Help Jennifer Beat Chronic Hip Disease!

Hi there, thank you for visiting our GoFundMe page! Our names are Brent and Jennifer Strickland and our fundraiser involves medical care for Jennifer. She has had chronic pain the past five years which has robbed her of the ability to sleep, to exercise, or even to walk without pain. She needs help tying her shoes and cannot get off the floor without assistance. Her quality of life has been stolen. The story of her physical challenges begins with the birth of our daughter in 2015; but first, let me tell you a little bit about the kind of caring and sensitive person Jennifer is. JENNIFER’S STORY Jennifer has always been a source of light and inspiration to all who know her. After college, she dedicated her time and energy to job coaching autistic adults in the workplace. Upon graduating with a Masters Degree in Marriage and Family Therapy, she counseled troubled inner city kids using equine therapy. For most of these kids, it was their first time seeing horses up close. The healing it created coupled with the counseling Jennifer provided made a real difference in their lives.  It was meaningful, rewarding work. After our baby was born, Jennifer developed an umbilical hernia and severe diastasis, which is when the muscles in the abdomen separate and leave an empty space above the navel and between the ribs. These conditions, combined with her c-section recovery, created extreme back pain. In 2018, following doctor’s advice, she underwent surgery to repair the hernia and diastasis. To everyone’s surprise, instead of relieving the pain, it actually increased and moved to her hips. It eventually reached her nervous system, growing more and more excruciating. Walking, sitting, and standing and standing became torturous. There was nowhere to go to relieve the pain.  She was eventually diagnosed with Hip Dysplasia. MEDICAL CONDITION Hip Dysplasia is the medical term that means the hip socket and thigh bone do not fit properly, causing the hip joint to wear out much earlier than it should. According to HipDysplasia.org, Hip Dysplasia requiring treatment is a rare condition affecting approximately .3% of the population. Left untreated, it can result in tendonitis, ligament tears, and the accumulation of cartilage damage. For Jennifer, it has resulted in cartilage damage, labrum tears, tendonitis and a torn hamstring. SURGERIES Four surgeries are required to repair this condition. She had the first one this past week to repair the labrum tears on her right hip. This upcoming Tuesday, September 22nd, she will have a Periacetabular Osteotomy Surgery (PAO) on the same hip. A PAO involves breaking her pelvis, reshaping the ball socket so the thigh bone fits properly, then screwing everything back together until the bone heals. She will be in a wheelchair and on crutches for most of the next year, and undergo physical therapy where she will learn to walk again. In the spring, she will undergo the same grueling process on her left hip. WHY PAO AS OPPOSED TO HIP REPLACEMENT While a PAO is excruciating and takes two years for both hips to fully recover, the end result is much better than a hip replacement. Hip replacements are typically performed on older people who naturally are not as active or have young children to raise. A PAO will allow Jennifer to play with our daughter in ways a hip replacement would not. DAUGHTER TO GRANDPARENTS Jennifer’s doctor expressed concern that having a rambunctious toddler in the house could jeopardize the recovery, so our daughter has gone to Texas to live with Jennifer’s parents during this time. We will miss Christmas with her and her fifth birthday. Depending on the coronavirus situation, she could be there as long as a year or more. This is already very difficult on us. BRENT’S JOB LOSS To top it off, I was laid off a month before the first surgery. I am spending all my time caring for Jennifer and job hunting, and we are relying on unemployment as our only income. Needless to say, all these challenges have placed a lot of strain on our family. LET’S RALLY! We need help to cover the expenses related to Jennifer’s medical condition and my job loss. Let’s join together to make sure this amazing woman is able to return to a normal and healthy life. Your donations will enable her to conquer her chronic pain and reclaim the simple pleasures in life like regular sleep, walking without pain, and giving our daughter the active mother she deserves! Please share this post with your friends and family on all your social media accounts and remember, no amount is too small. We sincerely appreciate your concern and prayers! God bless you!