<div>Help Give Megan Her Life Back
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<div>As a parent, there is nothing harder than watching your child suffer and feeling powerless to take away their pain.
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<div>Our daughter, Megan, has faced more heartbreak and adversity in her 21 years than many people experience in a lifetime.
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<div>She entered this world fighting. Born with a major heart defect, she underwent open-heart surgery at just six months old. Watching our tiny baby go through such a huge operation was terrifying, but she showed incredible strength from the very beginning.
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<div>As she grew up, life continued to test her.
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<div>When she was 12 years old, she lost her beloved grandmother and aunt within six months of each other. She shared a special bond with both of them, and their loss left a hole in her heart that never truly healed.
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<div>At 14, Megan met her first boyfriend. He wasn’t just her boyfriend—he was her best friend, her safe place, and her biggest supporter. He brought happiness back into her life during some of her darkest moments. Then, during the COVID lockdown in 2020, tragedy struck again when he was killed in a hit-and-run accident.
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<div>No young girl should have to endure that level of grief and loss.
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<div>Despite everything, Megan carried on.
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<div>Today, at just 21 years old, she faces another devastating battle.
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<div>Megan has recently been diagnosed with deep infiltrating endometriosis, an aggressive and complex form of the disease. The endometriosis is located behind her womb and has attached itself to her bowel and the pouch of Douglas, the area between the womb and rectum. The pain she experiences is difficult to put into words. It affects every part of her life, every day.
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<div>Recently, she attended her first appointment with an endometriosis specialist. We hoped it would finally bring some answers and a plan for treatment.
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<div>Instead, we were told there is a six-month wait just to discuss her case with a bowel surgeon. Because Megan’s disease has spread to her bowel, her surgery cannot be carried out by an endometriosis specialist alone. It requires a highly specialised team, including an experienced bowel surgeon, and there is currently no indication of how long it could take to bring that team together. The uncertainty is devastating, knowing Megan could be left suffering for months—or even years—while waiting for the specialist care she desperately needs.
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<div>Megan currently relies on morphine and codeine every day, yet most of the time they barely touch the pain she is living with. Watching her struggle to get through each day is heartbreaking. This isn’t living—it’s surviving.
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<div>The severity of Megan’s pain is difficult to describe. Alongside the morphine and codeine she takes every day, she relies heavily on a heat wrap just to get through the day. Sadly, the pain is so intense that she needs the heat at such a high temperature and for such long periods that it has caused toasted skin syndrome on her back. Desperate to find another way to manage her symptoms, we bought her a TENS machine, but even that has to be used at such a high intensity that it has left burn marks on her skin. Watching our daughter endure this level of pain, and seeing the physical marks it leaves behind, is heartbreaking. No young person should have to live like this.
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<div>Because her disease involves the bowel, the surgery required is highly complex and cannot be treated with routine endometriosis surgery alone. It requires a specialist multidisciplinary team with expertise in both advanced endometriosis and colorectal surgery. We have been advised that, depending on the extent of the disease found during surgery, bowel surgery may be necessary, and there is even a possibility that she could require a temporary or permanent stoma.
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<div>After researching the options available, we believe Megan’s best chance of receiving the specialist care she urgently needs is with Amer Raza, working alongside Oliver Warren, who specialises in bowel endometriosis. Their expertise offers hope where years of waiting could allow the disease and her suffering to continue.
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<div>The surgery Megan desperately needs is available privately, but the cost is estimated to be between £25,000 and £35,000—an amount completely beyond our reach.
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<div>Asking for help is not something we ever imagined having to do, but seeing Megan suffer while facing years of waiting has left us with no other option.
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<div>Every pound raised will go directly towards funding Megan’s specialist surgery and giving her the chance to live a life free from constant pain. Every donation, no matter how small, brings her one step closer to getting the treatment she desperately needs. If you’re unable to donate, simply sharing Megan’s story with your family, friends, or on social media would mean the world to us.
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<div>Megan has spent her entire life fighting one battle after another. She has shown incredible courage, resilience, and strength through every challenge placed in front of her.
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<div>Now we’re asking for help so she doesn’t have to fight this one alone.
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<div>Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for taking the time to read Megan’s story and for any support you can offer.
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<div>With love and gratitude,
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<div>Megan’s Family
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Anonymous

Anthony Almeda

Corey painter

Coral Clarke

Ellie rose Connolly

maureen evans

jemma jackson

Susan Gracey

Samantha Jackson

Megan Groenendaal

Josie Shevlin Shevlin

Sam McDermott

Jackie Tuszynski

Help give Megan her life back

Help give Megan her life back

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