Help Stephanie Afford Life-Changing Surgery

This is to help pay for surgery costs (my remaining out of pocket on my insurance)

Hi, wow. Ok. I’ve never done anything like this and I will be absolutely honest, I am nervous and a bit embarrassed. But here we go. Hello, as most of you know me, or if you don’t, my name is Stephanie. I am 40 years old, have a loving husband, 4-legged children, and work daily as hard as I can, except lately, I have been struggling quite a lot.

Over the past couple of months, I have been dealing with nagging headaches, dizziness, vision blurring or cutting out, pain in my neck and shoulders, ringing in the ears, and irritability, and it’s affected my work and personal life. I look and feel awful, and most days I just want to get off work and go to bed.

I started reaching out for answers and had a brain MRI done. They found inter-cranial hypertension with pressure on my optic nerve, and I ended up at the ER as well, getting fluids and meds to help with one of the migraines, with results confirmed on CT.

I spoke with my neurosurgeon who set up a lumbar puncture (which is extremely painful when the numbing wears off) and we are still waiting on the test results for that. But to say, IIH is not curable. You can only combat the symptoms. So that comes to the next part, surgeries. Some doctors will say they can put a shunt in the brain to reduce pressure or (addressing the elephant in the room) if someone like myself is a bit on the fluffier side, they suggest weight loss surgery to help the weight come off a bit faster than traditional diets and exercise alone, and this is where my embarrassment to ask for help comes into play. I am already in the process but need to come up with the rest of my out-of-pocket before they proceed with enrolling me into the WLS program and completing the surgery, which is $1600. Unfortunately, I cannot come up with that all at once on my own and my hubby and I are at a loss thinking of what to do. So, if you can help, even if it’s just sharing this post, even if it’s $1/$5, I would be forever grateful, and if by any chance, I go over, I will donate the rest to a charity.

Idiopathic Intracranial Hypertension (IIH), also known as pseudotumor cerebri, can lead to several complications, primarily related to vision and headaches. These include vision loss, both transient and permanent, headaches that can be severe, and in rare cases, more serious neurological issues like stroke or seizures.

Vision-Related Complications:

Papilledema:

Swelling of the optic nerve at the back of the eye, a hallmark of IIH, can lead to vision changes.

Visual Obscurations:

Temporary or permanent loss or graying out of vision, often triggered by coughing or straining.

Vision Loss:

Including loss of peripheral vision, tunnel vision, and even complete loss of vision in severe cases.

Other Visual Symptoms:

Blurred or double vision, difficulty seeing to the side, and seeing flashes of light.

Headache-Related Complications:

Severe Headaches: Can be throbbing, daily, and worse in the morning, often accompanied by nausea or vomiting.

Pulsatile Tinnitus: A whooshing or pulsing sound in the ears, that matches the heartbeat.

Other Potential Complications:

Stroke and Seizures: In rare cases, IIH can lead to these serious neurological events.

Optic Neuropathy: Damage to the optic nerve, potentially leading to vision loss.

Psychiatric Comorbidities: IIH can be associated with conditions like depression and emotionally unstable personality disorder.

Treatment-Related Complications: Medications used to treat IIH (e.g., acetazolamide, steroids) can have side effects like weight gain, gastrointestinal issues, or increased risk of blood clots. Surgical procedures, while sometimes necessary, also carry risks like infection, bleeding, and neurological complications.