Help Jan Campbell Smile Again
Donation protected
Please Help Me Smile Again by Jan Campbell
This is the one of the most difficult and embarrassing things I have ever done, but not as difficult as how my health issues have impacted my life since the late 90’s. I worked as long as I could before giving in to the doctor’s orders with my last day of work being December 31, 2001, then leading to Social Security Disability. It is complicated. There are not one or two diagnoses, but an unbelievable array of real and complex conditions that have baffled some of the best physicians, impacting EVERY SYSTEM in my body. Nothing about what is wrong with me is simple. I am struggling to keep my explanation as brief as possible and will spare you the wordy, extensive details (although I want to).
The cost of “staying alive” has just about maxed me out financially and has tremendously impacted my quality of life. Pain, fatigue, surgeries/recovery along with the inability to do the most simple things in life have become my new normal. Yes, I do have insurance, but there are so many costs and needs associated with being sick that do not fall under anything that insurance covers. Things have occurred that I would not have ever imagined.
The real icing on the cake has been the last 15 months or so where I am unable to keep up physically and financially with everything that is going wrong with me. These months have absolutely been my worst, topped off by now losing my teeth (and not from neglect) to the point that dentures will be my only hope—and, due to my many medical complications, these are not going to be as simple as your great grandparent’s dentures.
The three dentists I have talked with here in Cornelius, North Carolina estimate that extracting the few remaining upper teeth and replacing two upper bridges with DENTURES could cost as much as 20,000.00, possibly more, before it is over. That is just for the upper teeth, but then there are the lower teeth that are having the same issues as my upper teeth. In fact, you can see some of the lower deterioration in my video. It is important to try to slow down the problems with the lower teeth, but the upper teeth are priority one at this time. The full explanation is lengthy, but, without the procedure, the other option is to have no teeth at all. Unfortunately, this is not unusual with advanced autoimmune diseases.
Creating a Go Fund Me was the idea of friends and family who knew I would not do this if it were not out of necessity. They encouraged me to tell my story (minus my normal wordiness) ) and reach out for help. I’ve had friends help me do some things, but not ever, during these years of being disabled, have I asked for financial assistance. Unfortunately, years of unexpected complications and needs have literally drained my retirement fund. I did not plan to stop working when my health forced me to do so.
Those of you who know me know I love to smile, but I am not doing much of it these days. I love to eat, but my menu is getting more and more limited because I cannot chew. It has been a long. emotional road and I have so much further to go. I do hate having to ask for help, but I don’t know how I can survive without asking for it. I have found myself in a somewhat hopeless situation. Dentists will not start the procedure without full payment. My fixed income over the years does not have any wiggle room for something like this or any additional extensions of credit.
I have not given you detailed information about everything that is wrong with me because I felt it would just be too much to absorb here, but I will gladly provide more details if you like. It is all complicated, rare and very real; however, my main problem where I need assistance now relates to my teeth. Unfortunately, many of us with complex autoimmune and other disorders do have these costly dental issues.
I understand that times are tough for everyone. I know it is impossible to contribute to every cause , or any cause, in some cases. If a monetary donation is not possible, I would appreciate your emotional support and prayers as I face this challenge. My medical treatments aren’t going to end, but, if you can help, you’ll be helping me put a smile back on my face (and help me eat!) as I move forward to recovery and continue fighting my other complicated conditions.
Thank you for the time you took to read this and a special thanks to those friends from the east coast to the west coast who encouraged me to speak up and ask for help, embarrassed or not. I am desperate for help.
A very special thank you to those who help support me in this effort, financially or emotionally.
This is the one of the most difficult and embarrassing things I have ever done, but not as difficult as how my health issues have impacted my life since the late 90’s. I worked as long as I could before giving in to the doctor’s orders with my last day of work being December 31, 2001, then leading to Social Security Disability. It is complicated. There are not one or two diagnoses, but an unbelievable array of real and complex conditions that have baffled some of the best physicians, impacting EVERY SYSTEM in my body. Nothing about what is wrong with me is simple. I am struggling to keep my explanation as brief as possible and will spare you the wordy, extensive details (although I want to).
The cost of “staying alive” has just about maxed me out financially and has tremendously impacted my quality of life. Pain, fatigue, surgeries/recovery along with the inability to do the most simple things in life have become my new normal. Yes, I do have insurance, but there are so many costs and needs associated with being sick that do not fall under anything that insurance covers. Things have occurred that I would not have ever imagined.
The real icing on the cake has been the last 15 months or so where I am unable to keep up physically and financially with everything that is going wrong with me. These months have absolutely been my worst, topped off by now losing my teeth (and not from neglect) to the point that dentures will be my only hope—and, due to my many medical complications, these are not going to be as simple as your great grandparent’s dentures.
The three dentists I have talked with here in Cornelius, North Carolina estimate that extracting the few remaining upper teeth and replacing two upper bridges with DENTURES could cost as much as 20,000.00, possibly more, before it is over. That is just for the upper teeth, but then there are the lower teeth that are having the same issues as my upper teeth. In fact, you can see some of the lower deterioration in my video. It is important to try to slow down the problems with the lower teeth, but the upper teeth are priority one at this time. The full explanation is lengthy, but, without the procedure, the other option is to have no teeth at all. Unfortunately, this is not unusual with advanced autoimmune diseases.
Creating a Go Fund Me was the idea of friends and family who knew I would not do this if it were not out of necessity. They encouraged me to tell my story (minus my normal wordiness) ) and reach out for help. I’ve had friends help me do some things, but not ever, during these years of being disabled, have I asked for financial assistance. Unfortunately, years of unexpected complications and needs have literally drained my retirement fund. I did not plan to stop working when my health forced me to do so.
Those of you who know me know I love to smile, but I am not doing much of it these days. I love to eat, but my menu is getting more and more limited because I cannot chew. It has been a long. emotional road and I have so much further to go. I do hate having to ask for help, but I don’t know how I can survive without asking for it. I have found myself in a somewhat hopeless situation. Dentists will not start the procedure without full payment. My fixed income over the years does not have any wiggle room for something like this or any additional extensions of credit.
I have not given you detailed information about everything that is wrong with me because I felt it would just be too much to absorb here, but I will gladly provide more details if you like. It is all complicated, rare and very real; however, my main problem where I need assistance now relates to my teeth. Unfortunately, many of us with complex autoimmune and other disorders do have these costly dental issues.
I understand that times are tough for everyone. I know it is impossible to contribute to every cause , or any cause, in some cases. If a monetary donation is not possible, I would appreciate your emotional support and prayers as I face this challenge. My medical treatments aren’t going to end, but, if you can help, you’ll be helping me put a smile back on my face (and help me eat!) as I move forward to recovery and continue fighting my other complicated conditions.
Thank you for the time you took to read this and a special thanks to those friends from the east coast to the west coast who encouraged me to speak up and ask for help, embarrassed or not. I am desperate for help.
A very special thank you to those who help support me in this effort, financially or emotionally.
Organizer and beneficiary
Craig Smith
Organizer
Cornelius, NC
Jan Campbell
Beneficiary