Samantha Robichaud

Hi. My name is Samantha Robichaud. For those of u who know me, u know this isn't easy for me. For those of u that don't know me, I'm asking for help which is not easy for me to do because I feel like u have to help urself and I try to most of the time. I'm used to helping others, not asking for help. Anyway, I have a condition called port wine sturge weber syndrome. I was born with it and I have several complications because of it. It leaves my face with a red or purple color (depending on my mood). I also suffer from glaucoma in both eyes, which causes be to be blind in the right. I also have migraine headaches which cause me to go totally paralyzed on my left side for varying amounts if time. With this being said, I've been very blessed to be healthly most of my life. I am 47 years old and I live in a small town in Alabama. Because my condition is so rare, it's hard to find doctors that know anything about it, and even harder because I don't live in a larger city. The past 2 years I've been having some neurological issues. Ive been to the emergancy room and to the doctors here and noone seems to be able to help. I have had 2 very close calls with death. Ive actually seen God y'all. Because of these new arrising episodes, I've been actively looking for a doctor that can give me some answers. After some research, I have found that the Kennidy Krieger institute and Johns Hopkins Medical center in Baltimore, Maryland have doctors that specialize in sturge weber syndrome. I have an appointment to go up there on October 4th and 5th. If I can get up there, all my medical bills will be taken care of through a grant. The problem is getting up there. I need money for traveling expenses and food and lodging expenses. Y'all, it's hard for me to reach out, but I am scared something is going on. I don't know if it's my age, my condition progressing, or a combination of both, but I really need to find out all I can about how to take care of myself because the doctors here aren't helping. I have a husband, 2 grown children, and 3 grandbabies that I love dearly and I'm trying to stay healthy for. Going to Baltimore will help me find out what is going on with myself and also allow the doctors to study me and learn more about my condition and maybe help find a cause and a cure that could help someone else. I don't know if I'll whine up having to make a 2nd trip for surgery or what. All I know is I really need to take this opperunity to be able to see a team of doctors that have an abundance of knowledge on my condition.  If u feel led to help me, I would be truly humbled and grateful. I thank u from the bottom of my heart and soul. If u cant, I am just grateful that u read my story and i got the chance to explain my condition to u so that u might know what it is if u ever see anyone else like me. Thank u for ur time just to listen. God bless u