Help Support Vanessa Through a Medical Crisis She Can’t Fix Alone

My sister, Vanessa, is one of the strongest and most capable people I know. She has spent over 30 years in healthcare — including 23 years as a nurse — caring for others, solving problems, and pushing through challenges without complaint. She’s the one everyone counts on. She’s the one who always figures it out.

Right now, she can’t.

Since September 2nd, Vanessa’s life has been completely upended by a rare and painful spinal condition called Bertolotti’s Syndrome. What began as lower back pain rapidly progressed into debilitating nerve pain, leg weakness, several falls, and the inability to stand, sit, or walk without severe pain.

After months of appointments, imaging, procedures, and even a hospital admission, she now intermittently relies on a walker and is unable to work.

In just the last four months, Vanessa has endured:

    •    Multiple primary care, spine surgeon, physiatry, and neurosurgery appointments

    •    An emergency room visit and hospital admission

    •    CT scan, MRIs, EMG testing, epidurals, nerve root block, and SI joint injections

    •    Ongoing physical therapy

    •    Constant nerve pain in both legs, muscle weakness and atrophy in her right leg, and difficulty walking that sometimes requires a walker.

Despite all of this, there are still no clear answers.

Surgery may be an option, but it carries significant risk.

Vanessa is now under the care of Barrow’s Neurological Institute, hoping to find a treatment plan that finally brings relief.

Because of her condition, Vanessa has been out of work for over four months, with her leave now extended further. The financial strain is growing quickly. Lost income, mounting medical bills, prescriptions, and everyday living expenses are piling up — all while she’s doing everything she can just to get through each day.

With all of her sick leave depleted, Vanessa is now responsible for covering the full cost of her employer-sponsored health insurance — insurance she desperately needs in order to continue receiving care. She is also a single mother with a daughter in nursing school. Her greatest wish is for her daughter to focus on her education and future, not worry about whether her mom can keep everything afloat.

This GoFundMe is not about pity.

It’s about support.

It’s about giving a lifelong caregiver the space to focus on healing instead of worrying about how to pay the bills. It’s about easing the financial pressure while she searches for answers, treatment, and a path forward.

If you’re able to donate, please know that every contribution — no matter the size — truly helps. If you’re unable to donate, sharing this fundraiser means just as much.

Thank you for showing up for someone who has spent her entire career showing up for others.

With love and gratitude,

Kim