am not able to do it all.
It is extremely frustrating because I know that the quality of care is directly dependent upon how much we can afford to pay. At this point we have been reduced to pawning things in order to pay for gas for medical visits and prescriptions. He needs lab work done multiple times a week and is seeing multiple specialists.
I've been told to "make him matter" by talking about him as a person. Instead, we are asking for help for our daughter's sake. Lawrence is the only father she remembers. I lost my late husband to brain cancer when she was 2 years old after an extended illness. I've been widowed twice. Once when my sons were teenagers and again when we lost Mary Rose's father. The trauma it inflicts on a child is horrible. It terrifies us what this is doing to her.
Go Fund Me says to tell how the funds will be spent.
1. Medical expenses. This is the biggest one both in the form of actual medication and doctors as well as gas to go to visit him and take him to specialists etc. Living a rural area this really adds up. Just the IV chemo alone is over $11,000 a month.
2. Physical help around the farm to help get things to a point I can handle them on my own. I am able to hold the farm and business together but I need to hire someone to come in and help me adapt things to my size and abilities. Some of the things I am coping with are dangerous (I was recently attacked by a pair of 600lb hogs) Hiring someone for a few days will make a huge difference in my ability to cope. because it will allow me to simplify and organize things in a manner that fits with my abilities and body size.
3. Any aids to make it easier for Lawrence to cope physically. At this point things can go either way. I really don't know what we might need. Because the blood vessels narrow due to this condition it causes the blood pressure to go sky high and strokes etc. are common occurrences as is kidney failure. I am sure there are other things I have not yet begun to consider that will present themselves as worries in the future and right now they have not been able to control the condition so we are not even really sure what we need to plan for yet.
4. There is still a very real possibility that some of these funds could be used to cover funeral expenses.
I am setting the funds up to go to an account I manage because among other things this illness can cause confusion due to the buildup of toxins and lack of oxygen to the brain due to poor blood flow. Usually it makes him more tired than confused but the day he stopped driving he ran into the fence 3 times if that helps explain the effects. In addition he is in a great deal of pain and has spent 3 out of the past 4 weeks in the hospital.
I don't know what else to say. These are difficult times for everyone and I hate asking for help. If you cannot help please at least post it to your Facebook or other social media page. We have been told that can make a real difference.
The only way to shut down the flare is to shut down his immune system. That leaves him so vulnerable to infection doctors want to keep him at home as much as possible but things have been so bad that has been impossible to do because his kidneys keep shutting down. The chemo drugs / high dose prednisone etc. are also very hard on him both emotionally and physically. At this point, he is unable to care for himself and needs a walker or wheelchair to get around. At times his grip is so weak he cannot manage a fork or tear off a paper towel. This is a 6'3" man who is used to doing heavy farm labor involving feed sacks and haybales. It is devastating to him on so many levels. His feet and legs are swollen to a point it hurts me to look at them. He is in physical agony much of the time and can only take Tylenol because anything else would put too much stress on his body to process it. The side effects of the medications and fear for the future are making things far worse.
There is hope that he can recover. It is an autoimmune condition and if the reaction can be shut down the possibility exists that he will never have a flare again if he manages his condition properly.
Until now Lawrence has managed our small farm and business because I am caretaker for an adult son who is a disabled veteran and homeschool our 11 year old daughter. At this point I am taking care of everything - business, farm work, son, daughter and dealing with Lawrence's illness that has made him so weak he is an invalid. It is an impossible situation because when we most need money I am not able to do it all.
It is extremely frustrating because I know that the quality of care is directly dependent upon how much we can afford to pay. At this point we have been reduced to pawning things in order to pay for gas for medical visits and prescriptions. He needs lab work done multiple times a week and is seeing multiple specialists.
I've been told to "make him matter" by talking about him as a person. Instead, we are asking for help for our daughter's sake. Lawrence is the only father she remembers. I lost my late husband to brain cancer when she was 2 years old after an extended illness. I've been widowed twice. Once when my sons were teenagers and again when we lost Mary Rose's father. The trauma it inflicts on a child is horrible. It terrifies us what this is doing to her.
Go Fund Me says to tell how the funds will be spent.
1. Medical expenses. This is the biggest one both in the form of actual medication and doctors as well as gas to go to visit him and take him to specialists etc. Living a rural area this really adds up. Just the IV chemo alone is over $11,000 a month.
2. Physical help around the farm to help get things to a point I can handle them on my own. I am able to hold the farm and business together but I need to hire someone to come in and help me adapt things to my size and abilities. Some of the things I am coping with are dangerous (I was recently attacked by a pair of 600lb hogs) Hiring someone for a few days will make a huge difference in my ability to cope. because it will allow me to simplify and organize things in a manner that fits with my abilities and body size.
3. Any aids to make it easier for Lawrence to cope physically. At this point things can go either way. I really don't know what we might need. Because the blood vessels narrow due to this condition it causes the blood pressure to go sky high and strokes etc. are common occurrences as is kidney failure. I am sure there are other things I have not yet begun to consider that will present themselves as worries in the future and right now they have not been able to control the condition so we are not even really sure what we need to plan for yet.
4. There is still a very real possibility that some of these funds could be used to cover funeral expenses.
I am setting the funds up to go to an account I manage because among other things this illness can cause confusion due to the buildup of toxins and lack of oxygen to the brain due to poor blood flow. Usually it makes him more tired than confused but the day he stopped driving he ran into the fence 3 times if that helps explain the effects. In addition he is in a great deal of pain and has spent 3 out of the past 4 weeks in the hospital.
I don't know what else to say. These are difficult times for everyone and I hate asking for help. If you cannot help please at least post it to your Facebook or other social media page. We have been told that can make a real difference.