Please Help a Single Mom Recover From Emergency Surgery

Asking for help when your life seems to be falling completely apart is hard. This year has been the most difficult year of our lives as a family.

In January of 2024, I lost my job of almost 8 years. I was the only one working in our family due to my boyfriend's chronic illness. Although I would begin to receive unemployment benefits in February, it was barely enough to cover the bills and food costs. Little did we know that just five weeks later, the anchor to our family would die unexpectedly. Our family was gutted. Not just emotionally and spiritually, but financially. We had no working vehicle, as the truck he bought for our family needed a new engine. He continued to pay the car payment and insurance while it sat parked outside our house, but when he died, I had to do a voluntary repossession to the bank, as I could not pay for it or get it fixed.

His loss was felt so deeply, and myself and my son found ourselves drowning in grief and heartache. We had to process not only his death, but the death of life as we knew it for 14 years.

Having no vehicle, no medical insurance, food insecurity, and barely able to pay our rent and utility bills has caused fear that we will be without housing and food, at the minimum. Being a single parent suddenly has put tremendous stress on me, as I also suffer from a chronic illness.

Life for us got substantially worse when I woke up 3 1/2 weeks ago with what felt like a kink in my neck from sleeping. Within days I was bedridden, unable to stand or sit upright. Because I had no medical insurance I tried to treat myself at home with ice, heat, and rest. I believed I had a pinched nerve in my neck that was causing complete numbness in my arms and hands. After two weeks of ridiculous muscle spasms and pain, I went to the emergency room and after a CT scan, I was told it was clear and was prescribed meds and sent home. I followed the doctor's orders for another 10 days with no improvement. In fact, the spasms and excruciating pain were causing me to pass out and I lost all use of my hands. I went back to the emergency room and was again given meds and as they were preparing to discharge me, my entire right side became paralyzed. I was admitted and after several tests, an MRI revealed I had a bulging disc that was pushing into my spinal cord causing paralysis. The neurologist explained that had I not come in when I did, I risked complete numbness and paralysis within days. So, a pinched nerve turned into an emergency surgery that required the disc being removed and metal spacer and screws put in to fuse my vertebrae. I am currently still hospitalized, with my son sleeping in the hospital with me.

The aftercare for this is thousands of dollars in occupational and physical therapy and follow-ups and home health care as I will be walking with a walker. All out of pocket.

I have always been the parent that worked full-time and provided for our family. I risk losing, not just our home, but my son as well. My 16 year old has suffered enough loss with his father dying and now the insecurity of losing our housing, too. He has sacrificed to stay home and care for me, because we cannot afford the home health I require. My quality of life going forward is not certain without the medical attention required. I desperately want to go back to work, and start figuring out what the new normal is for my son and me after so many debilitating losses this year. He deserves a healthy parent, and I want to heal. I understand that I am at the point where I cannot fix this alone and humbly ask for help.

I am asking for any assistance paying for these immense bills, and also some of our monthly expenses, while I recover.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read this.