Help Ixchel Pay Her Medical Bills

Hi, my name is Sara, and I am raising funds for a very dear friend and teacher I met while traveling in Guatemala. My friend, Ixchel Coy IQ, is an indigenous Mayan Guatemalan activist and lover of books (especially Noam Chomsky) and suffers from a debilitating autoimmune disorder with little to no access to affordable healthcare to treat it.

Not too long ago, and very suddenly, Ixchel was diagnosed with a rare thyroid condition and blood problem, which causes red blood cell loss. Effectively, this condition destroys her red blood cells, and she becomes severely anemic. As with many autoimmune disorders, doctors have not figured out why this is happening. She needs to receive steroid injections every other day, conduct weekly lab tests, and attend regular doctor visits to treat her condition. Since there are no specialized services in public hospitals in Guatemala, she must be treated in private clinics, and the costs are high. Each steroid treatment costs approximately $117. Doctor visits are $20, and weekly lab work is $10. If she does not receive the steroids, her anemia worsens, becoming weak and tired. She also suffers from thyroid problems; her hyperthyroidism can cause dangerously low levels of TSH without treatments. In other words, it can be fatal.

Additionally, Ixchel has had to go into hiding, leaving most of her family behind. For some time now, she has been the victim of extortionists. Seeking help, she went to the police to identify her extortionists, but her life was threatened, and she had to flee the town that she had lived in her whole life. Since the police are often a part of these criminal organizations in Guatemala, she does not believe they will protect her. She is now attempting to start a new life in another country.

My goal is to raise $5,500.00 to cover her medical expenses for the near future as she puts her life back together and considers the next step for her and her loved ones. With the COVID pandemic, she has no way of earning extra money to pay for treatments since her work as an educator has all but ceased. Guatemala is experiencing severe inflation, social and political instability, and restricted access to healthcare and food.

I hope that with the crowdfunding campaign, Ixchel will be able to rebuild her life and protect her family as she considers her next move, one that will be potentially out of the country where she can live safely and find work. Please feel free to share this campaign with others, but please do not post it online on social media networks as we are greatly concerned for her safety.