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The Adventures of Miss Molly and Sarah

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Sarah Hunt is a friend, a sister and a daughter. A woman who has been through more medical issues than most of us can even imagine. Here is her story!

Here is her story in her own words.

"It all started August 2016 with a weeklong canoe trip in northern Ontario with my Dad to celebrate my graduation with my masters degree. Upon returning home I was checking my body over for ticks and felt a lump in my upper right arm near my armpit. I did not think anything of it until I was at a doctor’s appointment a month later and thought I should mention it. This started seven months of testing and appointments to figure out what the lump was. During this time I also started building my dream life with a great position in my dream job. In April 2017, the day before my 30th birthday I finally got an answer that I never expected. I was told I have a rare one in a million cancer called myxoid liposarcoma in the nerve bundle of my right arm. I felt perfectly healthy, I had even been to bootcamp the night before, so it was all a complete shock. 

A week after hearing the words “you have cancer” I was in for my first surgery. This was the start of a whirl wind five months of my life consisting of a lot of hospitals, doctors, appointments, 25 rounds of high dose radiation, severe burns from radiation, lots and lots of nurses visits and three major surgeries. 

I thought that the second surgery was the end of it and life would just return to “normal”, but I was so wrong. Two weeks later I was admitted back into Mount Sinai Hospital for my third surgery which was an emergency procedure. All of this also added up to long term effects. In order to get the tumour out many nerves were removed and resulted in limited use of my arm and chronic pain. Over time I lost more and more function of my arm and was finally diagnosed 2 years later with dystonia from the burns to the nerves from radiation. The scar tissue from all the treatments led to swelling and a diagnosis of lymphedema to top it all off.

During this whole series of treatments, I also dealt with my own mental health. By September 2018 my anxiety had built to a crippling level and I had begun to experience panic attacks. It took months after to get any type of help. Since then, I have been through therapists and medications but the panic attacks still run a lot of my life. I wake up in a flashback panic attack at least once a week and find myself unable to move or function midday out of no where. I have no control over my panic attacks or any clues on when they will come.

One big thing this has all changed is my independence. I can no longer do so many things I used to take for granted. I no longer go out on my own as I am afraid to have a panic attack on my own in public. The quality of my life as a young adult has decreased. I should be in the “prime” of my life but instead feel like I am not even living it. 

One tool that my medical team has been talking about to help with my independence is a service dog. This could help me in so many ways. The dog would be able to help me with physical tasks like getting dressed or undressed, carrying items, reminding me to take medications and so much more. To me more importantly the dog would be able to help with my mental health. It would help to wake me when I have flashbacks, to ground me and bring me back to reality in panic attacks, to make sure I am safe in public and to notify me when my heart rate increases to give me warning of panic attacks starting. To me a service dog would be so much more than a dog it would be a return to living and not just surviving. It would bring back a quality of life for me".

The good news is that Sarah has been accepted into a service dog training program that specializes in PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) and other mental health disorders. MORE good news, is that they have already found her a perfect dog mate! The little black Golden Doodle (pictured above) is Miss Molly! She will be Sarah's service dog! Check out her blog post about Molly (and if you are really curious, explore her other blog entries about her medical experiences). https://deathtobob.wordpress.com/2020/10/26/ms-molly/

$30,000 is a lot of money, however service dogs and the training required of them does not come cheap or free. Unfortunately, as Sarah is self employed, it is also not cheap to literally LIVE and STAY ALIVE!! So many out pocket expenses because our Healthcare system will not cover the care she requires currently. 

Here is a breakdown of what the money will be used for:

‍Puppy= $2500 (one large payment)

‍Training= $22,600 total
(monthly payments of $1,727.50 for 12 months)

‍♀️Trauma therapy (which is required for Sarah to be able to have Molly with her)= $500-$600 a month.

Physical therapy = $600 a month to help regain any use of her arm again and for pain management

Most of her medical team works out of Toronto. The commute to Toronto isn't free and she actually looses money by not being able to work that day.

Beginning in December 2020 Sarah's monthly expense will be at the minimum $3,427.50 

This is not even including the cost of puppy supplies, vet bills and other expenses that come with owning a pet!

Oh, and the cost of living, just as an adult is not included in these numbers! She still needs to keep up a home and have food!! And if you know me, you know how I feel about FOOD!!

So I guess what I am asking is that we come together, raise some money and help make a HUGE difference!! Anyone who knows Sarah personally knows how much she truly deserves this. She would never ask anyone for help on this level of need, so I am asking for her!

I ask for her because I have seen first hand what cancer has taken from her. We cannot let this cancer continue taking more away from Sarah. SCREW CANCER!!

#deathtobob #hunt4cure #strongerthansarcoma #ohgollymissmolly
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Donations 

  • Julie Masterson
    • $200
    • 4 yrs
  • Heather WATSON
    • $100
    • 4 yrs
  • Riley Nimens
    • $100
    • 4 yrs
  • LINDA MARSHALL
    • $100
    • 4 yrs
  • Deanna Saulters
    • $100
    • 4 yrs
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Organizer and beneficiary

Nancy Barros
Organizer
Cambridge, ON
SHELLEY HUNT
Beneficiary

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