Help our mother face these difficult challenges!

Hi all! I am Keziah Flaherty, the oldest daughter of Amy Selders. I am writing this with my 2 younger sisters, Kereena and Mima, for my mother, Amy, the most selfless, caring, compassionate, amazing woman I know. She has always been one to look out for others’ well-being and best, and she is now in need of others to do the same for her.

Amy has had a very rough 2023 to say the least. In early February, she was diagnosed with Hypermobility Ehlers Danlos Syndrome after many years of struggling with a wide range of sickness, chronic pain, fatigue, and many health issues. HEDS is a genetic connective tissue disorder that effects the formation of the collagen at birth and over time, the tissues throughout the body begin to degenerate causing the joints, tendons, ligaments and all the connective tissues in the body to weaken and thus creating a snowball affect of chronic pain with sublaxations of the joints, all over muscle pain and fatigue and many ailments of the organs of the body as the tissues continue to fail. Amy is seeing 12 different specialists in Spokane county and is receiving the best help she can with this condition. In addition to her health problems, her husband of 10 years filed for divorce in the spring and left her and her children to fend for themselves after having to shut down their successful cleaning business in the West Plains area of Spokane for almost 8 years. She has had 2 major surgeries within a 6-month period and now we have just discovered due to the connective tissues failing in her spinal cord and back, she now has degenerative disk disease, stenosis and narrowing of her spine and discs and will need an urgent surgery to fix a herniated disc that is currently compressing nerves causing excruciating pain and sciatica of the left side of her leg. She is currently unable to sit, walk, stand, or do any kind of movement until this can be repaired and the surgeon informed her she also has 3 other bulging disks that could herniate at any time as well and with her experience with HEDS, they usually do within a year of the 1st surgery.

My mother is currently not able to work since her first surgery in April of this year. We had to leave our home in Medical Lake for 8 years due to the divorce, and now she and my youngest sister, Mima, are living in North Spokane together renting a very small house. They have very little income as Amy has not been able to work a steady job due to her health problems, weekly appointments, physical therapy, and other health care treatments and also take care of my sister who has just recently been diagnosed with the same disorder as a genetic test revealed my mother passed it down to 1/3 of her children. This whole whirlwind of change, adjustments, divorce, surgeries, and difficulties has left my mother very distraught, alone and facing many challenges with her finances, health, and future. We are currently applying for disability for her as well and the process of that is daunting and long.

I wanted to reach out to our friends and family and let them know how stressful a year this has been and how we need financial relief, prayers, and support during this time. After her back surgery on November 17th, she will need to heal in 6-8 weeks and then she also just discovered that she needs a hysterectomy due to ongoing complications and much pain and trouble for years. That is 2 more major surgeries back-to-back and her body is weak and feeble at this point.

My mother has always cared so wonderfully for her family, providing, and serving and making our home a safe place to be together and share love. She needs us now and I hope you can find it in your heart to shower her the same way she has showered on others. There is no cure for this condition and every doctor she sees continues to tell her she has to live with it and manage it day to day and it will most likely get worse as she ages. We will stand with her regardless, but she still has my 2 younger sisters to raise through high school and get on her feet and needs help along the way. She has experienced such great loss in a short time, and we are asking for any help you can give.

Thank you for anything you can do for our family and our precious mother!