Help Shanna Heal — Parkinson’s Disease

Team fundraiser

Christin Landis Fraser and 2 others are organizing this fundraiser on behalf of Shanna Stapleton.

Donation protected

Hi, I’m Christin and together with Adara, Starr, Sarah, Lauren, and others, we are urgently raising funds on behalf of our friend Shanna, who is battling Parkinson’s Disease at the young age of 43 and needs immediate help. She is facing this crisis without family or a safety net—and is struggling to continue working in her career as a licensed massage therapist while her worsening symptoms are uncontrolled. Our goal is to help her be able to access medical care, and to keep a roof over her head while doing so.

To allow Shanna to receive the healing she has dedicated her life to putting out into the world, we humbly ask on her behalf for any support you are able to give, which will enable her to access treatments, therapies, medicines, and supplements that are not covered by Medicaid. Early-onset Parkinson's Disease requires action to preserve her quality of life, so we cannot stress enough the urgency of getting her stabilized. Both of Shanna’s parents are no longer with us, so our hope is that her friends and wider community will step up to embrace her and give her strength and support in this difficult time. Shanna is truly a special person—please take a few minutes to read her story and pass it on, so we can #HelpShannaHeal.

**Please consider sharing this page with your extended network.** Together we can help this beautiful soul find the resources to get the care she desperately needs, so that she may continue to bestow her own healing gifts upon others—and in that way, pay it forward. Thank you!

WHO WE'RE HELPING...

Shanna Stapleton is one of the most vibrant and unique souls you’re likely to come across, with infectious positivity, a wicked sense of humor, and love for life. Shanna is fiercely dedicated to the people, causes and activities she loves—from her southern roots in Bristol, through studying the arts in Pittsburgh, to more than a decade in Boulder, Shanna finds ways to create community wherever she is. A young-onset Parkinson’s Disease diagnosis would be frightening for anyone, but especially for someone so young whose livelihood and purpose are so closely intertwined with, and largely dependent upon, their physical abilities. Shanna is a professional massage therapist that heals others as a vocation both practical and spiritual, who finds ways to give to others even amidst life’s challenges. A natural champion of clean eating for over 20 years and an avid practitioner of Yoga and mindfulness, Shanna believes in nourishing both the body and soul. She’s also an accomplished dancer, having studied many genres including the Five Rhythms and West African dance/drumming—through these, she shares her gift of being in touch with one’s body and connecting movement to music as a uniting bond across cultures.

WHAT HAPPENED…

Always adventurous in spirit and trusting her path, Shanna moved to Hawaii with her husband Ryan two years ago to practice their healing and visual arts—but this past summer, Shanna began to experience worrisome symptoms. Her fine motor skills started to show signs of interruption: her ability to write was affected, her energy levels drastically declined as her sleep became more fragmented, and most concerning, she began experiencing uncontrollable tremors in her hands and legs. She knew something was very wrong. After lengthy testing including an EMG and MRI, a neurologist confirmed a diagnosis of Parkinson’s Disease. This unexpected shock would be cause enough for distress, but Shanna has also been living hand to mouth in the recent months, residing in a shared living environment and biking to work. Other work opportunities have been hard to come by for both Shanna and Ryan, who share a vehicle which makes it tough to coordinate work schedules and medical appointments. Shanna’s source of income depends upon her ability to keep working, which is in turn dependent upon relief from some of her symptoms.

WHERE THE FUNDS WILL GO...

A portion of the funds raised will be allocated towards a cushion for practical needs including groceries and rent, as well as locating a secondhand motor scooter. Most of the funds donated will be designated for the following medical needs, although this summary is not all-inclusive.

Medical Team – Secure consultations with doctors including a Neurologist with experience treating Parkinson’s in younger adults, a Movement Disorders Specialist, and a Naturopathic physician.
Sleep – Address OSA (obstructive sleep apnea), as tests show that Shanna is not achieving restorative/REM sleep.
Anxiety – Treat her intense anxiety caused by brain changes from Parkinson’s Disease that is exacerbated by her current situation and can worsen her other symptoms. Locate a Therapist that supports patients dealing with chronic/brain disease.
Tremors – Evaluate treatment options available at this point, especially considering that some medications used to treat Parkinsonian tremors may only be effective for a certain period and/or can trigger other unpleasant side effects.
Brain Health – Determine what supplements and/or naturopathic-focused adjunct therapies (not covered by Medicaid) will help rebuild and preserve the gray matter in her brain.
Case Support – Find a patient advocate to assist with case management: coordinating and tracking appointments, practitioner visits, and organizing research and test results.

The sheer amount of coordination and management needed to tackle this disease head on is overwhelming—and Shanna needs a multidisciplinary team to run point, because she is having difficulty reading onscreen and processing complex information for sustained periods while her symptoms are flaring and uncontrolled.

In the spirit of transparency, details and updates about Shanna’s therapeutic plans, treatments and progress will be shared with this page and its donors, as they become available. We appreciate your taking the time to read this page and are deeply grateful for anyone who would like to help, by donating, sharing the campaign, or by joining our Team to #HelpShannaHeal.