From software engineer to homeless in ICU

(Hello. I'm Beth and I'm trying to help a desperate mother and daughter. Below is their story, as written by the mother.)

 

My beautiful and brilliant 29 year old daughter, who is a software engineer, was found unconscious in a San Francisco Bay Area park. She was barely breathing but cried out to her rescuers that she had a fractured vertebrae in her back and said she was "leaking cerebrospinal fluid from her brain". That was a manifestation of her mental illness and the horrible hallucinations she can have. Her comatose condition was, sadly, all too real. On admission to the ICU, she was found to have respiratory failure, kidney failure, pneumonia, brain inflammation, and septic shock. My sweet, kind Sophie has schizoaffective disorder which is a combination of bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. I have been told by her caseworkers she arrived almost dead and everyone in the ICU was just happy to see her open her eyes after 7 days. I thank God every single day for the attentions of her remarkable doctors, spanning a broad range of specialties: ER doctors, ICU Intensivists, Infectious Disease Specialist, Pulmonary Specialist, Kidney Specialist, Interventional Radiology. I thank God everyday for all the other healthcare providers that have also grown to care for her: Nurses, Nurses aids, Nutritionists, Speech therapists, Physical therapist (as of this posting she has been intubated for 15 days) and - very importantly - her Social Worker Nurses. They have all worked tirelessly to bring Sophie back to me from death's door. She has been on a ventilator because her lungs were failing, She underwent chest tube insertions because the fluid in her lungs prevented the antibiotics from treating her pneumonia, she is on dialysis because her kidneys are failing. Her heart is abnormal. She has multiple infections in her bloodstream. All of this can be directly traced back to Sophie's primary problem: her mental health diagnosis. If she were in her right mind, she would not have stopped her psychiatric medications that truly worked for her. She would not have been homeless and abandoned in a park. She would not have been unfindable by her loving family and friends. 

Two years ago, she was the picture of success, applying to prestigious companies and getting hired with amazing salaries and bonuses. She was glowing with happiness and physical fitness. She was proud of her great success in school and and a delight to be around. Yet here she is today -- homeless, without one possession in the world, and fighting for her life in an ICU. She has been the victim of sex trafficking and violent sexual abuse. It is impossible for me to imagine she would be in this terrible plight if it were not for her currently untreated mental illness. Sophie will need mental health rehabilitation once she gets her medical conditions resolved. Her doctors in the ICU have assured me she will survive this nightmare. They say she has the benefit of her youth and a history of excellent physical fitness. I know Sophie will recover because she is a fighter.

Unfortunately, her state health insurance doesn't cover much in the mental health arena. I am reaching out for help in order to save my brave daughter's life. She needs admission to an inpatient mental health  facility to receive psychiatric medications, instruction and guidance with life skills and tools to appropriately cope with her mental disorder.

I am a single mother fiercely fighting stage IV metastatic cancer, and therefore I am very limited in my ability to work. Sophie's father chose to abandon me and our children years ago. We have not had contact with him for many years. I'm embarrassed to ask for help but I would do literally anything in the world to help my precious daughter. She is the kind of person that repays her debts and I am 100% confident she will spend the rest of her life repaying her debt to society in general. Your generosity would save a life and go to the betterment of our community.

Sophie can do this. She is a fighter as I said. She just needs a helping hand. She will acquire the tools to deal with her mental health issues for the rest of her life. Most facilities charge a minimum of $1,000 per day. I have seen facilities advertised on the internet as high as $2,500 per day. I believe Sophie will need a full 90 days of treatment to really get her feet back under her. I am seeking $60,000 and I am applying for "scholarships" to help with the rest of the cost due to the financial stress my own diagnosis of metastatic cancer has caused. Please help me save her life and get her back to the amazing, productive individual she was and still is inside. I will be forever grateful for any help whatsoever. Anything helps. Thank you, Sophie's mom

 

**Please share this with anyone you know who may want to help Sophie. Even if you are unable to donate at this time, I ask you please share with others who may. No amount is too small and would be greatly appreciated.