This is Josh Lively.


Josh is a hard working mobile x-ray technologist, who enjoys spending his free time with his family and friends. On Tuesday January 15, 2019, like most of us, Josh woke up early to avoid getting stuck in traffic and went to work. After being away from home for 12 hours, he came into the house complaining of a sore neck and tiring day. After dinner, he decided to turn in early to sleep it off.


"I woke up feeling like something was very wrong."


Wednesday morning, around 3 am we woke up with Josh experiencing a loss of sensation on his right side, numbness, and pain. After some convincing, he finally agreed to let me take him to the Baylor Scott & White All Saints Medical Center emergency room, where the staff immediately placed him into their stroke protocol.



Anxiety and fear began to set in.


 48 exhausting and sleepless hours later, after enduring who knows how many x-rays and tests, an MRI revealed what we were actually dealing with. Josh's spinal cord was being compressed 8mm by a herniated cervical disc that could result in permanent nerve damage or even paralysis if not treated immediately. 


                     
"Physical therapy will not fix this. It is serious and you need to have surgery as soon as possible."


We were immediately transported to Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital.



On Friday January 18, 2019 at 11am Josh was taken into emergency surgery. The neurosurgeon went through the front of his neck, performing an Anterior Cervical Discectomy and Fusion, successfully removing the herniated cervical disc and fusing the adjacent vertebra. 





"We are hoping to get you home soon, but you will need to follow the recovery instructions very carefully. No bending, lifting, or twisting."

On Saturday, January 19, 2019, we learned Josh's recovery would be tough and he would be very limited in what he can do for himself. Basically he needs help with everyday tasks that once just occurred without thought. Recovery would begin slowly with a couple minutes of walking between the front door to the couch a few times a day. Aside from the physical and emotional toll, we now faced a potential financial toll of fifteen thousand to twenty-five thousand dollars for:

- Insurance deductible
- Emergency room fees
- X-ray fees
- Blood work fees
- Transfer fees
- Surgeons fees
- Anesthesiologists fees
- Surgical assistance fees
- Facility fees
- Transportation between hospitals
- Medication received in the hospital

Then we were reminded of the costs we had yet to encounter, all the follow-up care and additional expenses not associated with the initial trip and treatment at the hospital.

- Physical therapy 
- Medication
- Medical equipment
- Follow up appointments
- Medical record fees
- Special equipment for our home
- Additional testing
- Follow up X-rays


Our hearts sank

With our combined incomes this would have been exceedingly difficult to cover, but with Josh unable to return to work for at least eight weeks this will be financially devastating for us. Faced with a $5,000 deductible and the loss of income as the primary breadwinner, this immediately puts us into a hole we are desperately trying to climb out of. In the past when we have helped others, it never occurred to us that it might be us asking for help one day. 




How can you help?

We ask that you please consider donating and sharing our story with others who may be able to lend their support as well. As many of you might know we were set to marry May 4th of this year, having saved our money over the past two years for this special day. We are very grateful that this did not occur closer to our wedding date, however for the time being we have placed our wedding plans on hold due to the financial burden this unexpected event has placed on us. Your support will not only allow us to face the mountain of medical debt ahead of us but to also make sure our wedding goes off without a hitch and not lose out on any deposits already made for what we hope will be our most joyous day.