Helping My Sister Suzanne
Donation protected
In 2010 my sister Suzy started to experience a tingling sensation in her neck ,legs and arms. Always a hard worker at her job as an assistant for Buffalo State University and UB development, she went above and beyond in her support of education. As many of you may have experienced, however, a routine doctor’s visit revealed a much more serious condition. And what’s worse, she was initially misdiagnosed, causing her spinal issues and osteoarthritis to advance dramatically before they even knew how to treat it. It was not long before Suzy lost her job, underwent the first of a series of surgeries, and was forced into disability. It cost her her career, some of her friends, and she is unable to see the only family she has left. Now, almost ten years later, my sister may soon become paralyzed if she does not have a costly surgery this summer. We are Suzy’s only family, and we have done all that we are able to do. We haven’t lost hope, though, and that’s why I made this page, to reach out to all of you for help in raising $7,500 to cover her medical expenses. I will explain her condition below, but please consider a donation. I love my sister and I want to see her get back on her feet again!
Summary
My sister needs to undergo, for now, two costly operations: one on her lower spine and one on her right hip. The cost exceeds her insurance coverage, and she will need to pay $7,500 to cover her medical and rehabilitation bills. For almost two decades, she worked as a fundraising and development assistant, specializing in education, but ten years ago several spinal conditions and osteoarthritis rapidly overtook her entire body, and forced her into disability. She has made every attempt to live with the excruciating pain—including one back surgery already—but her condition worsened, and she is barely able to walk, hold her head up or her spine. Basic motor function, the tiniest of movements, causes her extreme pain. Doctors have told her that she has dangerously low levels of fluid left in her spine.
Though she cannot afford the procedures, she can no longer say no to the operations. Next month she will be having another risky surgery to rebuild her spinal column. If she doesn't act immediately, the doctors say that she may be paralyzed, and completely unable to care for herself. Her insurance does not cover enough of the cost, and recovery will require weeks of expensive hospitalization and rehabilitation.
About My Sister
She has lived most of her life in Buffalo, NY, where she spent her career as an assistant in fundraising and development at two of the city’s universities. These jobs were the pride of her life: the work she assisted in helped raise monies for student scholarships, internships, work study programs, the construction of the new Burchfield Penney Arts Center on the Buffalo State University campus. She mentored students , and volunteered for many extracurricular activities to better campus life.
When she wasn’t working she spent time at home gardening and was was honored to have been featured on neighborhood garden walks. Cooking was another thing she shared with friends—hosting was her special forté, and my son says that she makes the best roast chicken in the world. She spent lots of time at art galleries and museums, going for walks and hikes around Western New York, and when she could get away, she loved to travel to travel to New England where she was born. Dogs were the love of her life, and they helped inspire her to start volunteering. People who needed care, love, money and a better life inspired her. You could find her donating her time and money to the SPCA, Hearts for the Homeless, ALS, NAMI and lots of other organizations. It was really so rewarding for her. Her family was also as important to her during this time, and she loved going over to my house, babysitting, and hanging out with my daughter Natalie and my son Sam and all of our animals.
She has always prided herself on her independence, and has asked for little assistance over the years. Her inner circle dwindled as her disease worsened, and the friendships she so cherished slowly drifted away. Her parents divorced when she was young, and her younger brother suffers with schizophrenia for his entire life. She literally started working at age 10, taking jobs as a neighborhood babysitter and hasn’t stopped working until her condition forced her into disability.
About her condition:
In 2012, she was diagnosed with intervertebral Cervical spondylosis with cervical myelopathy, otherwise known as cervical spondylotic myelopathy, which impairs normal spinal functions like flexibility and normal sensation, which really messed her motor skills and balance. The condition required her to undergo surgery to replace disc 7, thoracic 1 and ACDF in her neck, which didn’t fix all of her impairments. At the same time she was also diagnosed with cervicalgia, lumbago, spondylosis lumbar with myelopathy, intervertebral disc displacement lumbar with myelopathy, abnormal gait and osteoarthritis. Now she needs another surgery called an Ly-4 and 5 transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion, which means they’ll build a cage with rods and screws to hold her lower spine up, and realign normal spinal function. Following her recovery from back surgery, she will have to get her right hip replaced.
Medical talk aside, the practical consequences have meant that she lost the ability to walk, to twist, to bend, to reach, to type. Her neck is crooked and stays that way. She can hardly hold her head up most of the time and can only stand very briefly, and even that amount of time is getting shorter and shorter and shorter. If someone knocks on her front door, she probably won’t be able to get there in time to answer. There’s not a whole lot that she can do besides spending time on her couch. The pain is excruciating. It’s there when she moves. It’s there when she is still. Not a minute goes by where I am not entirely exhausted. And that’s every minute of the last 6 years. I think it’s safe to say that that part of things really sucks.
I have so much sympathy for the other 54 million people who live with arthritis in the United States. It doesn’t feel like there’s a lot of holistic solutions, and most of us are told that it is just something that we will have to live with. Imagine being told you’re just going to be in pain the rest of your life, and mine advanced so that I can no longer do simple tasks let alone my favorite activities. My income is still fixed to my monthly disability check, and that is already depleted by rent, utilities, medical insurance, and food. It leaves nothing for savings to put toward expensive surgeries. Unfortunately I cannot afford to pay for the surgeries, testing, rehab, physical therapy and follow-up doctor visits, which I estimate will cost at least $7,500.
But this is not how I want to live. I want to get back to the cooking, gardening, walking, and work that made my life so rich before, and which I have watched dwindle during my illness. I want to overcome this disease. And I know I can with your help.
As I am able, I will update the site and my Facebook page with my progress. My family will be there with me and I want you there, too. Thank you and God Bless.
Summary
My sister needs to undergo, for now, two costly operations: one on her lower spine and one on her right hip. The cost exceeds her insurance coverage, and she will need to pay $7,500 to cover her medical and rehabilitation bills. For almost two decades, she worked as a fundraising and development assistant, specializing in education, but ten years ago several spinal conditions and osteoarthritis rapidly overtook her entire body, and forced her into disability. She has made every attempt to live with the excruciating pain—including one back surgery already—but her condition worsened, and she is barely able to walk, hold her head up or her spine. Basic motor function, the tiniest of movements, causes her extreme pain. Doctors have told her that she has dangerously low levels of fluid left in her spine.
Though she cannot afford the procedures, she can no longer say no to the operations. Next month she will be having another risky surgery to rebuild her spinal column. If she doesn't act immediately, the doctors say that she may be paralyzed, and completely unable to care for herself. Her insurance does not cover enough of the cost, and recovery will require weeks of expensive hospitalization and rehabilitation.
About My Sister
She has lived most of her life in Buffalo, NY, where she spent her career as an assistant in fundraising and development at two of the city’s universities. These jobs were the pride of her life: the work she assisted in helped raise monies for student scholarships, internships, work study programs, the construction of the new Burchfield Penney Arts Center on the Buffalo State University campus. She mentored students , and volunteered for many extracurricular activities to better campus life.
When she wasn’t working she spent time at home gardening and was was honored to have been featured on neighborhood garden walks. Cooking was another thing she shared with friends—hosting was her special forté, and my son says that she makes the best roast chicken in the world. She spent lots of time at art galleries and museums, going for walks and hikes around Western New York, and when she could get away, she loved to travel to travel to New England where she was born. Dogs were the love of her life, and they helped inspire her to start volunteering. People who needed care, love, money and a better life inspired her. You could find her donating her time and money to the SPCA, Hearts for the Homeless, ALS, NAMI and lots of other organizations. It was really so rewarding for her. Her family was also as important to her during this time, and she loved going over to my house, babysitting, and hanging out with my daughter Natalie and my son Sam and all of our animals.
She has always prided herself on her independence, and has asked for little assistance over the years. Her inner circle dwindled as her disease worsened, and the friendships she so cherished slowly drifted away. Her parents divorced when she was young, and her younger brother suffers with schizophrenia for his entire life. She literally started working at age 10, taking jobs as a neighborhood babysitter and hasn’t stopped working until her condition forced her into disability.
About her condition:
In 2012, she was diagnosed with intervertebral Cervical spondylosis with cervical myelopathy, otherwise known as cervical spondylotic myelopathy, which impairs normal spinal functions like flexibility and normal sensation, which really messed her motor skills and balance. The condition required her to undergo surgery to replace disc 7, thoracic 1 and ACDF in her neck, which didn’t fix all of her impairments. At the same time she was also diagnosed with cervicalgia, lumbago, spondylosis lumbar with myelopathy, intervertebral disc displacement lumbar with myelopathy, abnormal gait and osteoarthritis. Now she needs another surgery called an Ly-4 and 5 transforaminal lumbar interbody fusion, which means they’ll build a cage with rods and screws to hold her lower spine up, and realign normal spinal function. Following her recovery from back surgery, she will have to get her right hip replaced.
Medical talk aside, the practical consequences have meant that she lost the ability to walk, to twist, to bend, to reach, to type. Her neck is crooked and stays that way. She can hardly hold her head up most of the time and can only stand very briefly, and even that amount of time is getting shorter and shorter and shorter. If someone knocks on her front door, she probably won’t be able to get there in time to answer. There’s not a whole lot that she can do besides spending time on her couch. The pain is excruciating. It’s there when she moves. It’s there when she is still. Not a minute goes by where I am not entirely exhausted. And that’s every minute of the last 6 years. I think it’s safe to say that that part of things really sucks.
I have so much sympathy for the other 54 million people who live with arthritis in the United States. It doesn’t feel like there’s a lot of holistic solutions, and most of us are told that it is just something that we will have to live with. Imagine being told you’re just going to be in pain the rest of your life, and mine advanced so that I can no longer do simple tasks let alone my favorite activities. My income is still fixed to my monthly disability check, and that is already depleted by rent, utilities, medical insurance, and food. It leaves nothing for savings to put toward expensive surgeries. Unfortunately I cannot afford to pay for the surgeries, testing, rehab, physical therapy and follow-up doctor visits, which I estimate will cost at least $7,500.
But this is not how I want to live. I want to get back to the cooking, gardening, walking, and work that made my life so rich before, and which I have watched dwindle during my illness. I want to overcome this disease. And I know I can with your help.
As I am able, I will update the site and my Facebook page with my progress. My family will be there with me and I want you there, too. Thank you and God Bless.
Organizer
Suzanne Benay
Organizer
Buffalo, NY
