Support for Sara

Sara is my best friend.  She is beautiful, smart and absolutely hilarious.  She has always been so caring and supportive of all her friends and family and it's important for me to do whatever I can to help her since she was suddenly hospitalized and forced to deal with an immobilizing condition that is quickly wreaking havoc financially in her life.  I cant imagine Sara trying to focus on her recovery, which wont be overnight, while having to be concerned with the mounting bills and stress awaiting her at home.
On January 10th Sara worked her last shift at the Griffin Pub in Comox.  She wasn't feeling herself but finished her shift and went home.  The next morning she couldn't walk and had limited use of her hands and she was very tired.  She assumed she had some kind of flu and slept most of the day, only to realize when she woke up she still couldn't use her arms or legs and the weakness hadn't passed.  She checked into St. Josephs Hospital on January 12th,  two days later she was transferred to a Neurologist in Victoria for testing and remains there today with no expected release date.
Sara now resides on the Rehabilitation Floor at Victoria General Hospital with a diagnosis of Transverse Myelitis. 
Sara is hopeful with time she will back to her old self but because of her diagnosis Doctors are unable to tell her when or if she will be better.  She is working hard at her recovery and looking forward to being moved to a new Hospital or Rehab Program that may get her closer to her friends and family so she doesn't have to spend her days alone in Victoria.
Transverse Myelitis is Neurological Condition caused by inflammation of the Spinal Cord.  There is no cure for TM except for time and Physical Therapy. She has undergone multiple MRI's and a Spinal Tap that caused some complications, but thankfully with Pain Medication and Steroids she is doing better today than she was 3 weeks ago.
In 24 hours Sara went from a young, vibrant, independant woman to hospitilized and immobilized.  Because she is in Victoria until a bed opens up for her elsewhere (hopefully closer to her friends, family and home in Comox!) she is mostly alone with the exception of her Mother who travels from the US to be with her as much as possible - but because of the time and expense she is unable to stay there with her fulltime.
I think we can all imagine the hardship we would face if we were suddenly unable to work for an extended period of time.  Sara was a server who took care of herself on her tips and her ability to work long hours and multiple jobs.  Unfortunately for her a serving job on paper equates to minimum support on Medical EI.  The stress of the unknown - when she can go home and when she can return to work - has been taking its toll and I am hoping with our donations and well wishes we can help Sara to focus on her health and her recovery and to not worry about how she will afford her basic expenses for the next 30 days.  Thank you for your support!