Please Help Me Heal!
To those of you in the know: the time is finally here! I am determined to beat my M.S. and Lyme diagnoses and I have 2 neurologists who have both recommended that I attend a special treatment center in Reno. Our insurance won't cover any of the treatments so we need to put together a lot of money in a short amount of time. Our goal is for me to start my treatment on July 9th and go for 5 weeks (though it might require a longer stay). There is no way I can get better without your help.
To those of you who are learning about me for the first time, I am a 34 year old mother of 2 who desperately wants to get well and live life the way it is meant to be lived. I was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis in 2008 after I had a scary episode at work in 2007 where I was literally unable to move my arms or legs. Since then I've been trying to live a "normal" life as best as I can and have focused on trying to manage my symptoms. It is definitely a challenge to live with mind-numbing fatigue, nerve pain, limb weakness, tremors, anxiety, hearing loss, and cognitive issues. As time has gone on, my abilities have slowly been stripped away.
My kids and my husband have endured my illness by my side. My son, who is 10, can still remember what having a healthy mom is like and my daughter, who is 5, has never known me to be well. In fact, she is often afraid to be left alone with me because she doesn't have the confidence that I will be able to take care of her. We are very thankful for all of our understanding family, friends, neighbors, and fellow church members at First Covenant in Rancho Cordova who have stepped up and offered to help with the kids and brought us dinners when we were not able to handle it by ourselves.
My husband, who is a full-time realtor, runs his business from home and takes care of the kids, the house, the dinners, the chores, and the errands. I have been so frustrated with the my deteriorating condition because I feel like I am such a liability. It is not fair for him to have to shoulder this huge burden. Every year ends worse than the year before and I am tired of it.
In December of 2012 I was referred to a new neurologist who actually took a look at my blood under a microscope (not just ran antibody tests). He found it infested with spirochete bacteria and recommended that I get a Lyme test. Guess what! Came back positive! It was a big revelation as to why my symptoms have been so much worse than the average MS patient.
So after suffering for the last 6 years, I actually have a ray of hope! The problem is that Lyme disease treatment is HIGHLY controversial. When I called to make an appointment with a new doctor (for another opinion), the receptionist told me to make sure I tell them it is in regards to the MS diagnosis and not Lyme otherwise he will not see me. Feel free to check out the documentary "Under Our Skin" or this YouTube video of the Dr. Phil show covering the same topic: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-SqunhDL_p4. Cheap antibiotics would normally work for someone who just became infected but I am considered to have late term neurological Lyme disease for which there is no conventional cure. The only approach is alternative therapy which is not covered by insurance.
I have thoroughly researched this facility in Reno and interviewed other people who have gone there with various levels of success. The doctor wants me to stay there for 5 weeks and undergo treatment 6 days a week. This kind of therapy is not cheap but this is the only way to effectively kill the spirochetes which can borough themselves deep in the tissues, brain, and bones and can protect themselves from attacks by creating a cocoon-like substance called biofilm. I need your help. The goal is to raise $25,000 in about a month.
I am so close to my recovery. I am on the last leg of my journey I can almost taste it! I so desperately want to get better and work again and not be a burden on my family. Even my neurologist, who knows me very well after 5 years, told me he'd help me get a job in the healthcare field. All of this pain and struggle will actually amount to something. Every lesson I've learned, all the pain I've endured. It will not be in vain! I cannot wait to help so many other people who are struggling and I am SO close!
I'd like to close by asking each one of you to put yourselves in my position. It's been a long journey and I have endured every emotion possible. If I don't get treatment, my condition will continue to decline and the longer I wait, the less hope I will have of ever regaining what I have lost. There is a sense of urgency and I am working with borrowed time. I have never been more scared to death but I've never had more hope. Please forward this to everyone you know. Every dollar helps.
