Please Help My Mom

Hi. My name is Merissa and I’m a 23-year-old full time student at the Curtis Institute of Music. I’m fundraising for my beautiful mother, Debbie Soskin, who

has suffered a series of medical emergencies that have resulted in extended hospitalizations at various medical facilities in Westchester, NY. Most recently, my mother was admitted into the Westchester Medical Center’s ICU after sustaining a brain bleed from a bad fall.

My mother has been disabled and unemployed for many years now and my father is deceased. I have been a caregiver and primary advocate to my mother since the age of 11. I can say with certainty that this has been the roughest patch I’ve ever gone through with her.

 

As background information, I should mention that my mother has dealt with memory issues for quite some time now. Two years ago, she was evaluated by a neurologist who told her to follow up with him because her exam results were not where they needed to be. She never followed up because she was too scared and too overwhelmed with other medical problems that she deals with on a daily basis. She is a diabetic, suffers from fibromyalgia, neuropathy, and spinal stenosis, for which she has had two surgeries. Unfortunately, her neuropathic pain only worsened after her Laminectomy.

 

This past March, she had another medical emergency that required ICU for a week.

Upon waking from a comatose-like state, she was extremely confused, had trouble communicating, and even now remains somewhat disoriented. She was sent to a mental health facility from the medical hospital, where she would hopefully continue her cognitive recovery. After a week and a half, she was improving somewhat and was being considered for discharge. During this period, I was travelling from Philadelphia to New York to visit her and communicate with the various doctors and nurses who were responsible for her care. On April 16th I received a phone call from the mental health facility saying that my mother had fallen and was taken to the Neuro ICU.

 

She had suffered a brain hemorrhage that had stabilized by the end of the day, but left her, yet again, in a state of confusion and pain. She has not yet fully recovered to her prior status. This has left us in a very difficult position.

 

I have had to take a leave of absence from school. I am her medical proxy and am handling this situation all by myself and am under enormous stress and pressure.

 

My mother does not have any retirement savings and there is no one who is able to help financially. Although she is on Medicare and Medicaid, her Medicaid only covers “outpatient” treatment. I am currently in the process of applying for “inpatient” Medicaid, so she could be in the hands of a good long-term facility where she wouldn’t have to deal with everything all by herself anymore.

 

All this administrative process takes time and she is currently in a short-term facility. This means that she will be discharged in the upcoming days or weeks. I want to be able to send my mother to a good long-term facility as soon as I possibly can, and not having any financial support destroys all hope of that actually happening.

 

My goal is to raise $25,000 to send my mom to a long-term facility where I know she will be in safe hands. This would cover the first few months of care, until her inpatient Medicaid takes effect.

 

My dream is to be able to continue my studies in school without having to worry about my mother’s health constantly. My mother has truly been through hell and back and deserves nothing but the best. I will fight with all of my strength and resolve until she gets what she needs.

Any financial support would be so deeply appreciated during this time.

Thank you,

Merissa