#GWUEmily Medical Fund
Donation protected
One day everything can seem just fine. You can talk to someone and feel like everything is going great. Then the next day you can find out how wrong you were.
That’s what happened to our family on October 9th. We didn't know that Emily's depression had gotten her to want to take her life. On that afternoon she jumped from her dorm room window to the street below.
But just as quickly as things can turn from good to bad, horrible things can get better.
Emily survived. She has movement and feeling in all extremities. She has no brain or spinal trauma. She had no internal organ damage. She has survived three major surgeries so far. She had a wonderful medical team at George Washington University Hospital. She is now on the long road to a full recovery. For that we are extraordinarily blessed. In so many ways, that is all we could ask for.
But the reality is she was severely injured. Emily broke both feet, both femurs, her knee cap, her pelvis, her right arm and cracked her spine. That road to recovery she is on will be long and painful.
The reality of the situation is it will also be expensive.
George Washington University is being so helpful and they have our gratitude. But the truth is that we have already had many expenses and even with insurance we will have many expenses to come. As much as my mother would love to stop working and care for her daughter the truth is she will have to keep working. These are all expenses that we are grateful to have as they are much better than the alternative.
Also, in the hours following this tragedy we were all focused on the physical problems. We want Emily to get better and that means her mental health needs to be taken care of. I am glad that so many people have never struggled with depression and I completely understand how hard it can be to understand. But what we can all understand is that Emily will need lots and lots of help to make sure she never gets to that dark moment again.
The outpouring of support has helped us through this rough time. If you can contribute to Emily's medical fund, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. If you can't, we completely understand. I know many of Emily's friends are still in College and even $5 might not be available. Just your love and support is enough and we thank you for that as well. Please share Emily's story with your friends through social media. Please use #GWUEmily so we can show Emily how many of us there are out there that care.
Some expenses that will need to be covered include general medical expenses (deductible and the percentage that insurance makes you cover). Transport costs. Ongoing medical care, rehab, and therapy will all have expenses associated with them. Back home Emily's mom will have to make adjustments to her home to make it accessible as Emily rehabilitates.
I want to ask one more thing of everyone -- please take some time after reading this to get in contact with your loved ones. If you know someone who has battled with depression -- talk to them. Ask them how they are doing. Let them know they are loved. If you don't feel like you have loved ones or no one will reach out to you, please know that isn't true. There are many people who you can talk to. I really want to make sure that Emily's story can be used to help others.
Members of the GWU community can contact the University Counseling Center at [phone redacted]
That’s what happened to our family on October 9th. We didn't know that Emily's depression had gotten her to want to take her life. On that afternoon she jumped from her dorm room window to the street below.
But just as quickly as things can turn from good to bad, horrible things can get better.
Emily survived. She has movement and feeling in all extremities. She has no brain or spinal trauma. She had no internal organ damage. She has survived three major surgeries so far. She had a wonderful medical team at George Washington University Hospital. She is now on the long road to a full recovery. For that we are extraordinarily blessed. In so many ways, that is all we could ask for.
But the reality is she was severely injured. Emily broke both feet, both femurs, her knee cap, her pelvis, her right arm and cracked her spine. That road to recovery she is on will be long and painful.
The reality of the situation is it will also be expensive.
George Washington University is being so helpful and they have our gratitude. But the truth is that we have already had many expenses and even with insurance we will have many expenses to come. As much as my mother would love to stop working and care for her daughter the truth is she will have to keep working. These are all expenses that we are grateful to have as they are much better than the alternative.
Also, in the hours following this tragedy we were all focused on the physical problems. We want Emily to get better and that means her mental health needs to be taken care of. I am glad that so many people have never struggled with depression and I completely understand how hard it can be to understand. But what we can all understand is that Emily will need lots and lots of help to make sure she never gets to that dark moment again.
The outpouring of support has helped us through this rough time. If you can contribute to Emily's medical fund, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. If you can't, we completely understand. I know many of Emily's friends are still in College and even $5 might not be available. Just your love and support is enough and we thank you for that as well. Please share Emily's story with your friends through social media. Please use #GWUEmily so we can show Emily how many of us there are out there that care.
Some expenses that will need to be covered include general medical expenses (deductible and the percentage that insurance makes you cover). Transport costs. Ongoing medical care, rehab, and therapy will all have expenses associated with them. Back home Emily's mom will have to make adjustments to her home to make it accessible as Emily rehabilitates.
I want to ask one more thing of everyone -- please take some time after reading this to get in contact with your loved ones. If you know someone who has battled with depression -- talk to them. Ask them how they are doing. Let them know they are loved. If you don't feel like you have loved ones or no one will reach out to you, please know that isn't true. There are many people who you can talk to. I really want to make sure that Emily's story can be used to help others.
Members of the GWU community can contact the University Counseling Center at [phone redacted]
Organizer
Sean Thompson
Organizer
Wichita, KS