This campaign is administered by ME-International, a 501(c) global non-profit. Our relief committee helps members with resources. She must remain anonymous while her disability retirement application is being processed, but her situation has been thoroughly screened and verified by the committee. All donations are managed by the organization and distributed with full accountability. Regular updates will be posted to this page.
Who She Is
In Portugal, a woman is navigating one of the hardest periods of her life — completely alone, no income, no family nearby, no partner, no safety net of any kind. She lives with severe Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (M.E.) — a serious neurological and multi-system illness that is extremely debilitating. She has also survived two strokes, one of which caused a serious accident, leaving her with lasting spinal and traumatic brain injuries. On top of this, she manages cardiovascular complications and Fibromyalgia. She is now facing serious spinal surgery and has been bedbound since 2022.
She is not someone who asks for help. She has kept going — through illness, loss, and now a financial crisis and a severe worsening of her condition, through no fault of her own.
How Did She Get Here
Having been diagnosed with M.E. as a college student, she pushed through and managed to work for many years until she could work no more. With no liquid assets and no income, she has now applied for disability retirement.
What She Needs
She is waiting for a decision on her disability pension application. She must wait potentially 6 months or more — with no income in the meantime. While she waits, the bills continue to pile up, and at the moment she is going without urgent medication, facing the threat of utilities being turned off, and a lack of food.
Her verified monthly needs total $1,100 for essentials only: food and hygiene, medical treatment, medication, energy and water bills, phone, and transport to appointments. There is no cushion in this figure.
$25 helps cover part of a month's medication; $50 provides food and transport to medical appointments; $100 covers one month of energy and water bills — keeping the lights on and her medical equipment running.
Every amount matters — because right now, every dollar matters to her. If you can give, please do. If you can share, that matters too.