Keeping Krystal Strong
Donation protected
Krystal – Heart of Gladiator (Camper Edition)
Since 2011, Krystal has struggled through consistent gout attacks, a form of inflammatory arthritis that develops in some people who have high levels of uric acid in the blood, causing sudden, severe episodes of pain, tenderness, and swelling. Not having medical insurance, Krystal has had to work through the pain for years, proving to be even more difficult as her gout attacks severely affect her daily functioning and ability to work. Thanks to an old co-worker, Krystal was able to participate in a gout study that was able to identify some underlying problems in addition to the gout. Krystal was diagnosed with a genetic disorder called Uromodulin Kidney Disease (UKD), which over time causes renal failure; UKD accounts for less than 1% of cases of kidney disease!
After 5 years of struggling with UKD, Krystal has been notified that her condition has dropped so severely that she is in the last stages of renal failure and that as of January 2017 would need to be on the transplant list and consider dialysis moving forward. Those on the transplant list typically have to wait 8-10 years for a donor. Krystal luckily had acquired health insurance to help move forward, but working with the transplant institute would mean working through financial and mental health issues that most would never dream of going through.
With the amazing relationships CG has helped establish Krystal now has an amazing donor in place, but this is only the beginning of her journey. She continues to work closely with her doctors to prepare her for her surgery. If all goes well, this could take place as soon as mid-January/early February and while this is certainly a blessing, it comes with its fair share of obstacles.
Post-surgery, Krystal will need to be on 5 different medications to make sure she is well both mentally and physically and that she does not reject the kidney. Until her medications are adjusted correctly, she may have to go through getting worse before getting better. This in mind, she has shared that she is fearful of what that means with the responsibility of her job as the main source of income, bills, and providing for her family that consists of her long time love Brandon, a young son Shaidon and stepdaughter Lex. The deductible alone for her surgery is $5,000!
What is amazing is that Krystal continues to attend camp, describing it as the one happy place where she can zone out and not think about anything else going on outside of that hour-outside with the community she considers family. Krystal plans to continue to attend camp until her doctors tell her that she absolutely cannot. The words inspiration, tenacious, loving, determined, do not begin to describe the type of person that Krystal is and as her CG family, we hope to provide her with any type of help that we can contribute. It is our goal to provide as much assistance to alleviate both the financial and emotional burdens following a major surgery while not being able to work, costs of the deductible, and medications. We ask you to share her story, to give what you can, and to send prayers, good vibes, and loving thoughts.
We hope to reach our goal of $8000 by the time her surgery takes place but her and her famiy will be happy with any assistance we are able to provide! If you can not make a monetary donation at this time we will be setting up a food chain to help with meals during the time of her surgery and pre-op. Be on the look out for further details as we get closer to op time.
Thank you for taking the time to read and share!
To Read Krystal's full story click here
Since 2011, Krystal has struggled through consistent gout attacks, a form of inflammatory arthritis that develops in some people who have high levels of uric acid in the blood, causing sudden, severe episodes of pain, tenderness, and swelling. Not having medical insurance, Krystal has had to work through the pain for years, proving to be even more difficult as her gout attacks severely affect her daily functioning and ability to work. Thanks to an old co-worker, Krystal was able to participate in a gout study that was able to identify some underlying problems in addition to the gout. Krystal was diagnosed with a genetic disorder called Uromodulin Kidney Disease (UKD), which over time causes renal failure; UKD accounts for less than 1% of cases of kidney disease!
After 5 years of struggling with UKD, Krystal has been notified that her condition has dropped so severely that she is in the last stages of renal failure and that as of January 2017 would need to be on the transplant list and consider dialysis moving forward. Those on the transplant list typically have to wait 8-10 years for a donor. Krystal luckily had acquired health insurance to help move forward, but working with the transplant institute would mean working through financial and mental health issues that most would never dream of going through.
With the amazing relationships CG has helped establish Krystal now has an amazing donor in place, but this is only the beginning of her journey. She continues to work closely with her doctors to prepare her for her surgery. If all goes well, this could take place as soon as mid-January/early February and while this is certainly a blessing, it comes with its fair share of obstacles.
Post-surgery, Krystal will need to be on 5 different medications to make sure she is well both mentally and physically and that she does not reject the kidney. Until her medications are adjusted correctly, she may have to go through getting worse before getting better. This in mind, she has shared that she is fearful of what that means with the responsibility of her job as the main source of income, bills, and providing for her family that consists of her long time love Brandon, a young son Shaidon and stepdaughter Lex. The deductible alone for her surgery is $5,000!
What is amazing is that Krystal continues to attend camp, describing it as the one happy place where she can zone out and not think about anything else going on outside of that hour-outside with the community she considers family. Krystal plans to continue to attend camp until her doctors tell her that she absolutely cannot. The words inspiration, tenacious, loving, determined, do not begin to describe the type of person that Krystal is and as her CG family, we hope to provide her with any type of help that we can contribute. It is our goal to provide as much assistance to alleviate both the financial and emotional burdens following a major surgery while not being able to work, costs of the deductible, and medications. We ask you to share her story, to give what you can, and to send prayers, good vibes, and loving thoughts.
We hope to reach our goal of $8000 by the time her surgery takes place but her and her famiy will be happy with any assistance we are able to provide! If you can not make a monetary donation at this time we will be setting up a food chain to help with meals during the time of her surgery and pre-op. Be on the look out for further details as we get closer to op time.
Thank you for taking the time to read and share!
To Read Krystal's full story click here
Organizer and beneficiary
Amber Rose Gonzales
Organizer
San Antonio, TX
Krystal Erekson
Beneficiary
