A fundraiser for chad’s back surgery

Pauline Drewfs is organizing this fundraiser on behalf of Chad Charles.

Donation protected

Our dear friend chad is scheduled for urgent back surgery in one week. After months of debilitating nerve pain and escalating physical limitations, surgery has become unavoidable. We are raising funds to help cover the substantial out-of-pocket expenses for this procedure.

Chad has had sciatic nerve-related issues since he was a teenager. In late 1993, a car accident initiated his life-long journey with sciatica; he herniated 2 discs in his spinal column at 13 years of age.

With good care and lots of exercise he has managed to lead an extraordinary life full of adventures, and mostly in excellent health, interspersed with episodes of often significant pain.

Since a severe episode in 2023 that took a year to recover from, a new symptom has erupted: increasing frequency of spasms (fasciculations) and severe cramps in his leg, making it dangerous to drive and hard to plan his life sometimes.

The 24/7 symptomatology has become a loud call to action.

Chad has now decided to undergo surgery with a neurosurgeon he has built rapport with since summer 2023. This neurosurgeon, though based in Canada where there is universal healthcare, works in private practice, meaning this will be a significant financial investment.

Chad did consult with a neurosurgeon in the public domain and could have chosen to get on the waitlist through the healthcare system. However, as his situation deteriorates steadily and fast, he chooses this path. Not only because it will provide faster access but also because chad trusts this choice. He trusts the way he was introduced to this doctor, and he trusts his reputation—Dr. Jeff Golan is considered one of the best neurosurgeons in the country.

Funds will help cover surgery fees, specialist consultations, medications, and recovery-related costs.

The surgery may be as soon as April 8th.

Update: Next date probably May 7th

Chad is a beloved facilitator, educator, healing guide, and devoted friend. From leading ceremonial spaces of deep human transformation, to showing up consistently and meaningfully for his family and friends around the world, he now finds himself needing the support he so often gives.

Will you be part of supporting chad's healing journey, so he can canoe, dance and walk without pain again?

Here’s a timeline of events in chad’s words (and a longer read if you want more details):

1993-2023: I’ve had sciatic nerve issues since adolescence, initiated by a car accident when I was 13 years old.
June 2023 (Colorado,USA): a sneeze at a conference sent me to the floor and kept me there for over 7 hours. Two days later, from a wheelchair, I literally crawled to my seat on the plane and stayed on my knees during the flight to Montreal, where I went straight to the ER from the airport.
Summer 2023 to present: Several treatments including epidural injections, physiotherapy, osteopathy, nerve medication (pregabalin), structural integration sessions, acupuncture, massage (and others) followed.
December 2023: another sneeze during meditation caused debilitating pain and difficulty walking. This episode prolonged my recovery, but by mid-summer 2024, I felt fully recovered, with occasional spasms that seemed manageable.
January 2024: the fasciculations (technical term for spasms) I had experienced as mild began in earnest, steadily increasing in intensity and frequency.

While I’ve had mild sciatica-related leg spasms since adulthood, this disc compression-related (radiculopathy) symptom has evolved significantly. The rate of fasciculations leads to cramps that range from mildly disruptive to temporarily debilitating. I could measure changes in months in early 2024, but since October 2024, the rate of change has been measured in weeks. As of March 2025, changes are observed daily.

This decision for surgery isn’t a reactionary decision based on some fleeting inconvenience. I have done my best to avoid this action for some time now and the neurosurgeon I am choosing to go with has had a “no” for surgery as an option—until now.

This neurosurgeon, though based in Canada where there is universal health care, works in the private domain. I have developed a good rapport with him since summer 2023 and, though I have also consulted with a neurosurgeon who works in the public domain, my choice to go with the private option is based on trust. I trust the way I was introduced to him. And, there is a trustworthy reputation about this surgeon:

here is an AI-researched perspective and summary of his career.

Choosing to go with this neurosurgeon has a cost. It is a choice that I could have avoided: I could have decided to get on the waitlist in the public domain. However, as my situation deteriorates steadily, I consider it good fortune to have access to perhaps the best in this country.

Cost and Significance

The best of the best isn’t cheap and I’m leaning into the maxim that you get what you pay for. The surgery alone will cost $27,000, making it one of the biggest single expenditures I’ve ever made. It’s also the scariest and the most humbling, but deemed necessary due to the worsening condition.

Travel cost, specialist consultations, medications, and recovery-related costs are considered in the fundraising goal of $32,000.

It’s humbling to ask for support. We all know that. And if you know me, you could probably agree that this isn’t a frivolous, care-free request for me to make. I also know that it’s a lot. So, whether we know each other well or not, any donation, large or small, will help me transform my feeling tender and fragile, to supported and held within my spheres of cherished beloveds, family, communities, and networks.

Thank you!