Hello! I created this gofundme for my friend Sarah - here is her story:

Hi, my name is Sarah. For the past 2 years I have suffered tremendous pain from an unknown source. In the process of searching for the source of the pain, I have been hospitalized on 2 different occasions, one of which they removed my gallbladder. Unfortunately that was not the culprit and the pain continued. I received more testing which then showed that the pain was stemming from my back. After MRIs and CAT scans, they found 6 different discs throughout the cervical thoracic and lumbar areas that are bulging and/or have tears in them. I also have degenerative disc disease and acute spondylolisthesis causing my L5 to slip 22mm anytime I bend forward. The reason it is able to slip so far is due to a bilateral pars defect (fractured bone on both sides of the L5) - in layman’s terms, I have a broken back.

With this new information, it was recommended that I have back surgery (posterior lumbar interbody fusion) which requires rods and screws to align the back and a bone graft to help with the fusion.

I am currently in a hospital bed on day 10 after having the initial 4.5 hour surgery, which was only supposed to be a 3-day hospitalization, however I was put under for a second surgery due to a spinal hematoma (blood was pooling in my spine, causing numbness in my right leg)

I am still in excruciating pain and unable to use my right leg, but hoping rehabilitation will help with that I am trying my best to keep a positive mindset however there is a looming concern regarding the unexpected costs of the extended hospital stay, as well as the additional surgery and rehabilitation facility that I will need in order to walk again.

I understand that extra funds are not always available and that it’s difficult to just scrape by these days, but any amount would be greatly appreciated and so very helpful. I will be out of work for approximately 3-4 months and my disability insurance is only good for 6 weeks. I have a long road to recovery. Even simple tasks, such as brushing my teeth, are difficult post-surgery and many things I will be unable to do for several months. I am hopeful that easing the financial burden will ensure that I can focus fully on healing and physical therapy. I am determined to get through this and get back to doing mundane tasks without pain. Ultimately I hope to get back out on the hiking trails as well! Thank you all so much for taking the time to read this. I am truly grateful for any contribution, whether it is monetary, or just good old fashioned thoughts and prayers ❤️ ~ Sarah