For many years I’ve been dealing with health problems that made me feel like something just wasn’t right. In 2021, during an ER visit for another issue, a CT scan showed a staghorn kidney stone measuring about an inch, but I was never told about it. Over time the stone continued to grow, and my symptoms kept getting worse without knowing the cause. After two concussions, my recovery became much more difficult than expected. I had ongoing symptoms that lasted far longer than normal, and a physical therapist suggested that neuroinflammation might be part of why I was feeling so sick for so long. That pushed me to keep searching for answers, which eventually led to the discovery that the kidney stone had grown to fill a large portion of my kidney. Because of the size and complexity, I now need specialized surgery at Mayo Clinic. The trip to Rochester is almost an eight-hour drive, so we will need to travel slowly and stay overnight before and after surgery. My hospital stay could be one to three days, which means my family will need a hotel nearby. My husband John has been my driver since my concussion and is a disabled veteran, so the trip will be hard on him as well. Our child Riley will be traveling with us, along with our three-legged senior dog Maple, so we need pet-friendly lodging. I haven’t been able to work this past year, and we’ve been relying on John’s disability income, so the travel costs are difficult for us right now. This fundraiser will help with gas, hotels, food, and travel expenses so I can get to surgery safely. Thank you for your support.