Could you live in constant, excruciating pain if you knew there was something to relieve 90% of that pain? That's what Ryan lives with every day.  We are starting a campaign to help Ryan Hensler get relief from crippling pain, pain that keeps him from caring for his medically fragile daughter Savannah and from being a partner to his wife Lori. Because of insurance red tape, the family faces up to $5,000 in medical bills beyond their already-met in-network costs and premiums. We're here to help.

       My name is Melanie and I understand the amount of pain that Ryan Hensler is experiencing and that’s why I’ve decided to start this GoFundMe account for him.  Ryan has been in pain for several years with back pain but the past 6 years, the pain became unbearable. He sought out a specialist who told him that he suffers from spondylolisthesis at his sciatic nerves in his spine. He’s had it surgically stabilized but the nerve damage that causes the pain is permanent and won’t heal.  He’s on pain and nerve medicine 24 hours a day that makes him feel foggy and sometimes like a zombie, never mind the fact that it doesn’t cut through all the pain. What WOULD help rid him of the pain though? A SPINAL CORD STIMULATOR.

        The constant pain he feels starts in his lower back and radiates down his legs. His legs feel like they are on fire and they are sensitive to touch. Ryan has always been one to put his family first and with that attitude he goes to work everyday in pain. When he comes home, he usually has to lie down due to the pain and isn’t able to do as much as he’d like in the evenings. He hasn’t sought a solution for this back pain the past few years because his daughter’s care has been his priority.  Savannah has come first, but now, with the encouragement of Lori, he’s ready to deal with his pain.

        He went in for a trial of a spinal cord stimulator and the results were astounding. The stimulator trial gave him an 85-90% reduction in his normal, medicated pain level but he was on NO MEDS. No pain meds, no nerve meds! Literally night and day, life-changing, life-improving reduction in daily pain. What the spinal cord stimulator does is send special pulses to the nerves to confuse the pain signals that his damaged nerves send constantly and it basically blocks the pain.  

       After having this trial of the the stimulator, Ryan and Lori received a bill that showed their trial was OUT OF NETWORK for their insurance. They couldn’t understand because the place they had the trial was INSIDE his clinic, where he’s always been treated (in network). Well, come to find out, the surgery clinic inside his regular clinic isn’t in network, but they are the ones who do the spinal cord stimulator. Lori has gone back and forth with the insurance company and the clinic and MAY be able to make an arrangement in place for them not to have to pay the full out of network fee for the trial, but rather closer to their remaining out of pocket costs of $1,700.  What’s more concerning is that they’ve put the time and effort into finding a pain doctor, setting up and having the trial, and now regrettably finding out the surgery clinic for the spinal cord stimulator is outside their insurance network. Could they find another doctor/clinic within their network? Possibly. But it would also mean Ryan would be set back 6-9 months because the entire process would have to be started over. Could you live in excruciating pain for another 6-9 months? Or would you just like it to be over? I know MY answer would be to go through with it.  Because Lori has spent a few days on the phone with the providers, she's negotiated the price of the surgery to be closer to what their "in network" price would be.  So instead of the possible, $28,000 out of network price tag, they will only owe $5,000 overall for the surgery and trial.   THIS IS WHY I’M ASKING FOR YOUR HELP and STARTING THIS GOFUNDME. I realize that friends and family have helped The Hensler family before, but it was for Savannah! I’m supporting Ryan and telling him by setting up this GoFundMe that his health is important too and he can’t take care of his family unless you takes care of himself. That’s why I’m encouraging him to go ahead with the placement of this spinal cord stimulator; I know it would enrich his life. I know if he had it placed and could go off of some or all of his pain medicine, that he’d feel more like a “real person” and be more present for his family. He’d be able to get on the floor and play with Savannah. They would be able to make plans to do things with Savannah like go to the zoo or even just go for a nice walk without having to make everything revolve around his pain. Right now, everything depends on if he can handle going anywhere. Most of the time the answer is no, so on top of Savannah’s limited ability to go out, they can’t even do the things she COULD do because Ryan is in too much pain. So will you please join me in supporting Ryan getting relief from his back issue? All we need is a small donation from several people to reach the $5,000 needed to pay for the trial and surgery co-pays.


I WANT TO THANK YOU IN ADVANCE. I KNOW SEVERAL OF YOU HAVE HELPED THEIR FAMILY IN THE PAST FOR SAVANNAH. I CAN’T EVEN BEGIN TO TELL YOU HOW TOUCHING IT IS THAT YOU’D ALSO SUPPORT RYAN’S HEALTH.      -Melanie



YOU CAN CHANGE THE FEE YOU "TIP" TO GOFUNDME BY CHANGING THE PERCENTAGE (TO ANOTHER AMOUNT OR "OTHER") AND THE CORRESPONDING DOLLAR AMOUNT.   THIS WILL BE A FEE ON TOP OF YOUR DONATION.