Allison Larson - Life Changing Kidney Surgery

Allison is an amazing 17-year-old young woman in the San Juan Island community. She is a wonderful and beloved friend, sister, daughter, student, and a thoughtful, compassionate individual. Prior to becoming ill, she was an active volunteer at our local Animal Protection Society and Island Haven Animal Sanctuary. Allison dreams of becoming a veterinarian.  At this time, Allison is working hard just to sit up, eat food without a feeding tube and walk without the assistance of a walker.

Allison, her mom, and  her younger sister need our help as they recover from an overwhelming, unexpected year and as they continue to navigate the unpredictable healing process going forward. 

(*A Bank Account for Jeanine and her daughters has been opened at Heritage Bank in Friday Harbor, WA . The account name is "Jeanine Larson." If you wish to make a direct deposit into this account, please contact Heritage Bank at (360) [phone redacted].)

Please continue reading for a full explanation of Allison's illness.

In January of 2021, Allison fell ill with a virus. A month later, she was hospitalized at Seattle Children's Hospital for four weeks and eventually diagnosed with severe vestibular neuritis. Before Allison returned home to the island, she was told that after hard work in physical therapy, occupational therapy, and outpatient appointments she would slowly continue to heal and improve to full health over the following six months. That was March of 2021. 

 

 

August arrived but unfortunately, Allison had not improved as expected despite her determination. Her previous symptoms persisted and new symptoms had developed. Instead of getting better, Allison had continued to decline. By the end of September, she was hospitalized again at Seattle Children’s Hospital for three weeks. This resulted in a diagnosis of chronic vestibular migraines, a working diagnosis of vestibular dysfunction, and significant asymmetry from one side of her brain's vestibular system to the other was documented.

 

Allison’s daily symptoms, old and new, include chronic nausea, vomiting, fatigue, dizziness, feeling as if the world is spinning, blurred vision, stumbling/falling, brain fog, cognitive difficulties, vestibular migraines, gastrointestinal difficulties, and anxiety due to all of these symptoms. These symptoms mean Allison is unable to eat or drink by mouth. She is dependent instead on a feeding tube through her nose that slowly drips her nutritional and hydration needs into her stomach--and she still vomits a significant part of the food delivered through the tube. Prior to this difficult year, Allison loved to study, be with her friends and family, go to the beach, hike, and swim. Now, she is fully dependent on a walker for mobility. She fears she will never be able to reach her dreams. 

 

Nevertheless, Allison is persevering. She will begin participating in outpatient vestibular physical therapy twice a week, occupational therapy once a week, and follow-up appointments all at Seattle Children’s Hospital. Her therapy appointments will need to be consistent for the next 8-10 weeks. She will also continue to work with the team of specialists as they further understand and explore her symptoms and healing. She is additionally followed by a nutritionist at Seattle Children’s Hospital who is working with her to eventually begin eating and drinking by mouth again. 

 

 

None of the services Allison requires in the next few months are available on-island, and Allison's condition is such that she requires 24-hour care. Allison’s mom, Jeanine, is a hard-working single mother of two wonderful daughters. Over the past nine months, she has been dedicated to helping Allison receive the care she needs to improve. She has stayed with Allison a total of seven weeks in the hospital this year, took her to countless appointments off of the island, and now needs to stay in Seattle for the next eight to ten weeks while Allison attends her therapies and follow-up appointments.  

 

Due to all of this, Allison’s mom Jeanine has been unable to consistently work. She has utilized her sick leave, sick leave donated by colleagues, and her vacation. Her federal PMFLA hours have expired. The family will have little-to-no income over the upcoming months, which means they will have difficulty paying for food, insurance, their mortgage, and other day-to-day expenses. As if these physical, emotional, and financial hardships on this wonderful family weren't enough, the only heating system in their home recently broke. While they have a friend helping to replace the heating system,  it will still require significant dollars to replace.

 

Please donate to this wonderful island family as you are able. We know no one can rally like the San Juan Islands community. 

Allison with her grandparents, West and Sue Davis, at her middle school graduation. Prior to her illness, Allison was an exceptional student driven by her love of animals and her goal of becoming a veterinarian. 

Allison with her mom, Jeanine.

Here is a piece Allison wrote for her English teacher when she was only 12:

I am from a little planet with oceans, continents, and islands, and I am from my backyard. I am from just picked apples from Grandma’s tree, and the smell of the dog right after a bath. I am from the heat of a bowl of warm vegetable soup, and from the scent and silence of unexpected snow. 
       
I am from pictures in the clouds, pushed in and out of shapes by the wind, stretched from elephant to bird to butterfly. I am from the hopping arc of a tree frog, and it’s little splash. I am from birds scratching the ground, and the luck of finding one lost feather, left behind. 
       
I am from garter snakes sunbathing, the scurry of a mouse, and the sight of Autumn, my pig, eating dandelions. I am from pine tree branches curved in snow, and from deer bounding away from the road. I am from the frayed edges of the little holes chewed by my rabbit into my fleece, and from the dog paw prints pressed onto my pants. 
       
 I am from the space between my rabbit’s ears, and from soft, light-holding new blades of grass. I am from the rain pounding into my palm, and the sound of it filling my ears so that it’s all that I hear. 
         
I am from a country that is kind and cruel, beautiful and ugly, strong and weak, and from a people of confusion and hope. I am from what I know, that we can save our forests and grasslands and coral reef. I am from what I love. I am from the November geese flying overhead, finding their place in the V. I am from my voice.  

What I want for the world is this: that we treat each other the way we would like to be treated. That we treat animals with kindness. That our planet has a chance to recover from our destruction, that we all have shelter and safe homes, and to remember that our home is this planet.