Don’t Count the Days. Make the Days Count.
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I am starting this fundraiser for my girlfriend, Andrea, in hopes of being able to make however many days she has left the best that I possibly can. Please take a moment to listen to her story.
A little over a week ago, I took Andrea to the hospital because she was having a lot of pain in her abdomen and it had become very distended overnight. “A lot” of pain is putting it mildly. More accurately, I felt completely helpless for days as we tried everything we could think of to help and nothing did, even after a trip to urgent care basically dismissed all her fairly severe symptoms. When I finally convinced her to let me take her to the ER, neither of us were even thinking that I couldn’t go with her. She ended up being in the hospital for 6 days altogether, 6 days of being completely alone, due to COVID restrictions here in Michigan. During that time she was told, in the ER, that she had cancer. She was given a diagnosis of stage 4 ovarian cancer, even before the results of any biopsies or definitive tests were done. In fact, over a week after her hospital discharge, we are still waiting to get a firm diagnosis, making a difficult and painful situation that much more so. Today, we met with her oncologist, who ordered a repeat biopsy with the concern that it may be a more rare disease, “spindle-cell sarcoma.” As someone who loves her, this has been a heart wrenching experience in so many ways, but I cannot even begin to imagine, at only 37, what she is going through right now. dealing with all these news on top of suffering from severe mental illness including: anxiety, bi-polar, and severe depression it couldnt and didnt stop there. the rapid depletion of my short term memory loss, slurring of words, vision changes and now having to use a cane to get around due to extreme balance loss has been nothing short of devastation. Why Andrea is being tested this way I do not know, nor can I begin to understand. Why the best and most beautiful relationship of my life is being tested in so many ways is something that I don’t know either. What I do know is that I watched as the most beautiful, vibrant, happy, caring, compassionate, creative, and considerate person I know, MY PERSON, became someone I barely knew, overnight.
Before she went into the hospital, we had been happily making plans to move across the country for a job offer. When I found out that she was sick, I immediately changed plans, in order to have more time to spend with her and help her with doctor appointments and all else that lies ahead for us. I chose to accept a part time job nearby instead, which means that while I am relieved and happy that this will allow me more time with her, it also means that our income will be going down during this difficult time as well. I just want to take the best care of her as I possibly can, and we are both humbly asking for your help.
I thank you for reading the prologue to what will likely be a long, evolving, and challenging story. Please consider donating to help Andrea be able to have the best days that she can for as long as she is able.
Thank you for listening.
Light and Love,
Kahlia
A little over a week ago, I took Andrea to the hospital because she was having a lot of pain in her abdomen and it had become very distended overnight. “A lot” of pain is putting it mildly. More accurately, I felt completely helpless for days as we tried everything we could think of to help and nothing did, even after a trip to urgent care basically dismissed all her fairly severe symptoms. When I finally convinced her to let me take her to the ER, neither of us were even thinking that I couldn’t go with her. She ended up being in the hospital for 6 days altogether, 6 days of being completely alone, due to COVID restrictions here in Michigan. During that time she was told, in the ER, that she had cancer. She was given a diagnosis of stage 4 ovarian cancer, even before the results of any biopsies or definitive tests were done. In fact, over a week after her hospital discharge, we are still waiting to get a firm diagnosis, making a difficult and painful situation that much more so. Today, we met with her oncologist, who ordered a repeat biopsy with the concern that it may be a more rare disease, “spindle-cell sarcoma.” As someone who loves her, this has been a heart wrenching experience in so many ways, but I cannot even begin to imagine, at only 37, what she is going through right now. dealing with all these news on top of suffering from severe mental illness including: anxiety, bi-polar, and severe depression it couldnt and didnt stop there. the rapid depletion of my short term memory loss, slurring of words, vision changes and now having to use a cane to get around due to extreme balance loss has been nothing short of devastation. Why Andrea is being tested this way I do not know, nor can I begin to understand. Why the best and most beautiful relationship of my life is being tested in so many ways is something that I don’t know either. What I do know is that I watched as the most beautiful, vibrant, happy, caring, compassionate, creative, and considerate person I know, MY PERSON, became someone I barely knew, overnight.
Before she went into the hospital, we had been happily making plans to move across the country for a job offer. When I found out that she was sick, I immediately changed plans, in order to have more time to spend with her and help her with doctor appointments and all else that lies ahead for us. I chose to accept a part time job nearby instead, which means that while I am relieved and happy that this will allow me more time with her, it also means that our income will be going down during this difficult time as well. I just want to take the best care of her as I possibly can, and we are both humbly asking for your help.
I thank you for reading the prologue to what will likely be a long, evolving, and challenging story. Please consider donating to help Andrea be able to have the best days that she can for as long as she is able.
Thank you for listening.
Light and Love,
Kahlia
Organizer and beneficiary
Kahlia Williams
Organizer
Monroe, MI
Andrea Spencer
Beneficiary