Help a Devoted Mother and Teacher Get Life-Saving Treatment

I’m reaching out on behalf of my dear friend and bonus mom to my kids—a loving mother of two and a passionate, dedicated teacher who has always poured her heart into her students, her family, and her friends. Right now, she’s in the fight of her life, and she needs our help.

She has been diagnosed with an arachnoid cyst and idiopathic intracranial hypertension—two serious neurological conditions. An arachnoid cyst is a fluid-filled sac on the brain that can cause pressure, pain, and cognitive issues. Idiopathic intracranial hypertension (IIH) means her brain is under abnormally high pressure without a known cause. Together, these conditions are causing debilitating symptoms.

We’ve seen her struggle to find words, slur her speech, and have difficulty walking due to the pain. We've watched as she has lost almost 30 lbs in just a few months due to the nausea and pain making it difficult to eat. Most painful of all is watching the light in her dim under the weight of this diagnosis—someone so vibrant and full of life now burdened by something so overwhelming. Her once vibrant life has been replaced with doctors appointments, constant scans and tests, med schedules, symptom tracking, pain and frequent trips to the emergency room.

It has been so hard to listen to the worry in her voice as she talks about her future. She currently is unable to work which is not only hard because she loves her job and her students but also because she has to provide for her kids. Just in the last few months her pay has been docked over 9k due to missing work. She is struggling not only to find a way forward in her medical journey but just to sustain her day to day life.

She was accepted as an emergency case into the Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale, Arizona for specialized treatment that could finally bring relief and a path toward healing. She will need to travel there in July for almost a week for a barrage of appointments and tests. She is so thankful for the opportunity to get this potentially life changing treatment but with that treatment comes a heavy financial burden: medical expenses, travel and lodging costs, and being far from home without financial support. Not only do they want her to come in July but they are going to have to see her back in September as well and beyond that I am sure there will be more visits and procedures and things we haven't even thought to prepare for. So far out of pocket costs for her treatment are looking to be anywhere from $14k - $30k.

While she has been accepted she can't get there without help. We’re raising funds to help cover these urgent needs and give her the chance to fight for her health and her future. Every donation goes directly to helping her get the care she needs. And if you’re not able to give, please consider sharing this campaign or offering your encouragement.

Thank you for standing with her during this incredibly difficult time. Your support means more than you know