Holly Cook Medical and Living Expenses

Hi! My name is Cara Akervik, aka "Sulli" if Holly's referring to me!

For those of you who don't know Holly's past medical history, Holly has a genetic mutation called Neurofibromatosis Type 2, or NF2. This is a hereditary condition which runs on her mother's side of the family, and I encourage you to look it up in order to truly understand the hand she's been dealt. Holly had her first surgeries in 2010 which included a brain surgery to remove tumors along with another surgery to remove the tumors on her cervical spine resulting in a fusion. Holly had her second brain surgery in 2012 and her 3rd in 2013. She spent 8 years on a chemo drug called Avastin which slowed the growth of the recent tumors in order to preserve her hearing as long as possible. In June 2022, the doctors determined that her risks of taking Avastin now outweighed the benefits as her tumors continued to grow and had reached a large enough size to start looking at other options. Holly searched out several options in December and January, but the doctors stated that the only option at this time was surgical resection of the tumors with the hope to place an ABI. Surgery occurred on April 19th. Holly is now fully deaf (#deafaf), and she will need to take ASL classes in order to get interpretive services in a medical setting going forward. There will be a cost associated with those classes as well. Family and friends will also be taking some classes to better communicate with her. Brandon will be taking some time off to help Holly once she returns home, but he will also need to continue to work on some home improvements during this time while also continuing to work.

Holly has a long road to recovery. She is currently still hospitalized, and she will need to do some inpatient rehab before coming home to start the long-term portion of her recovery. Her swallowing nerve was impacted from her surgery, and she is working hard with PT to try and get some of this function back. We like to be optimistic, but we are also realistic that she may end up on a long-term feeding tube if this doesn't continue to progress forward.

Anybody who knows Holly knows that she would do ANYTHING to help anybody..... BUT, she will never ask for help and does NOT want pity for her situation. Given her medical status, Holly has not been able to work a full-time career for some time now, and this has drastically impacted them in terms of raising their girls and making ends meet. NF2 will result in more surgeries at some point in the future, but she continues to trudge through everything handed her way without complaint! She still worries about everybody else in her current state.

Holly is SO loved by so many. Despite her denial (kicking and screaming..... I may get yelled at for this), she needs some help. Any funds will be utilized to cover any expenses not covered by insurance, prescriptions, and any household expenses to keep moving forward. Any help is greatly appreciated! Let's give back some of the LOVE she has shown us!!!!