Long message but I’m putting it all out there because I need help! Please read and share! Thanks. sometimes you have to set your pride aside and let God work miracles!

Hello everyone, my name is Sholanda Steele. I am a teacher and a single mother of 4 boys. I have not been able to work and although I am getting some income. I not able to work and get the extra income I use to get to continue to support my boys.

Below is a backstory of what led me to this situation:

On December 13, I started feeling sick, but I thought it was just something normal. I continued working for the rest of the week, even though I was vomiting. Despite feeling unwell, I kept going to work. On Wednesday, December 17, I still wasn’t feeling well. I went to work as usual, stayed after school, and even went shopping in Tuscaloosa for our Christmas party the next day. When I got home, I still wasn’t feeling well, so I decided to go to the ER.

At the ER, I told them that my side was hurting, and I had been vomiting all week. They performed the usual tests, including a CT scan, and I was given morphine because I was in severe pain. The doctors suspected kidney stones and decided to send me to Shelby. That night, I left for Shelby.

Once I arrived in Shelby, I initially thought I was okay, but by Saturday, I wasn’t feeling well again. I was sick and complaining to the nurses and doctors. I had a great nurse who noticed that I was not doing well and ordered more tests. After that, everything became a blur. I remember waking up from surgery with a large incision down the middle of my abdomen. I found out that I had been suffering from a ruptured appendix for over a week, which had led to sepsis and infected all my internal organs. They had to do emergency surgery. When I woke up from surgery I was suffocating off my own bowl movement because someone forgot to plug the suction device up to remove it from my stomach. (worst experience of my life because I vomit it all up) allowing me to breathe again.

Once I understood what was happening, I learned that the rupture had caused my appendix to burst, and my body had gone into sepsis. I also had several organs swollen and damaged, and many were removed or cut. After the surgery, Shelby still didn’t know exactly what was going on with me, so I was transferred to Walker Hospital in Jasper and stayed there for a few days. They didn’t do much during that time, and I was then shipped back to Shelby.

Initially, they thought I could go home, but I developed pneumonia and had to have a drain inserted into my back to remove fluid. My white blood cell count skyrocketed, and they were scared I wouldn’t make it through the night. I was then placed in the ICU. After some time, I was transferred to UAB, where I received intensive antibiotics to fight the infection. I also had a drain placed in my abdomen to remove fluids. Eventually, I was able to go home with a drainage bag to continue releasing fluids.

My illness has seriously affected my body, causing complications. Currently, my kidney and bladder do not function properly. I am scheduled for another surgery on April 3, with another one at the end of May. Because of all this, I have been out of work since December 17.

As the sole provider for my family, and any donations will help.

I want to say that, as my doctors have told me, I am a living miracle. They don’t understand how I am still here, but I believe I have a purpose and a reason for being alive. I am grateful for every day I get to spend here.

Thank you to everyone who can share this message and help spread the word. Your support means the world to me.