There was a young lady (14? 16?) who was raising money to go to europe for treatment for a very rare disease - what happened ?
Hiii! That’s me! I’m 21! I raised enough for testing and consultation and went to Spain to visit the neurosurgeon and get more in depth testing, but I’m still raising money for the three surgeries he will need to do (cervical spinal fusion from skull to C5, tethered spinal cord release, and jugular vein decompression and possibly adding a stent)
Even just that short trip provided SO much clarity which has helped with local doctors treating me more like a human.
In the meantime, I’ve gotten a central line placed that goes into my heart (I actually just had it surgically replaced today!) and it’s been super amazing with helping manage some symptoms. I also have a home nurse who comes once a week, and am currently getting set up with a state provided at home caregiver. Fighting with insurance has been a constant battle since a new diagnosis as of January, we are hoping that in the new year they will approve a potentially lifesaving treatment (IVig) for the thing that’s attacking my brain.
While one of my conditions is progressing faster and scarier than we’d like, thankfully my spine, with non-surgical management from the Spain doctor has been a bit more stable. There have been some scary things the past few months, a sepsis scare with a fever of 105.3, multiple occasions where my heart has stopped and pulse was lost, respiratory distress due to my neuromuscular condition etc, but I’m still here and I plan to keep going!
Unfortunately fundraising has been temporarily slowed down and out on hold as I am in the middle of a legal battle with my ex husband as well as a witness to a felony investigation and that has been taking up my time and limited energy, but going into the new year I hope to pick up on it again and make some headway in the medical aspect.
Here’s some photos from Spain and other recent medical endeavors. My mission in life is advocating for other patients and raising awareness, you can learn more about my issues, see my gofundme, follow me to stay updated, and follow my new podcast and soon-to-be educational nonprofit at this link!
https://linktr.ee/giusiana