Raising for Ritchie
Donation protected
As most of you may know Ritchie has been suffering from severe mental health issues, meaning that he has been too ill to leave the house, see any of his friends, or do any simple household tasks for the last 4 years. Mental Health diseases are invisible but the physical effects on Ritchie’s movement, speech and ability to self-care is as transparent as a physical disability. This has been heart-breaking for those of us who are close to Ritchie, especially his son Bailey, who, from the age of 13 has been living with and caring for his dad, all while trying to balance all of the other pressures of being a teenage boy.
Ritchie has had several treatments within the NHS, including many in-patient stays, however as we all know, the NHS is sadly severely underfunded, particularly in the mental health sector. We are reaching the point where they are giving up on Ritchie, who has been officially discharged from consultant care in the NHS since February. This is where we now need your help. We must not give up! We are looking to pay for a private consultant to get their opinion and advice on the best options and treatment for Ritchie, however as you can imagine it is not cheap. We are setting up this page to try and raise the funds to get Ritchie on the right treatment path for this condition and we would all appreciate your donations, big or small. We know times are tough right now during the pandemic, but every penny really does count.
We all remember Ritchie as the loving, kind, humble man that he is, and we are asking for small contributions to try and get him back to the person he used to be and who we miss so much
Please follow the link to donate and find out more about Ritchie’s situation.
What is the story for those who don’t know him?
Even the professionals are unclear on what triggered Ritchie’s illness, and led him to be in the condition he is now. Four years ago, Ritchie began to suffer with depression, which has since spiralled into a crippling state of severe anxiety, depression and psychosis rendering him completely unable to live anything resembling a normal life. Some more of what Ritchie is dealing with daily are outlined below.
What is it like day to day?
· Depression
· Anxiety
· Psychosis
· Struggles to wash
· Cannot leave the house, exercise or sleep
· Constant state of fear and anxiety
· Inability to control his shaking
· Loss of weight.
· Difficult to pull a sentence together.
What will the benefit be?
Ritchie has gone through the NHS system and as much as we appreciate our great health service, sometimes patients don’t get the support and help they need. We have been advised to seek help privately to help move Ritchie’s condition forwards. This will involve having an initial appointment and review of previous medical treatments with the hope that Ritchie can be transferred back to the NHS on an appropriate treatment path. As many of you are aware going privately isn’t cheap. Ritchie hasn’t been able to work in the last 4 years and cannot afford to invest in his own future. We hope that through the generosity of his family and friends, we can raise enough money to finally get Ritchie moving in the right direction and back to the great man that we all know and love.
How much do we want to raise?
We are setting ourselves an initial target of £3500 to begin with. We hope that with through the generosity of his family and friends, we can raise enough money to finally get Ritchie moving in the right direction and back to being the great dad, son and friend we all miss. Every penny really will count.
How will we spend the money?
We are intending to pay for some initial private consultations with the view to act on the recommendations of the specialist. This will include:
· Initial appointment with a private consultant psychiatrist (~£500).
· Potential follow up appointments (~£250)
· Further treatment (TBC)
When?
My dream would be that 2021 is the year Ritchie transforms into the Ritchie we all know and love. Wouldn’t it be amazing to get Ritchie the Dad, the Son and the Friend back that we all know and love so much?
Thank you all for taking the time to read Ritchie’s story and for any donations.
Bailey and Maddy x
Ritchie has had several treatments within the NHS, including many in-patient stays, however as we all know, the NHS is sadly severely underfunded, particularly in the mental health sector. We are reaching the point where they are giving up on Ritchie, who has been officially discharged from consultant care in the NHS since February. This is where we now need your help. We must not give up! We are looking to pay for a private consultant to get their opinion and advice on the best options and treatment for Ritchie, however as you can imagine it is not cheap. We are setting up this page to try and raise the funds to get Ritchie on the right treatment path for this condition and we would all appreciate your donations, big or small. We know times are tough right now during the pandemic, but every penny really does count.
We all remember Ritchie as the loving, kind, humble man that he is, and we are asking for small contributions to try and get him back to the person he used to be and who we miss so much
Please follow the link to donate and find out more about Ritchie’s situation.
What is the story for those who don’t know him?
Even the professionals are unclear on what triggered Ritchie’s illness, and led him to be in the condition he is now. Four years ago, Ritchie began to suffer with depression, which has since spiralled into a crippling state of severe anxiety, depression and psychosis rendering him completely unable to live anything resembling a normal life. Some more of what Ritchie is dealing with daily are outlined below.
What is it like day to day?
· Depression
· Anxiety
· Psychosis
· Struggles to wash
· Cannot leave the house, exercise or sleep
· Constant state of fear and anxiety
· Inability to control his shaking
· Loss of weight.
· Difficult to pull a sentence together.
What will the benefit be?
Ritchie has gone through the NHS system and as much as we appreciate our great health service, sometimes patients don’t get the support and help they need. We have been advised to seek help privately to help move Ritchie’s condition forwards. This will involve having an initial appointment and review of previous medical treatments with the hope that Ritchie can be transferred back to the NHS on an appropriate treatment path. As many of you are aware going privately isn’t cheap. Ritchie hasn’t been able to work in the last 4 years and cannot afford to invest in his own future. We hope that through the generosity of his family and friends, we can raise enough money to finally get Ritchie moving in the right direction and back to the great man that we all know and love.
How much do we want to raise?
We are setting ourselves an initial target of £3500 to begin with. We hope that with through the generosity of his family and friends, we can raise enough money to finally get Ritchie moving in the right direction and back to being the great dad, son and friend we all miss. Every penny really will count.
How will we spend the money?
We are intending to pay for some initial private consultations with the view to act on the recommendations of the specialist. This will include:
· Initial appointment with a private consultant psychiatrist (~£500).
· Potential follow up appointments (~£250)
· Further treatment (TBC)
When?
My dream would be that 2021 is the year Ritchie transforms into the Ritchie we all know and love. Wouldn’t it be amazing to get Ritchie the Dad, the Son and the Friend back that we all know and love so much?
Thank you all for taking the time to read Ritchie’s story and for any donations.
Bailey and Maddy x
Organizer
Maddy Moore
Organizer
England
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