Life Transitions for Kenadie

Hi, my name is Shirley and I am fundraising for some very import people in my life.

Brianne & Kenadie’s story

I have known since Kenadie was born that her brain literally did not develop as it should have and it wasn’t until about 2 years ago that a doctor gave it a name for me, “neuronal migration disorder”. This is an untreatable condition which has resulted in behavioral issues including confusion, hyperactivity, uncontrolled emotional outbursts, self-injurious behavior, depression, and echolalia amongst others. Her doctors and I have tried everything from medication to cognitive behavior therapy, alternative therapies and every book, class and technique available to us.

Recently these behavior issues have gotten worse, and I knew I needed help to improve her quality of life. I booked her into hospital so that a psychiatrist could assess her properly. It was affirming to hear from a team of experts that “Kenadie’s needs are extreme” and it is “unmanageable” for me alone. For so long, as I have struggled to cope, I felt the fault was mine – I felt like I “should” know how to care for her. I’m her mom after all.

The doctors’ statement is that Kenadie needs 1 to 1 care; this I know, as I have never been so exhausted as I have in the past 6 months trying to work full time and manage her intensive and ever-changing needs. Until we can arrange to hire a care team, I have had to scale back on my own work so I can be at home with Kenadie for her safety and well-being. This means that I need to figure out how to replace that income though

More than one person has suggested that I set up a Gofundme to help us out which makes me uncomfortable honestly, but WHAT IF we set up a Patreon where you could get original Kenadie art and access to special videos and content for a small fee? Would anyone be interested in this kind of thing?

I also have a few ideas for raising money by selling custom products as I already own a professional engraver which I invested in last year as part of my business. I would love to hear what kinds of goodies you’d be keen to buy. We’ve already made the “Team Kenadie” tumblers and we are working on some magnets if anyone is interested is those, I will have some images up soon.

If you’ve made it this far, thank you. I know it is a long read, but I wanted to try to explain as much as possible. My goal is to always ensure that Kenadie is safe and happy and healthy and that is why I am reaching out to you now. Love and energy has been directed at her from around the world for most of her life… this has uplifted me in the most difficult times, I am so blessed to have you all on Team Kenadie and I promise to continue to share our journey.