Liya Luoma Love
Donation protected
If you know Liya Luoma, odds are pretty good you love Liya Luoma. Whether she's sat you down to tell you some hard things about yourself, helped you care for your kids (maybe day or night, while your partner fought cancer or you went through a divorce), listened to you work out your troubles while styling your hair, fed you her famous pulled pork sandwiches, or just been your friend, Liya is there for everybody. She shows up, period. And now, she needs us to.
Almost ten years ago, Liya began to suffer from a series of confounding health issues. She dealt with inexplicable infections in her skin, lungs, and appendix (which also revealed cancerous growths), terrible pain, and an inability to digest most food without breathtaking pain and difficulty. She managed them and lived with them, and to most of us, her fight was invisible. But in the last three years, she has gotten so sick that even she can't hide it. She has endured three major surgeries in three years, countless fruitless medical procedures, and more pain than most people could live through. Her psoriatic arthritis, fibromyalgia, myofascial pain syndrome, and dysfunctional bowel have all but immobilized her. Worse, her autoimmune conditions make her much more likely to get sicker, develop additional autoimmune diseases, if she doesn't stabilize her health and reduce her inflammation. To do this, doctors recommended a drastic step: remove her colon. This is a lifechanging operation. Because of incredible medical advances, rather than live the rest of her life with a colostomy bag, Liya's small intestine can be used in place of her dysfunctional colon, which will allow her to digest food, addressing the number one issue she is facing. Allowing waste to efficiently leave her body should lower her inflammation, and allow her body to "settle," so her immune system can stop attacking its own body, and her body can finally receive the nutrients and rest required for healing.
As anyone who has ever needed any major medical care knows, this kind of procedure is terrifically expensive. Insurance makes a dent in the cost of the surgery, but the balance, plus the cost of the time from work that her husband must take to care for her, and the cost of her ongoing recovery are burdensome. Because of her health, Liya has been unable to work for the last year, and has amassed significant medical debt arriving at these diagnoses and treatment plan, so the family are uniquely unable to pay for these costs. Making matters more challenging is the fact that, during this time, her home has needed significant repairs. They need help.
We're asking, because they won't, if you can help. Thank you so much.
Almost ten years ago, Liya began to suffer from a series of confounding health issues. She dealt with inexplicable infections in her skin, lungs, and appendix (which also revealed cancerous growths), terrible pain, and an inability to digest most food without breathtaking pain and difficulty. She managed them and lived with them, and to most of us, her fight was invisible. But in the last three years, she has gotten so sick that even she can't hide it. She has endured three major surgeries in three years, countless fruitless medical procedures, and more pain than most people could live through. Her psoriatic arthritis, fibromyalgia, myofascial pain syndrome, and dysfunctional bowel have all but immobilized her. Worse, her autoimmune conditions make her much more likely to get sicker, develop additional autoimmune diseases, if she doesn't stabilize her health and reduce her inflammation. To do this, doctors recommended a drastic step: remove her colon. This is a lifechanging operation. Because of incredible medical advances, rather than live the rest of her life with a colostomy bag, Liya's small intestine can be used in place of her dysfunctional colon, which will allow her to digest food, addressing the number one issue she is facing. Allowing waste to efficiently leave her body should lower her inflammation, and allow her body to "settle," so her immune system can stop attacking its own body, and her body can finally receive the nutrients and rest required for healing.
As anyone who has ever needed any major medical care knows, this kind of procedure is terrifically expensive. Insurance makes a dent in the cost of the surgery, but the balance, plus the cost of the time from work that her husband must take to care for her, and the cost of her ongoing recovery are burdensome. Because of her health, Liya has been unable to work for the last year, and has amassed significant medical debt arriving at these diagnoses and treatment plan, so the family are uniquely unable to pay for these costs. Making matters more challenging is the fact that, during this time, her home has needed significant repairs. They need help.
We're asking, because they won't, if you can help. Thank you so much.
Co-organizers (2)
Liya Luoma
Organizer
Duluth, MN
Maiya Luoma-Cervantes
Co-organizer