Support Erin's Path to a Pain-Free Life

Hi everyone! My name is Erin Kiker. I'm a 29-year-old full-time high school science teacher and PhD student. I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia at the age of 14. Since then, I have dealt with increasing amounts of pain every single day, mostly in my neck, lower back, hips, and knees. Lately, the pain has been so bad that I am missing work and unable to stand for more than a couple of minutes at a time. I don't take prescription pain meds because they interact with my other required medications and because I do not like the way they make me feel mentally. I recently reached a point where I could no longer handle the pain, so I went to the chiropractor to see if that would help with the fibro and my TMJ. After a manual exam and x-rays, I was told that I have a lot going on with my spine that is definitely making my main painful areas much worse. I have degeneration in all of my cervical (neck) vertebrae, scoliosis, several severely rotated vertebrae, three completely immobile joints in my lumbar (lower back) vertebrae, and one of my hips is much lower than the other. Needless to say, all of this is causing pain and needs to be treated before it becomes more severe. I got an estimate from the chiropractor (who is really great and has set out a detailed plan for my treatment and recovery), but unfortunately, I just cannot afford it at this point. For 3 months of treatment (seeing the doctor three times a week), it will cost me $2,383 (or I can pay $834 monthly) even with my insurance. I'm usually the first person to donate what I can when friends or coworkers are down on their luck, but now I am the one asking for help. Living with this amount of pain has left me so hopeless and depressed. I don't feel like I'll ever be able to become a mother because I can't pick up or carry a child; I'm missing days at work, which makes me feel like a bad teacher; I can't walk my dog for more than 2-3 minutes at a time; and I can't spend time doing the art that takes my mind off of things because it hurts too much. Pain is running my life right now. All I really want is to be able to wake up and get through a whole day without being in intense pain. I truly believe this treatment plan will get me there, or at least drastically reduce the pain I'm in. If you can spare anything, please consider donating. I promise you I will never forget or stop appreciating your help. <3

Here's what the $2380 includes: