Join Jenna in Aiding Her Mom's Recovery

Hi my name is Jenna Imig. For the past 9 months our family has had a very difficult time. My mom became suddenly and seriously ill last November. As she has sought to find answers for what is causing her sickness, many medical bills have been accumulating. She has a member sharing plan (Christian Healthcare Ministries) that reimburses for some medical bills but there is much they haven't covered. Mom also was hospitalized for 9 days and incurred a bill of $11,000 that is also not covered. It has been hard to watch my mom who has cared for us and so many others, struggle so much. My goal in starting this for her is to provide any help that I can, to get closer to a treatment for her. Please keep her and our family in your prayers. Thank you so very much.

See my mom's full story below:

I am going to share a very long story that I do not expect most to read, but I feel that now is the time for me to share it. I share with the hope that it helps even one person. I also share because I need help as well and I am no longer ashamed to share that.

The year 2023 was without a doubt the hardest year of my life.....mentally, physically, spiritually and emotionally. Part of that struggle involves a health battle that both our son and myself have been on.

James became sick last summer with what seemed like the world's worst cold. It lasted for weeks and when it became months we went to ENT. After 21 days of steroids and several antibiotics he was not better. He had his first adnoidectomy and turbine reduction in November. In December we returned because symptoms were not better. The ENT specialist said that in one month's time it looked as if he had not done a surgery at all. His second surgery was in December. During that surgery they biopsed the tissue and it came back with three very rare infections. We were connected with Infectious Disease and that lead to a port being installed and daily IV antibiotics for three weeks time at the hospital.

As soon as that IV treatment was done James was helping clear brush on our property and suffered a leg injury which lead to stitches, a hematoma that ruptured and split the stiches open, followed by a culture that revealed a staph infection and then the place where we are now, with a wound vac installed. We are in Week 8 of his journey with his leg with three times weekly wound care at the hospital.

Last October, I had a five day illness that had me down for the count. We believe it stemmed from a supplement I took for my Interstitial Cystitis, but we will likely never know the root cause. For five days I was both exhausted and couldn't get enough rest while at the same time being agitated, unable to sleep, having tachycardia, neuropathy, stomach pain, constant trips to the bathroom, dizziness, confusion and more. I felt as if I was stuck in fight or flight mode. Of course, life did not stop because I was sick, as it doesn't for any of you I'm sure. So I took our son to appointments, surgeries and hospital treatments while battling my own illness.

Holidays came and went, birthdays for the kids and grandkids, anniversaries, our youngest daughter turning 18 and finishing high school, Josh completing his masters degree and working full time, ministry and all that comes with all of that. Over the course of time I went to several doctor visits, a few ER visits and saw two different functional medicine clinics. I had countless tests, labs, imaging and panels run to be told essentially that nothing could be found other than very high cortisol at all times of the day and night, a methylation issue (this relates to how your body detoxes, or in my case doesn't) and most recently anemia. From what began in October grew into a battle that I am still fighting today, 8 months later. In December I was only sleeping on average 2 hours a day/night, I could not eat (I lost 30 pounds over only a few weeks), and most terrifying, I developed psychiatric symptoms of panic and anxiety. I did not recognize myself anymore. I became fearful of everything and did not feel safe being alone. In January I reached a point of complete despair. Countless days and nights with panic, anxiety and physical pain beyond anything I have ever known, turned in to weeks and months with no answers as to why I was so sick and a five day stretch of zero hours of sleep I reached a point physically and mentally that I needed help. I sought help at the hospital for suicidal ideation. The facility that the hospital reached out to said that because I had not "made an active attempt on my life" that they could not take me. They also stated that because I have Christian Healthcare Ministries as my "insurance" that to admit me would require $7,000 up front. The hospital sent me home with a sleep aid and apologized for the broken system. The sleep aid did not work in fact it had the opposite effect; it made me go into psychosis. The meds that everyone was saying would help me were continually making me SICKER. The next day when I truly felt I had exhausted all hope and help I attempted to take my life. I am sharing this because I am not someone who ever imagined I would be in that place. I have a loving family, my faith and so many blessings in my life. I have never dealt with anxiety, panic disorder or depression nor have I thought about taking my life. I have never been on medications. I've also never experienced physical, mental, spiritual anguish to the point of believing I couldn't take it anymore. I spent countless nights crying out to God for help and though I know He was there.....I felt utterly alone; and that is what ultimately lead to a darkness I can't begin to describe. The enemy worked on me in many ways and I felt tormented day and night. I spent nine days in a psychiatric ward. Those were the most terrifying nine days of my life. I really believed that was the end of me and that I would live out my days there. I questioned everything I ever thought to be true. I turned in my despair to God and clung to reading my Bible while I was there. My roommate who was schizophrenic began to ask me to pray for her every night, because those were the only nights that she slept, she said. Others started to ask me questions about "my God" and they joined me in Bible study and prayer each night. In the darkest place.....God brought light. I was reminded again that I am His.

As part of my treatment in facility I was started on a slew of psych meds. One for the anxiety, another for sleep, a third for the pain and neuropathy and a fourth to keep my heart from constant stress of tachycardia. I was asked if I wanted to agree to those meds but told that cooperation for my treatment would determine when I could get out......so essentially it wasn't much of a choice. I was sent home in a state physically, and mentally, far worse than when I went in and with an $11,000 bill, mandated therapy provided by the county at (also at a large cost to us) and my bag of medications.

I told doctors and anyone who would listen, for months, that I had not suddenly developed a mental disorder, a heart condition, and all of my other symptoms without any prior history and that something was wrong and we needed to keep digging. Traditional medicine and big pharma are designed to do one thing....treat symptoms; but getting to the root cause is often overlooked. I determined that I had to be my own advocate and not stop researching until I could find an answer. Some days that fight is there and I keep researching, keep asking questions and keep begging for my care team to help me get to the root. Other days I spend hours crying in despair, wondering if this will ever get better. I have good days...sometimes even as long as a good week, and then I get assaulted with the panic, anxiety, hours of crying, burning skin, burning mouth, flushing, severe ear pressure, difficulty swallowing, blurry vision, racing heart, unbearable fatigue, stomach pain, chest pain, bladder pain....I feel it from my head down to my toes. Every day I wake up I never know what the day will bring. Will it be a good day? Will it be a bad day or several days? Making it through one day often feels like the span of years, not hours. All the while life is still going on around me and I desperately want to be a part of it with my husband, my children, my grandchildren. I want to feel joy again and look to the future with gladness.

I often feel like a burden to my family because my needs are great and I'm not used to other people taking care of me. I'M the caregiver. I'M the mom. I WAS the one who "had it together," and "held it all together." I have been humbled to my very core. I am not holding anything together.....but He is. I can hold NOTHING together.....but He can. I am dependant on Him for every minute of every hour now....and I'm sure that's what He intends for me and for us all.

Trials have a way of making that reality ever constant. I am a sinner...but He is my Saviour. I was lost.....but He was always guiding. A friend reminded recently when I revealed to her that I feel like a total failure and that I am so very weak in my faith, when I thought I was so strong, that, "It's not the strength of your faith that matters. He knows we are like dust. He knows we are like sheep, which are helpless without a Shepard. It's the strength of our God that matters." I couldn't help but envision the picture of Jesus holding the lost sheep in his arms. He leaves the 99 to save the 1....and only by His grace am I one of those He came to rescue.

I am still in this battle. I am still fighting. I am still seeking treatment for the root of this. God has placed people in my life at just the right times. Several have suggested that I look into Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS), and so I have. MCAS is a disease that occurs when mast cells release too many chemical mediators in response to a trigger that would normally be harmless. These chemical mediators can cause a range of symptoms that affect multiple body systems including, the skin, gastrointestinal, respiratory, cardiovascular, musculoskelatal, neurological and genitourinary systems. I joined a Facebook group for MCAS and have connected with people from all around the world who have either been diagnosed with MCAS or are like me, suffering and praying for answers and help. MCAS has been around for a long time. COVID, however, created an explosion of new cases. Each day tons more are "welcomed" into the FB group, and many have stories just like mine. Like all things COVID, there is much to be learned about it and the long effects. What does seem common is that a trigger such as stress, other autoimmune disorders, infections and viruses can flare MCAS and cause your entire body to go crazy. MCAS which was previously (and frankly, still today by many doctors) believed to be only anaphlaxis and skin rashes is now a disorder that manifests itself as attacking many other organs and systems of the body. I meet people online daily who say they, their spouse, or their child, suddenly and rapidly developed psychiatric symptoms and were treated with psych meds alone. Many of those people have begun the first and second line of treatment which involves a diet that is gluten, sugar, dairy free and low histamine and started an H1 and H2 antihistamines and they are finding healing. Others need more in the regiment such as mast cell stabilizers, both prescribed and supplemental. One of the hardest parts about MCAS is that testing that is done on tryptase levels and urine often come back normal. Many MCAS doctors do not rely on testing for diagnosis, but rather, have to rely on clinical symptoms, patient history and response to MCAS meds such as Ketofin, Cromolyn, and LDN. My doctor has referred me to an Allergy/Immunologist. My case was put in triage since I have psychiatric symptoms as my primary concern. I was told I may be "lucky" to be seen in September. I am struggling trying to make it hourly....September feels like an eternity away. I'm praying that this doctor is one who treats based on history and response to meds, because frankly, I know the despair and hopelessness that returns when leaving a doctors office being told that "there is nothing more they can do," and that when I'm done crying and able to collect myself that I can see my way out.

One day recently I posted on what I thought was the MCAS page, but was instead my personal FB. I only realized it when someone reached out to say they saw it and were suffering too. I quickly deleted my question for the MCAS page and was embarrassed that I had made that error. But God knew all along about what was going to happen that day in "my mistake." He brought someone into my life who has been battling now for three years and is still without answers. Together, we are helping each other through, and I know God isn't done with either of our stories.

I'm sharing because there may be others out there. In fact, I'm sure of it. Maybe you don't have MCAS, or an illness at all, but you are struggling; maybe facing a trial of your own that seems insurmountable. You are NOT ALONE. People are fighting unseen battles every day and your willingness to share your story may be the very life line they needed in that moment. I've had several life lines in this journey and I am thankful for each one. I know that God brought them into my life and me into theirs with a purpose in mind. I am learning a lot through these last eight months....about myself (both good and bad), about others, about the importance of family and friends and vulnerability and a very large dose of humility...but most of all, I am learning a lot about God. This verse has been gifted to me, sent to me and prayed over me. I'm getting the hint that God wants me to remember this:

Isaiah 43:2 "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, nor will the flame burn you."

This life though seemingly long and often times hard, is but a vapor. The older I get the more I see the truth of this. But heaven is eternal. Do you know where you stand with the Creator?

In a world that is ever changing, do you know the One who is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow?

I have looked back over these past eight months and I can see the very hand of God; protecting, providing, guiding and strengthing both me and my family, this entire time, and I am convinced that what Satan meant for our destruction, God intends for our good and His glory. In fact, I have told the enemy many times that this family will NOT be destroyed, because we are His and the Lord has already won the victory.

Please pray for both me and my family and if there is a way that we can be praying for you I pray that this very raw post for me gives you courage to reach out as well.

Ephesians 3:20 "Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to His power that is a work in us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen."