My name is Melanie and no matter what I type here, it just scratches the surface of what my family and I have been through, especially in the last year.

Last year, my son, who is wheelchair-bound, started getting confused and off-balance. After some doctor exams and regular testing, we were told his kidney function was a little bit low and he needed to drink more water and retest. Not much later, he lost the ability to communicate, and I took him to the emergency room where they told me he needed to be transported to another hospital and admitted. That's when I learned that his kidneys had declined even more. He had 60 percent scar tissue, and his kidneys were going downhill rapidly. He was in renal failure. After 2-3 more hospital stays and many prayers and tears, we had no other choice but to start him on dialysis immediately . We also started a trial to see if he responded to steroids. This would shut down his immune system, which would indicate an autoimmune form of the kidney disease he tested for. He did respond to the steroids, but they told me, unfortunately, his kidneys were too far gone. It hadn't been but 3 weeks or so of the trial. That's how fast this was happening. He's now going through dialysis regularly and in end-stage renal failure.

This was all happening while my daughter, who is paralyzed from a car accident (also wheelchair-bound), found out she was pregnant! This is a blessing but also came with its own complications that were life-threatening and put her in the hospital, sometimes at the same time as my son or right after. I spend my days at the hospital, taking them to appointments, or with my son doing dialysis, or helping them recover from different things.

My financial contribution to our house ended to take full-time care of things while extra bills started coming in and regular bills are piling up and getting behind. For example, our air conditioner went out and our fridge at the same time, and although family helped us get a new air conditioner, it's been literally one thing after another. It's affecting everyone here emotionally, and there's so much we need and can't afford.

My son has had a lot of other things happen since his kidneys went downhill, and he's really fighting to keep pushing forward, but it's hard to watch him go through this. They both got severe anemia and had to get multiple blood transfusions, and they are both temporarily on different beds that are in the living room. He's too weak to transfer every day onto the lift to go to his room. She's got a twin bed in the living room also to get off her butt as her nausea (from the pregnancy )was severe which gave her malnutrition. It was to the point a chronic wound she's had since the accident turned, and she went septic and the infection reached her bone. She has a wound vac and a nurse that comes, but she has to be on a special mattress for now, which is in the living room. Yes, that's just scratching the surface of this year.

Our house needs an elevator, and we need a new wheelchair van to make our life a lot easier. We also need help catching up on regular bills that got behind from all of this. Both of them having special food restrictions or needs and with the cost of groceries is another cost that takes from regular bills. There's so much we need help with, and I've been trying to figure it out and manage, but we just need a break from any of these stresses. We got behind and just need to get caught up on everything.

If we got help, I would put the first amount to catching up the mortgage and other bills and even getting ahead a month maybe. After that, I would love to save it up and get an elevator installed, which is at least 20 grand, and a van that's in better shape so I don't have to keep taking out a ramp and worrying about the doors coming off track. Anything that can help is much appreciated. I have to worry every day and night about both of them, my unborn grandson, and my youngest son watching all these stressful things. I hate asking for help, but this makes their life easier too and can maybe help us breathe a little bit so there's more room to create happy memories because tomorrow isn't promised for anyone. Thank you!