Hello friends and community,
For those who don't know me, I'm Heidi. I'm a 51 year old single mom with a daughter still at home who is a junior in high school. I spent a large portion of my career as a counselor in the substance use/mental health field. This is an extremely uncomfortable step for me to take, but I am reaching out to ask for help with a major hurdle in my life. As some of you know, I live with a spinal cord injury that affects my mobility on the left side of my body and causes constant, severe pain. I've also recently found out that my spine has, per the MRI report, continued to "severely deteriorate" and I'm waiting on my appointment with my neurologist next month to find out what the next step is. We've tried every option, from physical therapy, to medication, and an implanted spinal cord stimulator to control pain without success. I remained employed until a little over a year ago when the struggles with my disability finally made it impossible to keep up with the normal expectations of my job. Since that time I've exhausted what savings/emergency funds I had, as well as relied on help from family to the extent they were able. I've applied for disability benefits but am still waiting on a determination (should know within the next 4 months). I'm asking for help because the costs of general living expenses (rent, utilities, phone, car insurance, car loan, car maintenance, gas to travel for doctor appointments, household supplies like paper goods and cleaning supplies that can't be purchased with SNAP, medication and medical supplies not covered by medicaid, and my daughter's needs for school) have exceeded my ability to keep up.
My goal is to raise $8000 to cover these expenses for the next 4 months. This support would mean we can keep housing, the utilities on, necessary transportation, etc. It would also help to alleviate a huge source of stress that has been further negatively impacting my mental health, which in turn also affects my physical health.
If you are able to donate, any amount helps and is greatly appreciated. If you cannot donate, simply sharing my story means the world to me. Your kindness and generosity mean more to me than I can fully express in words.
With love and gratitude,
Heidi
