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Help my daughter pay for Lyme Disease treatment.
Please help my daughter Mechelle
My name is Steve Morris and my wife Linda and I are trying to raise funds to pay for Mechelle's medical expenses.
My daughter is 32 now. She has Lyme Disease. She has had a long history of medical problems that all seem to be related to her acquiring Lyme Disease back at age 12. She has had probably 50 or more Emergency Room visits and maybe 25 hospital stays in the last 20 years. She has gotten progressively worse. My wife ended up home schooling the last couple years of high school. Mechelle tried attending college several times, even doing online courses, but because of her health had to quit. That of course was very disappointing to her. She is unable to live a normal life and has been unable for several years. She has been unable to work, go to school, and develop relationships with friends. She has been stuck in bed. She used to use the internet to stay in touch and go to school but she is unable even to do that now.
She has gotten to the point that she has been bed ridden for 4-5 years. She requires 24/7 care. We are up at all hours of the night and day to give her various medications, shots, and IV treatments. She recently had to have all of her teeth removed because her seizures/ dystonia caused her to break her teeth. She had numerous dental problems related to her overall health. After trying to get help for her dental needs (this taking several visits to local university dental departments over a period of a year or more) the dentists decided because of her overall health history to remove all of her teeth. That was a heart breaker for my wife and I.
We have been to various specialists in Pittsburgh area, Charleston WV, Morgantown WV, Baltimore MD, Cleveland Clinic, New York City, and Washington DC to get help for her. She has gone through numerous diagnosis's , hundreds of tests, and uncounted medications to try to deal with her medical problems. She has autonomic problems, immune system problems, seizures, dystonia problems, many allergies, breathing problems, and other health issues. Her bed room looks like a hospital room with various breathing equipment, medical supplies, lifts, bedside potty, and hospital bed. We bought a special inflatable tub to bath her in the bed because she is often too hard to move. Because of her various allergies we have to order special foods for her. Her choice of appropriate foods is limited. My wife usually has to prepare two different meals when she cooks; one for Mechelle and one for us.
I am 60 and retired military and had to quit my job to help my wife with Mechelle's care. My wife has tried to work over the years but often had to quit work to take care of Mechelle. Much of the reason we had to declare bankruptcy several years ago was due to expenses related to her care and my wife losing income after she had to quit work to take care of Mechelle. Like I said she requires 24/7 care. My wife suffers from various health problems too. My wife is very tough and has sacrificed so much to take care of Mechelle. She has given up her life to take care of Mechelle.
We are selling our car, my motorcycle and whatever else is saleable to raise funds for treatment for Lyme Disease. We live in a trailer so I can't get a second mortgage to pay for expenses. Linda was considering selling the trailer and buying a camper to live in. Not a good idea. After discussion we decided not to do that. Wouldn't really get us that further ahead in raising funds for Mechelle's treatment.
We are convinced after the advice of her Family doctor and visit to a specialist in Washington DC that this the only treatment that can possibly help her live a more normal life.
As it is she is only able to talk to us now for short periods of time each day. That has worsen in the last year after she had encephalitis, infection in the brain. The infection was probably caused by her dental problems or some other infection that a normally healthy person could have dealt with without lasting effects. After 20 years of going to various doctors and various hospitals without any real effective treatment and continuing deterioration of her health we believe that this treatment is critical. We believe without treatment specifically for chronic Lyme that she will continue to get worse.
My name is Steve Morris and my wife Linda and I are trying to raise funds to pay for Mechelle's medical expenses.
My daughter is 32 now. She has Lyme Disease. She has had a long history of medical problems that all seem to be related to her acquiring Lyme Disease back at age 12. She has had probably 50 or more Emergency Room visits and maybe 25 hospital stays in the last 20 years. She has gotten progressively worse. My wife ended up home schooling the last couple years of high school. Mechelle tried attending college several times, even doing online courses, but because of her health had to quit. That of course was very disappointing to her. She is unable to live a normal life and has been unable for several years. She has been unable to work, go to school, and develop relationships with friends. She has been stuck in bed. She used to use the internet to stay in touch and go to school but she is unable even to do that now.
She has gotten to the point that she has been bed ridden for 4-5 years. She requires 24/7 care. We are up at all hours of the night and day to give her various medications, shots, and IV treatments. She recently had to have all of her teeth removed because her seizures/ dystonia caused her to break her teeth. She had numerous dental problems related to her overall health. After trying to get help for her dental needs (this taking several visits to local university dental departments over a period of a year or more) the dentists decided because of her overall health history to remove all of her teeth. That was a heart breaker for my wife and I.
We have been to various specialists in Pittsburgh area, Charleston WV, Morgantown WV, Baltimore MD, Cleveland Clinic, New York City, and Washington DC to get help for her. She has gone through numerous diagnosis's , hundreds of tests, and uncounted medications to try to deal with her medical problems. She has autonomic problems, immune system problems, seizures, dystonia problems, many allergies, breathing problems, and other health issues. Her bed room looks like a hospital room with various breathing equipment, medical supplies, lifts, bedside potty, and hospital bed. We bought a special inflatable tub to bath her in the bed because she is often too hard to move. Because of her various allergies we have to order special foods for her. Her choice of appropriate foods is limited. My wife usually has to prepare two different meals when she cooks; one for Mechelle and one for us.
I am 60 and retired military and had to quit my job to help my wife with Mechelle's care. My wife has tried to work over the years but often had to quit work to take care of Mechelle. Much of the reason we had to declare bankruptcy several years ago was due to expenses related to her care and my wife losing income after she had to quit work to take care of Mechelle. Like I said she requires 24/7 care. My wife suffers from various health problems too. My wife is very tough and has sacrificed so much to take care of Mechelle. She has given up her life to take care of Mechelle.
We are selling our car, my motorcycle and whatever else is saleable to raise funds for treatment for Lyme Disease. We live in a trailer so I can't get a second mortgage to pay for expenses. Linda was considering selling the trailer and buying a camper to live in. Not a good idea. After discussion we decided not to do that. Wouldn't really get us that further ahead in raising funds for Mechelle's treatment.
We are convinced after the advice of her Family doctor and visit to a specialist in Washington DC that this the only treatment that can possibly help her live a more normal life.
As it is she is only able to talk to us now for short periods of time each day. That has worsen in the last year after she had encephalitis, infection in the brain. The infection was probably caused by her dental problems or some other infection that a normally healthy person could have dealt with without lasting effects. After 20 years of going to various doctors and various hospitals without any real effective treatment and continuing deterioration of her health we believe that this treatment is critical. We believe without treatment specifically for chronic Lyme that she will continue to get worse.
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