Help Kathleen with home Accessibility
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My name is Kathleen. I am a diabetic.
In March 2014, I collapsed at work and was taken to the hospital. They identified that I had uncontrolled diabetes and likely had it for several years. My body and organs were suffering and I was in the hospital for 6 weeks and then a rehab facility to rebuild muscle for a few weeks. I came home and started taking insulin and other diabetic medications. For a short time, I was able to resume normal life.
A couple of years later, I discovered that I had developed Charcot joint in my right foot. This disease causes the destruction of bones and joints in the foot and lower leg. My leg was so bad that I decided to have surgery on it to straighten the leg bone. I went to a Chicago hospital and had the surgery. I came home with a contraption on my leg with metal rods going through my skin to hold the bone in place. A few months after recovering from surgery, the doctor discovered that my leg had not healed properly. We re-did the surgery a year later and this time it worked, but I was forced to wear special shoes and a boot. This leg was never the same after these surgeries.
The complications of diabetes impacted many of my organs. I've had 6+ stents to open up blood vessels leading to my heart. I've had several laser eye surgeries to protect my vision. I have had severe pneumonia in my lungs at least 3 times. The worst time they had to drain fluid out of my lungs or I would have died. And worst of all, my kidneys started to fail. Once their function dropped below 15%, I had to start dialysis. I was on a list for an organ transplant, but the first hospital determined that I wasn't a good candidate for a transplant. I will have to clean my blood by dialysis for the rest of my life. I'm also tied to an oxygen tank as my blood oxygen levels are not strong enough for regular breathing.
At this point, I could no longer work full time at Meyer's Kennel as my job required me to be active around the facility. I was able to do some desk work (making calls to customers, etc.), but eventually I had to quit my job and go on disability. My wife Michelle and I moved to a smaller one-level house and I was doing at-home dialysis a few times a week. That ended when I got a bad infection in the dialysis port and I had to start going to a dialysis clinic 4 times a week for 4-5 hours at a time. Recently, I started a new at-home dialysis that seems to be working for me.
At the end of 2023, my doctor noticed that I had a bad infection in my right foot. We tried several antibiotics, but nothing worked. The only option was a lower leg amputation (from the knee down). I had this surgery at the end of January 2024 and then went to a rehab facility for almost 3 weeks where they trained me to move without part of my right leg. After a check-up in February, my doctor notified me that my stump wasn't healing and that I'd need another surgery. Luckily, they did not have to cut more of my leg off and were able to clean up the wound. I'm hoping that my leg heals in the next 2-3 months so I can get a prosthetic leg.
The last 10 years have been a never-ending rollercoaster of illnesses all related to my diabetes. I'm currently wheelchair bound and rarely get out of the house.
I'm raising money to build a ramp in my garage to make it easier to get in and out of the house for doctor appointments. etc. I'd also like to build a small deck outside my living room so that I could go outside and get some fresh air. Right now, I'm not able to get out easily as I only have steps.
Please donate to my fund if you're able to help me. Even small donations will enable me to add features to my house to make it more accessible. Please share with your friends and family.
THANK YOU!
With love and appreciation,
Kathleen Carlson
Belvidere, IL
Co-organizers (2)
Kathleen Carlson
Organizer
Belvidere, IL
Samantha Maggio
Co-organizer