•UPDATE• After speaking with my neurology team, I have learned they are confident my cholesteatoma is not present, based off the imaging I’ve had done. That is great news!! However, with this being my 10th surgery related to my ear disease, I have learned to expect the unexpected, as imaging does not always show the exact extent of what’s going on within. So, I will go in with an open mind -just in case- the doctors suspicion is not the true outcome. Again, THANK YOU to everyone who has donated, shared, and prayed for us. It does not go unnoticed! All of our love. Hello, my name is Danielle. I am a mother to four beautiful children (ages 16, 15, 8 & 7) and a wife to Travis (August 10th, 2024 we celebrate 6 years married!). As many know, I battle with an ear condition called Cholesteatoma, and many of you know that I have gone through countless surgeries because of this… 9 surgeries to be exact, and one of which was a 9.5 hour long “Middle Fossa Craniotomy” where they had to remove cranial material that herniated into my ear mastoid back in September 2016, just 1.5 months after giving birth to our youngest child. For that surgery I was in the neurology ICU for 5 days and 2 days spent on the regular hospital floor, before I was released home to continue recovery for the next 8+ weeks. Well, I recently found out I need a repeat “Middle Fossa Craniotomy” due to more cranial matter herniating into my mastoid due to my ear disease. This time, my surgery will be in Miami at the University of Miami, roughly 3 hours from where we live in Port Charlotte, Florida. The surgery is scheduled for August 21, 2024. The craniotomy may not be the only surgery performed at this time, if my ear disease is indeed present it’ll turn into a mastoidectomy (cleaning the disease out of the mastoid bone) as well as another procedure (unsure of the name because my surgeon said the medical term too fast for me to understand) where my ear will basically become disassembled & filled with fat, to hopefully lessen the chance of a cholesteatoma reoccurrence, while also rendering me completely deaf in my right ear. So, there is a possibility of this surgery turning from 1 procedure to 3 combined procedures. You may be wondering why I’m setting up a LFEBridge, and here is the answer. Because of the symptoms I deal with daily due to the herniated cranial matter, I have been unable to work, leaving us with just my husbands income, which hardly makes us able to make ends meet. Medical bills (referral after referral to doctors, new patient appointments, audiology appointments, endless amounts of imaging, an overnight trip to Miami to meet my surgeon for the first time, etc) are all starting to add up, fast, and we are learning our medical insurance doesn’t cover a portion of it. Not to mention the gas involved to get to & from Miami, which my husband will need so he can make his way down and back home, with the kids, while I’m in the hospital recovering. It’ll help with any parking, food while in Miami & for the kiddos at home, possible hotel for my husband/kids, and renting a vehicle since our XL SUV will use too much gas, tolls, and helping cover monthly bills while my husband has to take off time to be by my side, lord knows I need his strength & comfort through this. I understand times are hard for a lot of us, so, I ask if you’re unable to donate, to just keep myself & my family in your thoughts as we navigate through this new hurdle. Thank you, Danielle
Artículos relacionados
