Help for Nikki

On February 21st, 2016 Nikki’s life forever changed. Nikki was airlifted to Cohen’s Children’s Hospital after experiencing tingling/numbness in her legs and difficutly breathing. Within hours, she was completely paralyzed from the chest down. Just the morning before, she was living the life of a normal sixteen-year-old girl but for almost three months now, she has been unable to walk.

       Unfortunately, after 30 days in the hospital, Doctor’s suspected she has a rare neuro-immune disorder (less than 1400 cases a year) known as Transverse Myelitis. While our immune system normally works to protect our bodies from foreign invaders, Nikki’s immune cells are mistakenly attacking her own tissue, and in this case, her spinal cord. Nikki has now lost most of the feeling and function of her lower body.

  Transverse Myelitis currently does not have a cure and doctors are unsure whether she will ever be able to walk again. In the past few months, Nikki has gone through countless procedures and treatments, some life threatening, to try to gain back the quality of life she once had. She had ports put into her neck to have plasma exchanges. She received endless amounts of IV treatments, as well as infusions, multiple MRIs, X-rays, blood tests, and several spinal taps. She is working tirelessly in both physical and occupational therapy to not only try to regain use of her legs, but also to become as independent and successful as possible in her current state. All the while Nikki's has been remaining hopeful and is continuing her education at Commack High School via tutors and online work.

   Now she has moved on to the next step in her recovery; she will be transitioning to home and attending outpatient therapy. Modifications to Nikki's home to make it handicap accessible for her have resulted alone in over $25,000 debt, which doesn’t include the thousands of dollars already accumulated from the medical procedures, testing, hospitalizations, physical and occupational therapy, medications, home equipment, and getting her a wheelchair.

The most important thing for Nikki to be focusing on right now is her recovery, but unfortunately her single Mother is looking at thousands of dollars of debt. She has the strength and will to overcome this and our donations will help ease the toll this life-changing diagnosis is taking on her. No donation is too small, and anything is greatly appreciated. If you cannot afford to make a donation due to financial circumstances of your own, just sharing this page will provide support. Thank you for taking the time to read this, and let’s work together to help Nikki's get better!