Help Fund Vatana's Surgery
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friends-
around this time last year i began to worry feverishly. i had been experiencing excruciating abdominal pain that i attributed to poor digestion and a slowing metabolism. i remember being a child and the old folks would say, “things just slow down when you’re 30”.
right? no—not always. not like this at least. my first response to the pain was to eliminate foods from my diet that are associated with inflammation, but my abdomen kept growing and the pain did not let up. it’s not unusual for me to address health issues with food and herbs, but i also was trying everything i could because as an entrepreneur i hadn’t bought into health insurance. after graduating from university i created my company with a self-funded start-up investment and had been pouring any money i made right back into the art that i was passionate about. i thought to myself; “i’m young, healthy, and health insurance is an expense that can wait.”
after months of witnessing me in pain, my partner urged me to go to @plannedparenthood for an exam. they saw me for free and told me that they were almost certain that the pain was caused by a series of large uterine fibroids. my ultrasound revealed two tumors the size of grapefruits and six smaller pear sized tumors—equivalent to a woman being 6 months pregnant. i cried. and cried some more. i thought to myself, “will i have to be cut open? does this make me infertile? do i just have a shitty quality of life now?”
so many questions ran through my mind and the answer to all of those are, maybe. i felt so much shame, fell in-and-out of deep sadness, experienced so much psychological warfare. here i was walking around with physical masses attached to my my organs that i did not ask for, it all felt very invasive and alien—it left me wanting to cut myself open. i was constantly fatigued, plagued with piercing back pain, and feeling relentless pressure on my surrounding organs. i began binging on research and was disappointed by what i found but i needed help so bad. i became fearful of our country’s history of experimentation on the reproductive organs of black women and the male physicians that were available to me (the uninsured) further incited my fears by telling me to remove my entire reproductive system. here i am now, a year later, and i still have not addressed my tumors. the surgical process i have come to terms with will cost $13-15k and between paying my mortgage, taxes, being in a long distance partnership and still keeping my business afloat it hasn’t been possible for me to save all the money. but—i’m working on it. in the meantime running a few miles a day has helped control my symptoms, and juicing has done wonders for me.
understanding how to cope with these tumors has been a journey and i’m so very grateful for those of you who have shown up for me whether it’s been with a remedy, protocol, even offering to crowd source for my surgery. i had too much pride then and feared judgment, but i’m asking for your help now. anything towards my surgery is appreciated, and i’m asking that you please share with other compassionate hearts ♥️
Here is a link to the procedure that I'll undergo : https://youtu.be/mMrkuaZhlFo
THANK YOU
around this time last year i began to worry feverishly. i had been experiencing excruciating abdominal pain that i attributed to poor digestion and a slowing metabolism. i remember being a child and the old folks would say, “things just slow down when you’re 30”.
right? no—not always. not like this at least. my first response to the pain was to eliminate foods from my diet that are associated with inflammation, but my abdomen kept growing and the pain did not let up. it’s not unusual for me to address health issues with food and herbs, but i also was trying everything i could because as an entrepreneur i hadn’t bought into health insurance. after graduating from university i created my company with a self-funded start-up investment and had been pouring any money i made right back into the art that i was passionate about. i thought to myself; “i’m young, healthy, and health insurance is an expense that can wait.”
after months of witnessing me in pain, my partner urged me to go to @plannedparenthood for an exam. they saw me for free and told me that they were almost certain that the pain was caused by a series of large uterine fibroids. my ultrasound revealed two tumors the size of grapefruits and six smaller pear sized tumors—equivalent to a woman being 6 months pregnant. i cried. and cried some more. i thought to myself, “will i have to be cut open? does this make me infertile? do i just have a shitty quality of life now?”
so many questions ran through my mind and the answer to all of those are, maybe. i felt so much shame, fell in-and-out of deep sadness, experienced so much psychological warfare. here i was walking around with physical masses attached to my my organs that i did not ask for, it all felt very invasive and alien—it left me wanting to cut myself open. i was constantly fatigued, plagued with piercing back pain, and feeling relentless pressure on my surrounding organs. i began binging on research and was disappointed by what i found but i needed help so bad. i became fearful of our country’s history of experimentation on the reproductive organs of black women and the male physicians that were available to me (the uninsured) further incited my fears by telling me to remove my entire reproductive system. here i am now, a year later, and i still have not addressed my tumors. the surgical process i have come to terms with will cost $13-15k and between paying my mortgage, taxes, being in a long distance partnership and still keeping my business afloat it hasn’t been possible for me to save all the money. but—i’m working on it. in the meantime running a few miles a day has helped control my symptoms, and juicing has done wonders for me.
understanding how to cope with these tumors has been a journey and i’m so very grateful for those of you who have shown up for me whether it’s been with a remedy, protocol, even offering to crowd source for my surgery. i had too much pride then and feared judgment, but i’m asking for your help now. anything towards my surgery is appreciated, and i’m asking that you please share with other compassionate hearts ♥️
Here is a link to the procedure that I'll undergo : https://youtu.be/mMrkuaZhlFo
THANK YOU
Fundraising team (5)
Vatana Shaw
Organizer
Los Angeles, CA
giovanna fischer
Team member
Yazz Alali
Team member
Erica Chidi Cohen
Team member
Kristina Smith
Team member
