Help Erin Find Answers and Focus on Healing

If you've ever met Erin, chances are you've experienced her kindness, her calming presence, and her genuine desire to help others.

As the owner of Nettle Acupuncture in Nanaimo, Erin has dedicated her life to supporting people through pain, illness, stress, and difficult chapters of their lives. Her patients often describe feeling truly listened to, supported, and cared for in her presence. Helping others heal isn't just her profession, it's her passion and her purpose.

Today, Erin is the one who needs help. She won’t ask for it, so I’ve chosen to do it for her.

A Long and Difficult Journey

Three and half years ago, Erin experienced an injury to her nervous system that wasn’t identified until recently. It started with an acute onset of neurological symptoms, and while some of the acute symptoms eventually improved, it marked the beginning of a much larger health battle.

Over the following months and years, new symptoms appeared and continued to worsen. She developed burning and tingling sensations throughout her hands and arms, numbness in her fingertips, weakness, joint pain, and ongoing discomfort that has affected nearly every aspect of her daily life.

Determined to find answers, Erin sought help from numerous doctors and healthcare practitioners. She underwent extensive testing, including an MRI of her brain and many other assessments. Yet despite years of searching, no one has been able to identify the root cause of her symptoms.

The lack of answers has been devastating.

Her Condition Has Recently Become Much Worse

Over the last several months, Erin's symptoms have intensified dramatically.

She now experiences severe pain in both eyes every day. Looking at a computer screen, reading, using her phone, driving, and performing many ordinary tasks can trigger intense discomfort. Because her work requires computer use and because of the extreme fatigue caused by being in constant daily pain, she has been forced to make the heartbreaking decision to pause her acupuncture practice.

For someone whose greatest joy comes from helping others heal, stepping away from her patients has been incredibly difficult.

Watching Someone You Love Suffer

As Erin's partner, it is heartbreaking to watch.

I see the tears when the pain becomes overwhelming. I see her lying on the couch unable to complete simple daily tasks because of the burning sensations, numbness, and constant eye pain.

The woman who once spent her days helping patients, hiking with her beloved dog Goji, gardening, painting, and exploring the outdoors is now struggling simply to get through each day.

What makes it even harder is that after years of appointments, tests, and consultations, we still don't have answers.

Why We Are Asking For Help

Because Erin is self-employed, she does not have access to many of the benefits and supports available through traditional employment.

With her inability to work, her income has disappeared while medical expenses and everyday bills continue to grow. The treatments that provide some relief are expensive, and without income, even accessing care has become increasingly difficult.

Like many small business owners, Erin poured everything she had into building her practice and helping others. Now she finds herself in a position where she needs support from her community.

How Your Donation Will Help

Funds raised will help Erin:

• Cover monthly living expenses while she is unable to work

• Access medical appointments, specialists, and diagnostic testing

• Continue treatments that provide relief from her symptoms

• Reduce the financial stress that is making an already difficult situation even harder

• Focus her energy on healing and recovery

A Message of Gratitude

If you've been treated by Erin, worked with her, or simply had the privilege of knowing her, you know the type of person she is.

She is gentle, compassionate, and endlessly giving. She has spent years helping others through pain, uncertainty, and hardship. She has comforted people during some of the most difficult moments of their lives and always offered a listening ear without judgment.

Today, we are asking for that same kindness to be extended to her.

Whether you are able to donate, share this campaign, or simply keep Erin in your thoughts, every gesture of support means more than words can express.

Thank you for helping Erin focus on healing, finding answers, and eventually returning to the work and life she loves.

With gratitude,

Erin’s partner, Pavel