Support Melissa and Her Boys Through Health Crisis

I wanted to update those of you who have been following this little adventure of mine this past month. Those of you who have extended a hand of help, I truly appreciate each and every one of you. At times, it's easy to feel very alone when I don't have a very big circle that's nearby. However, each and every one of you who are in my circle here and in my circle states away, you are in my heart, and I thank you for being able and willing to help in all types of different ways during this kind of confusing yet scary adventure.

For those of you who don't know, in the middle of December, I came across some complications regarding my health. Starting out as just minor back pain, within 3 days it reached the level of uncontrollable pain. If anybody out here has ever experienced passing a kidney stone, or having a kidney stone, that's what this pain felt like. After visiting an ER, they ran tests, and I did not have a kidney stone, but there was no explanation for my pain. They sent me home saying I threw out my back. I came home for 2 days, and the pain came back and never did quite go away. Despite all the pain medication they gave me in that first hospital visit, nothing ever touched this pain in my lower back. I went back to a different ER this time and explained to them everything, and the doctor on call, I think, saved my life because he trusted me and he followed his gut and gave me an MRI of my lower back, which presented with fluid and abnormalities in different areas on my spine. After many days of lab work, MRIs, X-rays, getting the infectious disease department involved, and several days in the hospital, they've concluded it's a spinal infection, with lab work supporting septicemia. Just before Christmas, they put a PICC line in, and with the help of a nurse and a company called Vital Care, they help provide all of the antibiotics and necessary equipment to be able to get infusions from home each day and showed me how to do it myself. They routinely check up on me throughout the week and once a week will come take labs and check on the line and make sure everything looks good and everything stays stable. The first week, the first set of labs they took seemed to be in my favor. This type of infection takes a long time to heal, and it's slow-moving to fully recover. But it indicated that some of my inflammation markers had gone down a small amount, so we thought we were on the right course. Yesterday morning, they came and took the labs for this week, and they came back last night going a different direction. My lab showed my inflammation has gone back up, and one marker has skyrocketed, and I wasn't sure what this one was, so I called my doctor last night, and they got back with me from the infectious disease department. They are taking me off the antibiotics that I'm on currently. Tomorrow, I'll go in for more lab work and testing to determine what is going on. It's showing that there's been some muscle damage, and when that happens, there's a protein that's released into the body, and it can damage or be damaging to your kidneys. They're doing everything they can, and I'm staying as optimistic as I can be. It's not easy having my boys watch all of this, and I try to keep this away from them as much as possible. The pain is still in my lower back, and the pain has taken over my calves in both legs and the tops of my feet pretty bad, where it's kind of difficult to walk most of the time. I will get through this, one way or another, because I'm stubborn, and I have two little boys relying on me, and I will not let them down. As most of you know, I quit my job a month before all of this started. I missed my phone interview for my unemployment benefits due to being in the hospital, but they are rescheduling me. It's difficult to get anything done in a timely manner just because of the holidays, and now trying to get through to anybody, there's a wait time of craziness. But I am on top of it, and I will get that done. I'm writing this because I know there's a lot of people out there who care about me and my kids. And I want to keep you updated, and it helps me write it down because it's a way of me letting things out and not bottling them in.

I don't know how long this will take. They originally had me on the antibiotics through the end of January and possibly extending it, but now that's thrown out the window. There's going to be a new strategy, I hope, in place by tomorrow at the end of the day. But whatever the strategy, it's going to be a very slow process. Spinal infections take a very long time to get better, and they never fully heal, but I can get back to living and feeling somewhat back to normal once we can get the inflammation down and the infection out of there. I will not lie, I am scared. For many reasons, and it's made me have to come up with different plans that I never really wanted to think about but would be a fool not to get in order. I know I'm strong, I know I'm stubborn, and I will make it past this, and I will remember every feeling, every thought, and all the gained knowledge with me for the rest of my life. This is an opportunity for education, and it's an opportunity for reflection. But it's also an opportunity for strength and growth. I promise to my friends and my family, even though I'm scared, it will not make me hide away because I will find a way past this, and I will move on from this. But I'll never forget.

There's been so many of you who have passed on help to me, and it is always going to be remembered, and it will be paid forward in ways I am able to. You have my word. Knowing I have a long battle ahead and months of the inability to be able to work, unfortunately, I'm hoping to try and raise some money, and it's not just for me; I'm starting this one for my boys. I need to be able to take care of them. For those of you who have kids, you will understand that it's not something you can plan for; it's the everyday unknowns when it comes to kids, to make sure they have what they need. It's help for gas in order to get them to their appointments that they have, the household bills to keep them with lights and heat, or any emergencies that might pop up with them. I feel like I've asked for a lot of help lately for me, and that bothers me, and it makes it hard to even do this. It might sound silly to some, but I'm so used to being able to manage on my own and make up for the shortfalls, but I can't any longer, not at this time. And I worry about the little things and doing everything I can and reaching out to every community program to help with the big things. I'm blessed to be on a Section 8 voucher where my rent will be paid, and I don't have to worry about that. It bothers me to ask for more help, but for my boys' sake, I must.

As always, please only help if you can. I understand completely if you're unable to, and it's okay. For those who took the time to read this, even just doing that helps me more than you know. It gives me more caring and loving people within my ever-growing circle of amazing friends who care to take the time. For that, I say thank you.

Melissa Orr

Matthew Orr

Alexander Orr