On 9/14/2025, Joanna sustained a life-altering spinal injury caused by being crushed against the barricade at a concert during an intense crowd surge. This injury put extreme pressure on her spinal cord, causing her foot to be largely paralyzed (total foot drop) with severely painful neuropathy.

Emergency spinal surgery was required to give her the best chance to save functionality of her foot & reduce pain to a tolerable level. The surgery was thankfully successful in reestablishing a bit of movement and she’s working so hard to regain more strength & function. But this process has been (and continues to be) immensely stressful & painful, and she’s still in deep need of our care & support.

Financial insecurity is one of the leading causes of stress. Reducing stress-induced inflammation and minimizing new scar tissue on her spinal cord and nerve roots is crucial for her recovery. As she’s been unable to fully return to work & struggling to raise sufficient support, the severe stress she’s been experiencing puts her at serious risk of the intense pain & weakness becoming permanent.

Financial scarcity has also caused her to struggle with food insecurity during a time when proper nutritional support is absolutely vital for healing. Between December & January, she was struggling to consistently afford food & had to skip many meals. The malnutrition & intense stress caused her to become severely anemic, leaving her body too depleted & exhausted to heal properly. She now requires more extensive treatment via regular iron infusions & new medications to get her levels back up to normal so her body can be supported in healing & strengthening. This is just one of many new health complications that have stemmed from this injury/situation & threaten her ability to have a successful recovery, in addition to her pre-existing chronic illnesses.

The combination of severe pain & financial distress has also had an immensely harmful impactful on Joanna’s mental health & emotional wellbeing, making this recovery drastically more difficult to move through. She describes the pain in her foot as a violent internal experience, most often feeling like it's being cut open with razors or burnt by hot metal. She’s truly horrified of this severe pain becoming permanent if she can’t find a way to reduce stress & inflammation. It’s crucial that we continue to come together to help such a caring person through this time safely so that she can pursue healing to the furthest extent possible.

Joanna is profoundly emotional and empathetic, and has been a disability advocate for herself & others in ways that have broadened accessibility & inclusion in her communities. Even in times of immense struggle, her care for others is so evident. She’s an artist with a deep appreciation for music and a knack for community building, especially around art & music. She shows up for others however she’s able, and is in need of continued support from the community to be reflected back to her right now.

Whether you know Joanna personally or are new to her story, we hope you’ll take time to help this deeply caring person however you’re able. If you’re unable to support financially at this time, please consider sharing with those who can.

Thank you endlessly to everyone who has stepped in so far to offer life-saving financial support ♥️