I honestly fought with myself about doing this, but at this point, I feel like I should. Two months ago, I had to have emergency surgery which I posted about but vaguely, and it’s been a long road—I’m not even done yet. If all goes as planned at my next doctor’s appointment, I’ll need another surgery in May.

I never shared what happened because it’s been hard to accept and honestly embarrassing to deal with. In late January, I had severe stomach pain that felt like an emergency. I thought it might be an infection, but it turned out to be diverticulitis with perforation—basically, a hole in my colon from an infection. I was hospitalized for days, woke up with 25 staples in my stomach, and had to get an ostomy, leaving me with a colostomy bag. It was a shock. My life flipped upside down overnight.

I had to take a month off work and will need another month after my next surgery. While I have insurance and disability benefits, they only cover half my paycheck. I also can’t run my eBay store while recovering from a surgery so I have been doing it in this transitional period while I can to try to really crank up sales. My emergency fund is completely depleted from medical supplies my insurance won’t cover and the medical bills already coming in. I worked so hard to build savings and pay off debt, and now I’m struggling at a time when I need to be working even harder. I haven’t seen friends for a while and can only go out for short periods. It’s been the hardest thing I’ve dealt with outside of another health issue two years ago when I couldn’t even swallow food and lived on a liquid diet for a month.

It makes me sick to ask for help because I pride myself on working hard to avoid needing it. But right now, I genuinely could use it. I’m starting this GoFundMe to help cover medical bills and supplies that are eating into my living expenses. I honestly have no clue if anyone would even contribute but I guess it's worth a shot. I know how hard it is for everyone right now to stay afloat so If you can help in any way, it would mean a lot and I know it is a sacrifice as we are all feeling it. I truly understand. I truly appreciate everyone who has checked in on me. When this is all over, I’ve decided to pursue my goals vigorously—I’ve realized how much I took life for granted.

Love y’all, and thanks for listening.