Help Irina with her surgery!!!

Hi everyone, my name is Jonathan and I'm Irina's husband. We have been married for 15 years and for the last two years Irina's life has been flipped upside down since she started suffering mentally and physically as a result of her condition. As her husband, I have seen her struggle every day to live a normal life, but she's experienced no relief. Not even for one day since this began. My hope and prayer is that she would experience full recovery, but honestly, we would be happy with any improvement to her health. Please consider donating to our effort to raise money for Irina's surgery (medical expenses +travel/lodging) with the hope that she can live a life without pain. Please read-on for the details of what she has been living with. Thank you in advance for your support.

In January 2022 Irina was diagnosed with a rare brain condition Arnold Chiari I malformation and syringomyelia. Chiari is a rare degenerative neurological disorder where the part of the brain cerebellum pushes on the spinal cord and causes variety of neurological symptoms . Due to blockage of cerebrospinal fluid , the cyst called syringomyelia starts developing in the spinal canal thus causing additional symptoms which can potentially cause paralysis. There is no cure for Chiari malformation and it is progressive. Irina started developing symptoms over a year ago and over the past year her condition rapidly deteriorated and her quality of life is worsening every day. Every day she experiences head pressure, neck, shoulder stiffness, body aches, GI pains, increased heart rate, low blood pressure, fatigue, tingling in extremities, and temperature dysregulation. She tries to stay strong and accomplish as many things as she can, but it’s physically challenging and mentally exhausting. For the past year Irina has consulted with four neurosurgeons, two neurologists, gastroenterologists, rheumatologist, oncologist, chiropractors, TMJ doctors, ENT doctors. She did lab works, scans, invasive testing. The only option to possibly stop the progression that was offered by neurosurgeon is a decompression. It is an invasive form of brain surgery which requires the removal of part of the skull, opening the dura matter and burning the part of the brain that is herniated. It is a 6 hour surgery with months or years of recovery. However, the surgery does not guarantee that the symptoms will improve or even stop the progression. Due to complex diagnosis and several anomalies she might require more than one surgeries. As with any surgery there is always a risk, such as strokes, infection, bleeding, and death.

After much prayer and months of research Irina has decided to pursue a less invasive surgery at the Chiari & Siringomielia & Escoliosis de Barcelona. Irina has contacted many patients who performed the surgery and they got their life back. The doctors at this Institute perform the surgery called “filum terminale sectioning ” that can provide permanent relief and a cure to individuals with Chiari malformation. They have been doing surgeries for over 30 years with good results and minimal complications. The procedure is superior to alternative surgeries for a number of reasons: it is less invasive than decompression, has little or no complications, can potentially eliminate all the symptoms, and has a higher rate of success in patients. Fortunately, Irina was a candidate for the surgery. Unfortunately, it is the only place in the world that will perform this surgery as of today and it was suggested by her neurosurgeon in NY. I will be traveling with Irina on April 17th and stay in the city for 10 days after the surgery. The surgery itself will cost approximately $21,000 US dollars and it is not covered by her family’s health insurance. I am reaching out to anyone who is willing to help Irina’s family offset the cost of the surgery, travel, and lodging. The approximate cost of everything is to be determined, but our initial goal is to raise approximately $28,000.

Please pray for Irina to feel better and get back to her family.

Finally, we hope that this fundraiser brings awareness to Chiari Malformation which is a rare condition. People can go undiagnosed for many years. In the event that we raise more money than we need or are reimbursed for expenses, our plan is to donate the money to an organization that will help families to gain access to medical expenses that aren't covered by their commercial health insurance.