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My name is Paul Olsen, and I’m asking for help because my health has reached the most critical point it has ever been. One week after rotator cuff surgery, I suddenly began bleeding internally again—the ninth GI bleed I’ve had. I was rushed to Sanford Health and then life-flighted to Mayo Clinic. Within hours of arriving, I went into cardiogenic shock and coded. After being stabilized, I coded again the next morning.
Right now, my hemoglobin drops dangerously low—as low as 3.4, and often in the 6s or below. I require repeated transfusions, and even brief movement sends my heart rate to 160–200 bpm. I experience shaking, sweats, and near collapse, and I am constantly monitored for further bleeding or cardiac failure. This became the moment I finally accepted that my family and I cannot keep carrying this alone.
I have survived nearly 60 surgeries, with about half taking place in the last 10 years. My medical journey includes progressive Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, multiple infections, numerous reconstructive surgeries, amputation of my left leg below the knee, multiple spinal fractures, chronic anemia, nerve damage and mobility loss, nine GI bleeds (six requiring hospitalization), sepsis, cardiogenic shock, and multiple emergency codes. In 2015, I suffered severe burns rescuing my son from a potential devastating car accident when he ran into the street at just five years old, on a 116 day in the late Phoenix summer. In the past five years, I have spent 30% of my life in the hospital. My family has been called to my bedside seven different times because doctors did not think I would survive the night.
After a decade of medical emergencies, disability income, nonstop hospital stays, and travel to Mayo Clinic, the financial strain has become too much for us to manage alone. Your support will help with medical treatment and emergency travel, stability during ongoing recovery, long-term needs related to my 75% permanent disability, safe, accessible housing modifications, and reliable transportation for medical appointments. These are not luxuries—they are necessities that allow me to continue treatment and stay in my sons’ lives. I am asking for help so I can continue my fight and remain present for my loved ones.
Right now, my hemoglobin drops dangerously low—as low as 3.4, and often in the 6s or below. I require repeated transfusions, and even brief movement sends my heart rate to 160–200 bpm. I experience shaking, sweats, and near collapse, and I am constantly monitored for further bleeding or cardiac failure. This became the moment I finally accepted that my family and I cannot keep carrying this alone.
I have survived nearly 60 surgeries, with about half taking place in the last 10 years. My medical journey includes progressive Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, multiple infections, numerous reconstructive surgeries, amputation of my left leg below the knee, multiple spinal fractures, chronic anemia, nerve damage and mobility loss, nine GI bleeds (six requiring hospitalization), sepsis, cardiogenic shock, and multiple emergency codes. In 2015, I suffered severe burns rescuing my son from a potential devastating car accident when he ran into the street at just five years old, on a 116 day in the late Phoenix summer. In the past five years, I have spent 30% of my life in the hospital. My family has been called to my bedside seven different times because doctors did not think I would survive the night.
After a decade of medical emergencies, disability income, nonstop hospital stays, and travel to Mayo Clinic, the financial strain has become too much for us to manage alone. Your support will help with medical treatment and emergency travel, stability during ongoing recovery, long-term needs related to my 75% permanent disability, safe, accessible housing modifications, and reliable transportation for medical appointments. These are not luxuries—they are necessities that allow me to continue treatment and stay in my sons’ lives. I am asking for help so I can continue my fight and remain present for my loved ones.
Organizer
