Hello there! My name is Joshua. I am 37 years old. This is certainly a humbling moment in my life, as I am asking for help for myself and I've never done that before. But I believe that my current circumstances permit me to do so. And I feel like this is an appropriate channel to do it. So, here we go!

My story is a long one. It's full of many personal accomplishments, as well as several failures and hardships. But I choose to live my life as an accountable individual with the understanding that I am ultimately responsible for my life and my life's choices and decisions. I try not to allow myself to be a victim in any situation. With that being said, sometimes things happen that are out of our control and we find ourselves in some impossible situations. Hence, my current situation. Long story short, I contracted a very nasty internal infection in my spine. The infection festered and became life-threatening. The correct terminology is vertebral osteomyelitis. The infection was deep in my body, in the C4 vertebra in the neck portion of my spine. When I made it to the ER, they quickly discovered the problem and I was in emergency surgery a few hours after being admitted. I was in surgery nearly 8 hours where they removed most of my C4 vertebra and cleared out as much of the infection as possible. They then fused the vertebrae in my neck. I already had most of my spine fused due to a previous unrelated surgery, so now nearly my entire spine is fused.

After coming out of surgery and learning what had happened, I began the healing process. I am so fortunate to have survived this ordeal. And I owe it all to the wonderful surgeons and infectious disease doctors that saved my life. I am about a month and a half out of surgery and I think it's safe to say that I am going to pull through this one. There is no test to show what the infection is currently doing in my body, unfortunately, but all the indicators in my blood work are very positive. I am so grateful. So very grateful.

So now I am in what they call a skilled nursing facility undergoing IV antibiotic treatments three times a day. And it looks like I will be having my PICC line pulled and being discharged next week. August 26th is the exact date. Which brings me to why I have turned to GoFundMe. I need help getting back on my feet. See, before my surgery I was homeless. I have experienced chronic homelessness for the past 2 years. And yes, addiction is part of my story. My addiction is the absolute reason for why I was homeless. So, along with the healing of my neck and clearing this infection, treating my disease of addiction is equally if not more important. My plan is to attend inpatient/residential substance use disorder treatment. There will be some time in the interval before I get a bed in a treatment center. And I could really use financial assistance until I can make it into treatment and eventually be healthy enough to return to work and provide for myself. Any help would be so much appreciated. I have nothing. I am utilizing every resource I can but that only gets one so far. Clothing, food, and shelter are all necessities and it will take time for me to get to a place in life where I'm able to provide for myself. I need to create a situation where I can continue to heal. One that promotes my health, all around.

One thing I have not mentioned is that I am also a father. I have one 8-year-old son. He is an amazing child. Absolutely incredible. He makes me so proud, every day. He lives in Florida with his mother. And his mother is one amazing woman. She is a phenomenal mother to our son. I am so grateful to her and am forever indebted. In my absence, she has made sure that our son is well taken care of and has a wonderful life. A life full of love and care and opportunities that a child needs to ensure success, health, and happiness. He is one happy boy. But he is missing his father. Trust me, he tells me this daily. And my ultimate goal is to make it back to Florida to raise this child and to be back with the woman of my dreams, my son's mother. Yes, we are still together and we both aim to continue to raise this child together. But I need to be healthy, physically and emotionally. I need to treat my disease of addiction and get healthy there as well. And I've never been more motivated to do it. I am looking at this chapter of my life as an opportunity, a "new lease on life," if you will. I had five years of sobriety before my last relapse, so I know what it takes to achieve lasting sobriety. And for this, I am very hopeful.

So thank you for taking the time to listen to my story. I am still struggling asking for help, but my heart and understanding of life and the struggles we all experience is what is ultimately allowing me to ask for this help. Any help or financial assistance that comes my way is so appreciated. I am forever grateful. So here's to continued health, happiness, and humility. Here's to making it home to Florida to be with my son and the love of my life!

God bless you all and thank you so much. Take care.