Dear Friends and Good Samaritan Strangers, 

Hello! My name is Rose. Until June 22nd, 2019, I was hiking up and down the American River with my boyfriend Peace every Sunday, absolutely in love with the forest, plants, animals, and the river itself. I used to dance in the grass barefoot, leaping through looped willow branches. I used to dig my toes into the earth, into the water. I would thank my feet all the time. I never took them for granted. 

But on that day in June, I had a horrible accident that left my foot in constant, severe pain and left me unable to walk. I was diagnosed with CRPS. This past year has been torture, but now with the help of my friends and family, and everyone who donated, I was finally able to receive treatment, but even that wasn't enough and my pain spiked back up to a 10! So we are switching our treatment plan. To know more about my story, you can read it below. 

Just to clarify: It says Zong Her (my boyfriend Peace) is the beneficiary, that is because we are using his card to pay for the treatments.

Here is an update regarding the treatment for my CRPS:

Hello, again, Friends and Good Samaritans,

Drastic change in circumstances has led to a drastic change in plans, and an enormous raise in the goal of this fundraiser. Help me get the word out. My pain has been so severe that I am now incredibly desperate for my life! We have had to switch to ketamine infusions, which are $890 a session. I had my first one today using what money you have generously given so far, and it brought my pain down significantly, but now that hours have passed since, the pain has climbed back up. I need more sessions to really benefit from this. CRPS is known as the most painful disease ever. It's also called the "suicide disease" for a reason. Another CRPS warrior put it so perfectly. "Life is a precious. It's a gift. It's meant to be lived. We are meant to have trials and challenges, but this is excessive." I have been fighting for a year. I can't believe my life is this Waking Nightmare. Please, please help me end the nightmare and continue on living. And thank you so much in advance. Anything you can spare, along with sharing and inviting, goes a long way.
Once upon a time I was so happy. The only reason I'm still alive now is because I have people who love me so much.
Once again, I want to emphasize that It is so hard for me to ask for more when you all have given me so much already. I recognize that this is a financially difficult time for everyone, and I understand if some of you may not be able to help at this time or help as much as you normally would. But if there is any way that you can help out (again) it would be deeply appreciated and would make an immense difference in our lives. Peace and I are doing everything we can to try to pay for these treatments, but our money is getting drained fast.

For the Good Samaritan Strangers, my story:

Two weeks before June 22nd, I fell down some stairs carrying too much laundry. My foot twisted, and my toes felt "weird." I soaked my foot in epsom salt, and when the strange, new kind of pain subsided, I got back on my feet, unaware that this new pain was from my nerves being over-stretched. The injury lay dormant as I continued to have no symptoms over the next 2 weeks except for some soreness. On June 22nd, I reached down to "crack" my toes (like cracking knuckles), and I felt the most earth-shattering pain I have ever felt.

I had torn the nerves in my foot.

And what's worse, I had developed a condition called Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS). This neuropathic condition is known as one of the most painful things a person can experience.

The next month was, not to mince words, hell.

My foot was bloated, deformed, red, and stuck like a barbie doll's. I was bombarded at all hours of every day with crushing, scraping, pulling, biting, burning pain.

My life had never been so dark, my grief and terror had never been so all-consuming.


CRPS has, among many things, cost me my job that I loved at Box Lunch, taken away work opportunities, and drained my bank account, so any money you are willing to give would really help me. (Yes, we applied for disability.)


I cannot express how much this has stolen from me.


As soon as we learned I needed to do physical therapy (PT), I started doing it every single hour of every day. I have also been on heavy medications. (But no opioids.)  I have been meditating and trying to live my life as best as I can, but everything is so much harder than it has ever been before.


Progress has been slow and daunting. I don't know how many times I have hoped against hope, tried to walk, tried to put any pressure on this foot at all, and have been met with crushing disappointment when the resulting flare-up was too painful to bear. Despite this, I choose to hope each day.


The fact that there has been progress is a very good thing. But it is so slow that after a year I still can't put any pressure on it at all and I have still been having major flare-ups and pain, and I sometimes wonder if it will ever recover enough for me to walk.


Once more I want to make known that I understand these are trying times and not everyone can give and many can only give so much. Any help is deeply, deeply appreciated.

If you can't contribute with money, share this fundraiser.


Please contribute to our cause and perhaps I will dance on my feet again!


I also just want to say I am incredibly grateful for unending love and support of my boyfriend, friends, and family.

________________________________________________________


If you want to know more about me, I'm 23 years old, and I'm a psych major studying to become a psychotherapist.


I have a passion for spirituality/religion and mysticism, and this passion goes hand in hand with my love for psychology.


I also have a deep love and reverence for nature. I love spending time in nature with my boyfriend and my family.


I'm a creative spirit and I love to sing, paint, draw, act, and write. I'm very talkative, open, and playful. It's easy to make me laugh.