Jewels' Journey: Support Her Third Surgery

Hi friends, family, and kind-hearted strangers,

Welp... I never thought I’d be writing this, but here I am. On April 23rd, I’ll be heading into my third brain surgery.

Yep—round three. My tumor has grown again, and my care team at UCSF has advised it needs to be removed. The silver lining? After this surgery, there’s a new FDA-approved medication that should finally keep it from growing back. Hope is very much alive.

As if that weren’t enough, life threw another curveball: I was laid off on April 2nd. My surgery was originally planned for June (after Aubrey graduates 8th grade!), but I had to move it up so it would still be covered by insurance. Now, I’m facing major surgery with no income and soon, no insurance. It's terrifying to say the least.

I've always had a job, a plan, and a way forward—but right now, I’m in uncharted waters. I bought a home last year so our blended family—Cort, Aubrey, Violet, and me—could finally all be under one roof. But with only one income, we simply can’t keep up.

So I’m asking for help. Anything you’re able to give will go directly toward:

Hospital bills (surgery, ICU, tests, MRIs)

Travel + lodging for UCSF (6+ hours away)

Household bills during recovery and job searching.

If you know me, you know I’ll be back on my feet as soon as humanly possible—maybe even bilingual and brilliant post-op (fingers crossed). But recovery will take a few weeks, and I want to do it the right way so I can truly heal and get back to supporting my family. This economy is hard on everyone so send some prayers I’ll land a career soon!

A little backstory if you're new to this journey:

In 2008, I was diagnosed with a tumor in my left frontal lobe (a.k.a. “Sticky,” because I believe even tumors deserve names). I had my first awake brain surgery that year—yes, I talked the whole way through it, naturally.

In 2012, after having my daughter Aubrey, I had a second surgery when the tumor grew again during pregnancy. Recovery went smoothly, and I’ve been doing great since… until recently. Now here we are again—third time's the charm, right?

Please send prayers, strength, good vibes—whatever you believe in—especially for Cort, Aubrey, my parents, and everyone walking beside me through this. It’s often harder on them than it is on me.

Thank you for reading, for caring, and for any help you can offer, big or small. From the bottom of my (hopefully tumor-free soon) brain: thank you.

With love,

Jewels