Falling on some hard times and in medical debt

Hey there beautiful people! My name is Penni, I live in Denver and I am a vet assistant (and love my job dearly)!

I was diagnosed with Rheumatoid Arthritis about 9 years ago, when I was 26, and since then I have gone through a number of trial and error medications, treatments and screenings. As many of you in the US know, healthcare insurance does not cover everything and the bills can add up unbelievably fast. I’m currently in about $2000 of medical debt (surprisingly it’s not more) and I do my utmost hardest at paying it down monthly. Unfortunately if you know how much a vet assistant makes, you know that it’s not enough to barely even scratch the surface of these bills and still pay for daily life. So I have been falling more and more behind with every new test, or medication they want me to try. To top it off, it seems that the RA has migrated to my lungs, causing me to have a chronic cough which the pulmonologist wants to treat with an inhaler that runs at $168 a month (after insurance).

I also go into surgery next week (11.3.23) to remove two ovarian cysts and receive a salpingectomy (fallopian tube removal) to prevent and reduce my risk for cancer in the future as I am high risk due to chronic inflammation and the medications used to treat RA. Surgery is estimated to be $1028 after insurance coverage, so needless to say, I am drowning and trying my hardest to paddle to stay afloat.

To add insult to injury, whilst walking my dogs this morning (10.25.23) I noticed my car had been broken into and my passenger side window completely shattered. Despite having full coverage, my deductible is $500 so my upcoming bill to get it replaced is $500. This is a huge blow to someone who is already barely staying afloat.

I love what I do despite being aware that it doesn’t pay much - being a vet tech is my dream and working with animals is my calling. I know I can get a higher paying job waiting tables to help with my bills but my body cannot handle it anymore due to the RA and I can’t imagine leaving the vet industry, I would be shattered.

I know we are all struggling. The world has become a hard place these days. But if you can spare anything, I would be beyond grateful.

thanks for making it this far!