Hi, my name is Elizabeth and Madalyn is my best friend. Here is her story:

For 2 years now, I have had fatigue. I used to run 5ks and work out in the mornings. I couldn't for the last couple of years. But in May 2025, I got hit with a month of random symptoms. I was so fatigued at times I felt like I was going to collapse. I had a sharp shooting pain in my right side. I had a CT scan and MRI from which they found nothing. I had horrible headaches every day that turned into migraines. I had tingly/stingy sensations in my fingertips. I had unexplained period-like cramps. I was getting charley horses in my calves as well as my neck. Aches and pains all over. Brain fog, times I felt like I was going to lose my balance, times I felt like I was going to lose consciousness.

My doctor ordered 2 MRIs, one of my brain and one of my neck. The brain had spots of concern that could be caused by migraines or MS. They found a lesion on my spinal cord as well. This required an appointment with a neurologist. On 7/2/25, I saw him. He ordered bloodwork to see if I had any autoimmune diseases that mimic MS. All came back negative. He ordered an MRI of my thoracic spine to check for more lesions. None were found. He ordered a spinal tap to test for signs of MS. On 8/1/25, I had my follow-up with my neurologist and was diagnosed with MS. He ordered bloodwork to see if I'm healthy enough for treatment, which is Briumvi infusions. On 8/4/25, I had to go back to Maple Grove Neurology Clinic for another blood test he forgot to order. My bloodwork came back that I'm healthy enough for treatment.

Treatment is Briumvi infusions in Golden Valley. $59,000/year cost if I don't have insurance. Insurance will cover some but I'm on some copay plan. I'm not sure how much I will actually owe yet. First infusion is 8/21/25 which will last 5.5 hrs and I will be out of work for that day and most likely the next day because of the side effects it causes. 2nd infusion is 9/5/25 in Golden Valley for 2.5 hrs long. Then 3-4 weeks later I will have another infusion. After that, it will be every 6 months as long as I tolerate it well. I will need an MRI (possibly 3 of them total) 6 months after my first official infusion to get a baseline for my lesions. After that, I will get yearly MRIs (which cost around $6,000 a scan-my insurance covered about $4,000, which left me owing about $2,000 per scan).

I already owe over $10,000 in medical bills currently. I have no savings left. Depending on how much people want to help, I would pay off as much as I can on what I owe and make sure to have some in savings in case of emergencies. Or I might just put it in my savings to use when my paychecks can't cover all of my bills.

My girls are 5 and 8 years old. We are trying to make life as normal as we can for them. They love to go camping so we have been trying to do that as much as we can. My husband, Jon, has been paying for literally everything because I just have no money left over each week after paying all of my bills. I start school full-time for the Occupational Therapist Assistant program on August 25th, 2025. I have been working towards this for the last year. I've been taking one general class a semester while studying for the ATI-TEAS exam. I needed to get 65% or higher on that. I have been keeping a 4.0 GPA and scored 78% on the ATI-TEAS test. My last class I took this summer semester I got a final grade percentage of 99.67%

Since I will be missing work on Tuesdays and Thursdays, I will be needing to work longer hours on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. As well as possibly working evening hours to try to manage to get full-time hours to keep my insurance as well as continue to pay my bills.

I might have to work extra hours at my part-time job, working with adults with disabilities in Hutchinson to make up for lost income as well. I am very determined to finish this OTA program to not only better my future but the future of my family as well. I want to show my children, like my mom showed me when I was in high school, that you can always go back to school to follow your dreams even if you are a working mom.

I will not let this recent diagnosis get me down. I will continue to be the positive, uplifting, and encouraging person that I have been. I will continue to pursue my dreams of graduating college in the Spring of 2027 and becoming an OTA. Maybe even going back to school to become an Occupational Therapist if I'm able to.

Madalyn is an amazing influence to not only her family, but everyone she meets.

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