Dental/Medical bill help PLEASE!
Donation protected
I am a 70 year old Lakota mother of 5, grandmother of 14. I was born on the Rosebud Reservation in southcentral, South Dakota and we lived there until I was 6 years old. My earth walk is not so different from my relatives who lived on the reservation all their lives. It is sadi "You can take the Indian off the reservation but you can't take the reservation out of the Indian."
At best, there was inadequate medical and dental care. Whenever I was taken to the dentist as a child, if a cavity was found, the tooth was pulled. This is the way it was even when I became a teen living in the city. My dad operated his own business and as far as I know, had no insurance of any kind. By the time I was 18 years old, I had almost no back teeth.
I was 17 years old when I left home and moved to Los Angeles. At 22 I became a grocery checker a union store, they offered great insurance for their employees. I took advantage of the dental insurance and found a dentist in Hollywood who accepted my insurance. Because of past dental experiences, I was pretty frightened of what I knew I would endure. But Dr. Papick (or Pappas) and his assistant Grace talked me through it; he gave me the best and most beautiful bridgework that lasted for almost 40 years.
However, now those are gone, having fallen out almost one after the other several years ago and the supporting teeth cracked and broke. I have been traveling down to the Anschutz Dental School in Aurora, Colorado as it has been the least expensive for what I want: upper and lower implants. The lower will be removeable, the uppers will not. All of my upper teeth were pulled almost a year ago and only 8 remain on the bottom. I cry for implants because just the thought of anything covering the roof of my mouth makes me gag. I like to kid around and say "How can I ever become a world famous connoisseur of fine wine if I can't utilize my upper palate?"
It helps to have a sense humor when you walk around without almost no teeth in your head,
but the facts are these: I have a small non-profit that is working to help good folks on the Pine Ridge Reservation establish homesteads on their ancestral lands. Recently I was asked to be a keynote speaker at an event for Engineers Without Borders about the evolution of this project. I am thrilled of course, but the first thing my thoughts turn to is my lack of teeth. I worry about my enunciation and my audience understanding me.
Additionally I serve as the chairperson for the Indigenous Concerns Committee for the United Nations-No. Colo. chapter where I also go out and do presentations and workshops; but the worst for me is eating in public; it is not attractive in the least...so I generally try to hide my mouth and chin behind my napkin.
I have been traveling about an hour and a half one way from Fort Collins to Aurora to take advantage of the much lower cost of the Dental School there. All of the x-rays and prep stuff has been done and the cost of implants and teeth is $14,000.
Finally, I had a triple by-pass surgery 17 months ago and have lingering complications because of it. The two most painful being frozen shoulders which limit my range of motion, and continuing healing of the nerves that were severed during the surgery and removal of a vein in my left leg. I started physical therapy but it was fairly limited. I started seeing a chiropractor recommended by a friend, but find I can't afford to continue with the schedule they suggested. Plus there are herbal vitamins and minerals that I would prefer to take to build my strength and energy levels as close to where they were the year before the surgery. The total for this treatment is $3,700.
At best, there was inadequate medical and dental care. Whenever I was taken to the dentist as a child, if a cavity was found, the tooth was pulled. This is the way it was even when I became a teen living in the city. My dad operated his own business and as far as I know, had no insurance of any kind. By the time I was 18 years old, I had almost no back teeth.
I was 17 years old when I left home and moved to Los Angeles. At 22 I became a grocery checker a union store, they offered great insurance for their employees. I took advantage of the dental insurance and found a dentist in Hollywood who accepted my insurance. Because of past dental experiences, I was pretty frightened of what I knew I would endure. But Dr. Papick (or Pappas) and his assistant Grace talked me through it; he gave me the best and most beautiful bridgework that lasted for almost 40 years.
However, now those are gone, having fallen out almost one after the other several years ago and the supporting teeth cracked and broke. I have been traveling down to the Anschutz Dental School in Aurora, Colorado as it has been the least expensive for what I want: upper and lower implants. The lower will be removeable, the uppers will not. All of my upper teeth were pulled almost a year ago and only 8 remain on the bottom. I cry for implants because just the thought of anything covering the roof of my mouth makes me gag. I like to kid around and say "How can I ever become a world famous connoisseur of fine wine if I can't utilize my upper palate?"
It helps to have a sense humor when you walk around without almost no teeth in your head,
but the facts are these: I have a small non-profit that is working to help good folks on the Pine Ridge Reservation establish homesteads on their ancestral lands. Recently I was asked to be a keynote speaker at an event for Engineers Without Borders about the evolution of this project. I am thrilled of course, but the first thing my thoughts turn to is my lack of teeth. I worry about my enunciation and my audience understanding me.
Additionally I serve as the chairperson for the Indigenous Concerns Committee for the United Nations-No. Colo. chapter where I also go out and do presentations and workshops; but the worst for me is eating in public; it is not attractive in the least...so I generally try to hide my mouth and chin behind my napkin.
I have been traveling about an hour and a half one way from Fort Collins to Aurora to take advantage of the much lower cost of the Dental School there. All of the x-rays and prep stuff has been done and the cost of implants and teeth is $14,000.
Finally, I had a triple by-pass surgery 17 months ago and have lingering complications because of it. The two most painful being frozen shoulders which limit my range of motion, and continuing healing of the nerves that were severed during the surgery and removal of a vein in my left leg. I started physical therapy but it was fairly limited. I started seeing a chiropractor recommended by a friend, but find I can't afford to continue with the schedule they suggested. Plus there are herbal vitamins and minerals that I would prefer to take to build my strength and energy levels as close to where they were the year before the surgery. The total for this treatment is $3,700.
Organizer
Christinia Eala
Organizer
Fort Collins, CO
