Stand by Lisa: Medical Crisis & Urgent Support Needed

My name is Krissie, and I am blessed to say that I am Lisa Quinn’s daughter. The strongest, kindest, most courageous, and fiercely independent woman I’ve ever had the privilege of meeting, let alone getting to call my mother.

Throughout my life, it has always been my mom and me. We were lucky enough to have my wonderful grandparents, and we still cherish them, carry them with us, and miss them every day.

When I was bullied at school, my mom was there to comfort me. When I was sick, she never left my side and made chicken noodle soup and put on my favorite movies. When I got my first heartbreak, she was the one who picked up the pieces… she still picks up my pieces when I break and puts me back together again.

She was a single mom who worked hard to earn us an amazing life. She bought us a home in 2004, and I’m still in awe of this accomplishment and every accomplishment since.

Every cat, every stray animal I ever brought home, she helped and gave a beautiful home to. She is the one I got that from: to notice the unnoticed. To help those in need. To be kind.

My mom is a very private, independent person. She does not ask for help. She does not tell others when she’s going through a difficult time or ask for handouts.

If something goes wrong, we figure it out. We rally, we depend on each other, and we get through it. I have learned from her to work hard, to be self-reliant, determined, and persistent in my dreams. But what I have also learned is sometimes the strongest thing you can do is ask for help, which is what I am doing now.

On Easter Sunday, my mom started having severe back pain and spasms. We assumed it would go away with time and rest, but that was not the case. It got increasingly worse — fast.

The muscle relaxers weren’t helping. The steroids the doctor prescribed weren’t helping. Tylenol PM wasn’t helping her sleep through the night. She was having constant spasms even without moving. It started affecting her breathing — but we had no idea it could be something more than just her back. So I kept taking care of her, hoping and praying the next medication dose would be the one that helped.

On Wednesday, she was taken to the hospital by ambulance because the spasms began in her stomach and she couldn’t catch her breath. I wish I could say this was when she was admitted and started getting the care she desperately needed. But they sent her home after giving her Valium and Percocet — despite neither doing anything to relieve her pain. No bloodwork was done. An X-ray was taken, but everything was blamed on arthritis, and they said it would go away on its own.

We then went to her primary care doctor, but again no further tests were ordered — despite her now having a fever. She received a shot for inflammation and a prescription for a new muscle relaxer and was sent on her way.

The next day — Saturday — nearly a week of being in excruciating, nonstop pain had passed, and it was worse. We went back to the emergency room where she finally got the care she deserved.

They ran the right tests, did blood work, CT scans, and MRI scans, and finally admitted her. They discovered it was a very severe Staph infection in her spine and muscle tissues — and it is not responding to pain relievers. My mom is currently still hospitalized and will stay there until she stabilizes.

Before this, we had already been through a string of bad luck.

-She lost her job a week before Christmas — at no fault of her own — and has been working hard, searching for the right job ever since.

-2 days after she lost her job she was told on a routine vet visit that her beloved dog named goose has less than a month to live due to a cancerous tumor. Miraculously he is still alive and is doing well.

-She was already struggling financially, although you would never have guessed — because she doesn’t expect help from anyone or want anyone to feel sorry for her.

-She’s been surviving off of her savings and 401k which was spent on helping me move back home, and helping care for her sister, who was battling brain cancer and required daily radiation treatments an hour to and from.

It is a gift that they are expecting her to beat this infection and come home. It is also a gift to realize, while someone is still alive, how profoundly and deeply important they are — and to be able to show them this.

When she comes home, I want her to be able to focus on healing — not on how we’re going to keep the house, pay the bills, or keep her beloved animals safe.

Every Christmas Eve, we watch It’s a Wonderful Life. We watch the moment when George Bailey returns home and his community rallies around him to show him that his life matters. My greatest wish is to give my mom her George Bailey moment.

She deserves this more than anyone. She deserves to return home and rest. To spend time with her dogs. To begin the 12 weeklong at home recovery process without fear of losing her home.

If you have ever shared a memory with my mom…If you’ve ever shared a meal or seen how she loves and advocates for animals…If you’ve seen how she loves her parents, siblings, and me…If you were raised by a single mom…If any of this resonates with you — please consider donating.

Even the smallest donation — even just a single act of kindness — would mean the world to us.

And if you are unable to donate — thank you for reading this far. If you can’t donate, please take a moment to appreciate your loved ones, your daily routine, your job, your home, your health, your family.

If you are blessed enough to be able to afford a dinner out, a cup of coffee, or a walk with your dog — take a moment to realize what a privilege that is. What a blessing.

I can’t tell you how many times in my life I looked at luxuries like that and thought they were the norm…And what a gift it is now to realize all of it is special. All of it is extraordinary. And none of it is guaranteed to be here tomorrow.

If you can’t donate — that’s okay. Just honor my mom by adding a little more love and goodness into this world that so desperately needs it.