Support Asila's Journey to Mental Wellness

Hi, my name is Asila. I am 23 and live in Columbus, Ohio, with my partner and cat. I am Caribbean American and was born in Atlanta, Georgia. I aspire to become an art therapist. I love science, art, and swimming.

According to the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), bipolar disorder affects approximately 4.4% of the American population. Schizoaffective disorder affects an estimated 0.3% of Americans, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). Suicide risk is very high for people diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). As someone with both diagnoses, it has been arduous to maintain employment and manage my severe depression.

I was diagnosed with schizoaffective bipolar in 2021, after my first (diagnosed) manic episode. I have been hospitalized seven times in the past two years in acute psychiatric facilities due to severe depressive episodes. My depression has made it difficult to perform activities of daily living (ADLs), maintain employment, continue education, and manage self-care. To mitigate my disability, I am applying to adopt a service animal. Affording a service animal poses a great challenge due to my financial situation, but it is necessary to help me manage everyday life.

Due to my frequent hospitalizations, my medical bills have put me in crippling debt. I am raising money to make a dent in my medical expenses, including the cost of doctor and therapy appointments, hospital bills, prescriptions, and alternative treatment (transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) for treatment-resistant depression).

Due to training costs, the adoption tuition ranges between $5,000 and $18,000. The dog's tasks will include medication reminders, deep pressure therapy, sleep schedule maintenance, alerting to danger, alerting to episodes, encouraging physical activity, social blocking, disrupting catatonic episodes, and removing harmful objects during episodes. I am eternally grateful for your contributions to my cause.

The fundraising goal is split between medical bills, service dog tuition, and prescription costs. My medical expenses include hospital bills, partial hospitalization costs, and monthly medical charges. Therapy, psychiatry, and medications cost approximately $225 per month. My hospital bills are estimated to cost $8,000 altogether. The service dog tuition ranges between $5,000 and $18,000, depending on which organization I adopt from.

Thank you for reading my story and donating to my cause. I look forward to developing relationships with you as you get to know me.