Medical, inpatient stroke rehab

Marian Francis, a friend and colleague, is currently hospitalized with a stroke at only 40 years old with 2 young kids. She has a long road of recovery ahead of her to relearn to walk etc and could really use our support. The financial aspect of chronic disease is daunting and it’s not something anyone should have to worry about when they are fighting for their life!

Marian is a wonderful friend and has supported me and others through so much before she herself dealt with chronic disease and that’s a true testament to her character.

13 months ago she got Covid and developed long-Covid that left her bed bound for 3-4 months due to complications including POTS. To say her health journey has had a massive rollercoaster since then is an understatement. This all occurred shortly after moving to Australia and one of the stipulations for citizenship has been getting her back to full time work which has been a major stressor. She has worked very hard towards this, often sacrificing her own recovery in doing so, and was close to achieving it until now. For the last month she has finally started to turn a corner for the better and even expressed some guilt to me about that as we’ve always been able to lean on each other on the hardest days. A few days ago she was having some neck pain which she now understands may have been the beginning of the vertebral artery dissection. She had a massage for the neck pain and immediately developed symptoms of a stroke affecting her whole left side. A clot then formed at the site and has since caused a stroke as well as hemorrhage in the medulla and pons. She has double vision, left-sided paraparesis with ongoing deficits, and chronic hiccuping that make it hard to even rest.

The cause for the vertebral artery dissection is unknown, but is suspected to be in part due to her hypermobility (hEDS) and long-Covid.

Once she is released from the hospital (hopefully in the coming days) she will be moved to an inpatient rehab to get her walking unassisted.

Because she is in Australia (not yet a citizen) on private insurance and will be out of work for the foreseeable future, please help her and her family not to have to worry about the astronomical bills that are ahead of them. Her husband and kids need our love and support. They don’t have any local family for childcare support which will cause major hurdles in the months that follow.

I know she is the last person in the world to ask for help and I know she is out of options otherwise. I know it’s a hard time financially around the holidays, and this of course will greatly affect their Christmas as well so any little bit helps. This was shared with her permission.

12/25 update: Marian was transferred to the inpatient rehab facility several days ago help assist her walking and give her the best shot at a full recovery. She is so strong through it all but no doubt today is a hard day not being at home. I know that the voice messages, donations and all the love that she has received has helped carry her through these difficult times. Let’s continue to show her our love and support as she continues to navigate the difficult times ahead.

1/8/24 update: Still at rehab and will likely be there for another week or longer if any more setbacks. She’s making some progress and is determined to get back home with her family as soon as possible. At the same time, she is having ongoing challenges as a result of the stroke and it’s complicated by her long-COVID and POTS. Once she is released home, she will need things modified in her home to make it accessible for her and will need ongoing help. The bills are quickly adding up as well as the need for help with home care and ongoing lost income. As such, I’ve raised her fundraising goal (which I know Marian won’t ask for but I’m confident will help support them in the coming months). Please continue with the voice messages to show your ongoing love and support for her as I know it’s meant a lot. For any of you local, a meal train or offers to help with childcare would be a wonderful way to welcome her home if at all possible.

2/2/24 update: After 8 long weeks, Marian has finally been released from inpatient rehab following her stroke. It’s continued to be an uphill climb to overcome all of the new challenges the stroke has caused, and she greatly appreciates the ongoing love and support of her family and friends. Please continue donating and sharing if you can so that she can continue to recover without the financial stress that comes with it.