- J
- B
Hi everyone, my name is Caitlin Shirk and this is my story. I am 27 years old and currently living in a quiet town in PA with my family. From the day I was born I’ve struggled with medical issues; although some are easier to manage than others they’ve all been very debilitating, extremely expensive and often hard to diagnose. As a teen one of the worst things I suffered from and continue to deal with is my Lymes disease. The doctors couldn’t figure out what was wrong with me for the longest time and as a 16 year old my grandmother had to push me around in a wheelchair because I could no longer bear the pain of moving my body. After months of testing, physical therapy and many bills I was finally diagnosed and able to move on with my life… or so I thought. After a few years of being on heavy prescription drugs my body was starting to heal and I was feeling pretty decent. I still had bone/joint pain but it was occasional and I was healing. I thought everything I had gone through with all my strange illnesses and hospitalizations as a child/teen were over and I no longer had to worry about becoming seriously ill again but I was completely wrong. As an adult I continued to be plagued with strange and horrible medical issues. Between 20-21 my life halted for medical issues pertaining to my digestive tract and I had surgery to remove my Gallbladder. I was somewhat healthy at the age of 22 but my health started to decline again. At 23 I was so sick I could no longer live on my own and had to come home and be taken care of by my family. I went through rigorous testing, some more painful than others and even though the doctors didn’t have any answers yet I was hopeful.
One of my easier tests I had to get was a CT scan of the brain. I thought it was silly and unnecessary but it turned out I had an Arachnoid Brain Cyst that was growing on my frontal left lobe. The brain cyst continued to get worse by the day, I was in nonstop pain with migraines (that no medicine was able to help) and I couldn’t stand to have any sound or lights on. I was so miserable I prayed everyday that God would take me off this earth. After a year of trying different, awful medications (and having several other surgeries for an arm dislocation and gynecological issues) I finally had my first brain surgery. I had only hoped for 2 outcomes from this- 1. God takes me up to heaven or 2. It helps and I’m able to live a normal life for once. (Keep in mind I’m still not able to eat because my stomach is in tons of pain.) Long story short, my first brain surgery at 24 was a success! At 25 I was diagnosed with CSID which I take expensive medication for so I was pretty sure every bad medical thing was in the past now, right? Wrong. My brain symptoms started up again after 6 months and at 26 I had a second brain surgery. Believe it or not this surgery was in August of 2020 and right before Christmas of that year I ended up in a terrible sledding accident that gave me such a severe concussion it took me until the end of 2021 to recover from. I had slid under a huge box truck and hit my head right where I had my surgery off some sharp metal piece under the truck. Honestly I’m not sure how I survived but I took that as God not wanting to deal with me in heaven yet.
Now cut to the end of 2021, beginning of 2022 when I’m starting to get my life back together after all these crazy things have happened. My jaw has been really hurting for a while so I wanted to see if there was anything I could do for it. I was getting it adjusted by the chiropractor but it wasn’t helping much so I decided to ask my dentist and was sent to a specialist near Philly, Dr. Anthony Farole. After a visit with him I was sent to get a CBCT done at my dentist office and wouldn’t you know with my luck they found something. My jaw bones are deteriorating and my airway is so tiny it’s actually beginning to close which means… another surgery. Now I can deal with the mental, emotional and physical struggle of going through another surgery. My friends and family are always there to support me and show me love so I wasn’t super worried when they told me this but then I found out it's more than just a surgery. I need a MAGO, braces (which I already had for 8 years when I was little), double jaw surgery and then possibly another set of braces and tooth caps. Although I do have insurance it will not cover any of the expenses needed before or after my surgery which is estimated around $40,000 and quite frankly I’m broke from all my other medical expenses I’m still dealing with which is why I’m humbling myself to ask for help. Unfortunately yet again this is another life saving surgery I need because without it my esophagus is slowly collapsing. For the first time ever I’m not ashamed to say I need help and I’m deeply grateful for anyone that's taken the time to read my story and help me out.
One of my easier tests I had to get was a CT scan of the brain. I thought it was silly and unnecessary but it turned out I had an Arachnoid Brain Cyst that was growing on my frontal left lobe. The brain cyst continued to get worse by the day, I was in nonstop pain with migraines (that no medicine was able to help) and I couldn’t stand to have any sound or lights on. I was so miserable I prayed everyday that God would take me off this earth. After a year of trying different, awful medications (and having several other surgeries for an arm dislocation and gynecological issues) I finally had my first brain surgery. I had only hoped for 2 outcomes from this- 1. God takes me up to heaven or 2. It helps and I’m able to live a normal life for once. (Keep in mind I’m still not able to eat because my stomach is in tons of pain.) Long story short, my first brain surgery at 24 was a success! At 25 I was diagnosed with CSID which I take expensive medication for so I was pretty sure every bad medical thing was in the past now, right? Wrong. My brain symptoms started up again after 6 months and at 26 I had a second brain surgery. Believe it or not this surgery was in August of 2020 and right before Christmas of that year I ended up in a terrible sledding accident that gave me such a severe concussion it took me until the end of 2021 to recover from. I had slid under a huge box truck and hit my head right where I had my surgery off some sharp metal piece under the truck. Honestly I’m not sure how I survived but I took that as God not wanting to deal with me in heaven yet.
Now cut to the end of 2021, beginning of 2022 when I’m starting to get my life back together after all these crazy things have happened. My jaw has been really hurting for a while so I wanted to see if there was anything I could do for it. I was getting it adjusted by the chiropractor but it wasn’t helping much so I decided to ask my dentist and was sent to a specialist near Philly, Dr. Anthony Farole. After a visit with him I was sent to get a CBCT done at my dentist office and wouldn’t you know with my luck they found something. My jaw bones are deteriorating and my airway is so tiny it’s actually beginning to close which means… another surgery. Now I can deal with the mental, emotional and physical struggle of going through another surgery. My friends and family are always there to support me and show me love so I wasn’t super worried when they told me this but then I found out it's more than just a surgery. I need a MAGO, braces (which I already had for 8 years when I was little), double jaw surgery and then possibly another set of braces and tooth caps. Although I do have insurance it will not cover any of the expenses needed before or after my surgery which is estimated around $40,000 and quite frankly I’m broke from all my other medical expenses I’m still dealing with which is why I’m humbling myself to ask for help. Unfortunately yet again this is another life saving surgery I need because without it my esophagus is slowly collapsing. For the first time ever I’m not ashamed to say I need help and I’m deeply grateful for anyone that's taken the time to read my story and help me out.
I will be posting more detailed info about the plan Dr. Burns and Dr. Otto with White Family Dentist along with Dr. Farole have developed for me.
I am so deeply grateful for the physicians, surgeons, and technology that is available to me today in order to help improve my life!
All donations will be used towards these medical expenses. If donations exceed that which is needed to pay for all of this we will pay it forward and donate to other individuals with similar situations at White Family Dentist.
Donations can be made several different ways:
GoFundMe Page
Contact White Family Dentist:
Address: 100 Continental Drive Elizabethtown PA 17022
Phone#: 717-367-1336
Simply tell them you would like to make a donation for Caitlin Shirk, DOB 11-13-1994
They can take payments through check or card.
They can take payments through check or card.
Updates and other fundraisers will be posted on here as well as my youtube channel: Adventures of Cait
You can contact me on my Facebook or instagram as well!
Physician Information:
White Family Dentist
Dr. Karen Otto-Sullivan & Dr. Burns
Dr. Anthony Farole