From the Emergency Room to Registered Nurse!

Please support me on my journey through Nursing School. I have been secretly struggling for the past 6 months. Back in August of 2024 I had an accident, a car crossed a red light right in front of the Brooklyn bridge and hit me at about 5:05pm. The pain was brutal, the impact followed after I was unsuccessful trying to dodge the car. I was on a C1t1B1ke (not electric). As soon as we crashed, the driver ran away in front of two police officers that were stationed by the onramp of the Brooklyn bridge and weren't able to get a license plate: Hit & Run... I wasn't able to get a license plate either, I was in pain, and in shock. I couldn't move. Two bystanders that were heading towards the bridge had to drag me out of the street and put me on the side walk because I couldn't move on my own. The ambulance and the paramedics came... I couldn't stand straight and I could barely move. I am very agile so I immediately felt something was broken. Once in the ER they confirmed that I had 3 broken bones in the spine: S3, S4, & S5. The sacrum area of the spine is a place where surgery is avoided if the broken bones aren't shattered or displaced due to the lack of blood vessels and because there are mainly just nerves (what the doctors told me). So I was sent home the following day and I was told I needed time to heal, so I had to suck it up and heal with time. Time, the luxury of time which I didn't have back then and which I don't currently have either. I couldn't walk properly, I couldn't sit straight, I could barely stand without pain suffocating my mind and body.

It was a very painful process and experience, I think that it’s been the most heartbreaking experience I’ve lived. Not being able to move and to need constant assistance for simple everyday tasks like showering, going to the bathroom, eating, grabbing medications is humbling... I've experienced a lot of trauma and distress throughout my life and nothing has been as debilitating as this experience, both physically and mentally. I am a very independent person and I usually do everything on my own but for the first time in my adult life I needed someone to watch over me and physically support me. Who would've thought? Life works in mysterious ways, God has a plan for all. The is telling me to universe told me to slow down.

Sadly for me, in the process, I accrued debt and I wasn’t able to pay my bills on time. While my bones healed my finances deteriorated as fast as the APR of a credit card accrues when one doesn’t pay the full balance. I have an incredible job and I am very thankful for still being able to work for the company. However, I was only paid half of my monthly income for 12 weeks (about 3 months) and after the 12 weeks, I was being paid $207 per week. No one lives with that in New York. I tried and it’s impossible. I reached out for help to many people in my life, people I thought I was close, not a lot of people helped. Miraculously 2 beautiful humans gave me a hand and supported me a bit but it wasn’t enough. I had to get cash advances, I had to charge everything on my credit. On top of that, because it was a hit and run, I didn’t get any settlement money and I had no insurance to cover for my medical bills. A lawyer has been helping me suing the City and thankfully I got MVAIC to cover for some of my medical expenses hence United Healthcare is denying my claims due to the fact that the accident was a motor vehicle accident and they state they are not responsible.

I was finally able to go back to work last month but I have been struggling with chronic pain due to the accident. I haven’t been able to work a lot of overtime, instead I have taken a lot of time off from work for physical therapy and doctor’s appointments. Unfortunately, I haven’t been able to get back to being a super hero to work 60 hours a week and attend school full time the way I’ve been doing for the past 3 years. I just got accepted into Nursing school and even though I’m in a public university, the costs for nursing are exorbitant, needless to say I also have very limited time to study for all the biology courses and the nursing classes plus the labs. I’m taking 5 classes this semester at Hunter School of Nursing. I will soon have to resign my job because of scheduling conflicts and I still need to attend physical therapy for my injuries as part of my recovery.

So I am asking for you to please help me with a donation so I can pay for school costs, living expenses. I am struggling with paying for a roof over my head and I’m afraid of being homeless for non-payment since I’ve been late a few times. In a perfect world, I would do it all on my own and I would work, study, attend all my classes and be supernatural and unstoppable the way I was doing but that is not the case anymore because my body is also saying no… :(

The last thing I want to avoid is dropping out of school and I’m feeling on edge for not being able to take control of the fates of my life to move forward, not backwards. I really want to become a nurse and help people, care for them, and help them heal the way I aspire once I get my license as a registered nurse. I am hopeful about the future though, I know that things will get better and I will be on track to graduate and that I will be able to stay in my home but as of today I need a little push forward from you into the right direction hence I was pulled a little backwards after the accident. Thank you for taking the time to read my cause. Gracias. Thank you. Merci. Danke. Obrigado. 謝謝. धन्यवाद. شكرا لكم. ধন্যবাদ. Спасибо. Terima kasih.

If you can't donate, I understand, please just share with everyone you know or any organization that may be able to help, the power of networks and humanity is stronger than anything; we are powerful through connections.

On a separate note, I am also writing a book called HOM(less), I will post the link to a digital version here soon, if you'd like a digital copy. The book is a detailed narrative that highlights the experiences and the struggles one has to face when moving into a big city like New York depicted in a way similar to Magic Realism.