Donate to Help Save a Life: Support the Journey to Mayo Clinic, organized by Stephanie Vandenborn

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To anyone willing to listen to my story: To those that know me, you know that I don’t easily ask for help. If I do have to ask for anything, it’s usually the bare minimum. I love being independent and creative enough to find ways to forge my own path. I also cherish the times I am able to help others; it doesn’t matter if we are talking about close family or friends, or complete strangers. I don’t talk about it with anyone. I have never wanted to be the center of attention or have recognition. That’s why I find it so difficult now to be in the uncomfortable position of vulnerability and ask my friends and family for assistance to get to Rochester, Minnesota, to the Mayo Clinic. I have quietly been battling a severe illness since November 2024. It started with different symptoms that the doctors didn’t understand. Small symptoms to start with, not being able to get through the day without needing to take naps. That slowly grew into a fatigue that lasted for a few hours a day, to several times a day finding myself unable to stay awake. I began to have difficulty eating, another thing that started slowly but began to snowball out of control. I lost close to 30 pounds in a month. My doctors attempted to find the solution to this complex set of symptoms. I had four surgeries in five months, each one giving me hope that this time something would change for the better. It would for a short period of time, until a complication or new symptom would develop. Hope is such a fragile thing, so easily destroyed but so hard to rebuild again. Then on March 14, 2025, I had a surgery and my life, my health took a drastic change that I’m learning has changed my life forever. I developed a blood clot that turned into a seroma. I’ve had more hospital admissions than I can count, 4 drains placed in my stomach to attempt to control the seroma and also the infection that developed because of the fluid build-up, lack of nutrition, and doctors who didn’t understand how to treat all that was happening to me. I have a new diagnosis now that is so very rare the treatment is complex. I need to get to the Mayo Clinic not only for medical treatment that will save my life, but also lifelong treatment plan as there is no cure. The disease is called Wilson’s Disease. As devastating as it is to know the battle I’m facing, I’m relieved to finally have a diagnosis. I haven’t been able to work. In the beginning, I was on FMLA/short-term disability believing the doctors had a plan with the surgeries and could find a solution to my illness. It became apparent in March that I wasn’t going to be able to return to work before FMLA and short-term disability expired. I didn’t want to face losing my employment; I love my coworkers who over the years have become my second family. Asking for help has never come naturally, but that’s what I have to do now. I’m asking for any help you can give me that will allow me to seek life-saving treatment, provide for my family, and try to regain some quality of life. If you cannot contribute financially, please pray for me, this medical journey, and the doctors who are in charge of my care. My children especially need prayer and understanding; this has been incredibly difficult for all of us. I was initially going to attempt to get to Mayo on my own, but recent events have caused my urgency and need to change dramatically. On Monday, August 25, I had a seizure. Not sure how long it lasted since I was alone when it started, but it has left me with paralysis on the left side of my body, with severe neuropathy pain. I don’t know what damage was done to my brain with the seizure, but I do know I’ve never been this scared before, or unsure of my future. If you see me limping or struggling to open a bottle, please know I am trying to beat this every day in every way possible. Thank you for taking the time to read my request. I am incredibly grateful for all of you. Please help me share this message. Support will ease the financial burden and let me focus on what matters most, healing and being with my children.

Donate to Help Save a Life: Support the Journey to Mayo Clinic, organized by Stephanie Vandenborn

Donate to Help Save a Life: Support the Journey to Mayo Clinic, organized by Stephanie Vandenborn

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