Hello, firstly I’d like to thank you for taking the time to read my friend’s story. My name is Ciana Breden. My dear friend, Jasmine Turner, was unexpectedly diagnosed with an extremely rare disease on December 27th, 2024.

She was living a happy, healthy life and on Christmas Eve, 2024, she woke up to get ready for work. She noticed something was off but couldn’t put her finger on what, she was having trouble making the connection to tell her body to do certain tasks. She said she smiled at herself in the mirror and it didn’t look like her own smile. She ended up going to work anyway and as she got there felt like she was going to faint. She was then transported to the hospital by ambulance. Later to find in an MRI, that she had had two small strokes. One on each side of her brain. Other findings were that the right side was actually an old stroke, approximating it happened a month prior, around Thanksgiving. At only 27 years old, they were doing all sorts of tests as to why this could happen.

Jasmine is an amazing friend, and person. Always helping others, there for her friends and family whenever they need. She and I have known each other since middle school, and friends for 15 years. Jasmine worked at my family restaurant (The Big Belly Deli, in downtown Sykesville) for 8 years. She was an amazingly hard worker and we are eternally grateful to have had her as an employee and a friend. We were so sad the day she moved and couldn't work with us anymore! Over the many years of laughs and love, she was family to us.

After many tests in the hospital, they finally found the cause of her unexpected strokes. Jasmine’s diagnosis was made– Moyamoya Disease. Moyamoya is a progressive disease. A rare condition in which the blood vessels (internal carotid arteries) that supply blood to the brain become narrowed. This limits the flow of blood to the brain, and puts them at risk for stroke. The brain tries to make up for reduced blood flow by growing new blood vessels, called collaterals.

Her treatment plan will look like two separate surgeries on both sides of her brain to bypass the narrowing vessels. They will start with the right side (because more damage was caused on that side) and she will need to recover for a month before they begin the surgery on the left side, and recovery will be another month after the second surgery, as long as everything goes smoothly.

My friends and I want to help Jasmine as much as possible during this turbulent time, we know she would do the same for anyone! She has had the scare of a lifetime and we are supporting her 100% of the way! We are asking for any amount of donation for her. She will be out of work for several months at best. Even just a few dollars will help, it all adds up. Thank you so much for reading this information, it truly means a lot to me and my family community.

Please keep Jasmine in your thoughts and prayers.