Raising money for Nat’s surgery & recovery

Hi! I’m Heidi & I’m organising this fundraiser for my beautiful sister-in-law, Natasha (aka: Nat).

Nat’s had a rough ride in terms of her health. In 2006, at the young age of 24, she was diagnosed with breast cancer & subsequently went though a partial mastectomy, removal of lymph nodes, chemo, radiotherapy & drug therapy.

Over the years that followed she required corrective surgery following the mastectomy & was also hospitalised for, and diagnosed with, a panic disorder (& is still managing that & taking medication for it to this day).

In 2016 Nat had a number of gynaecological surgeries & then in 2018 the breast cancer came back. She had a full mastectomy & a LD reconstruction, with a long recovery.

In 2020 a very large cyst had to be removed from her ovary.

In 2021 she required corrective breast surgery again (following the 2018 reconstruction).

In 2022 Nat was hospitalised & treated for what doctors would later classify as cellulitis all over her chest and stomach.

Later in 2022 she had emergency surgery to have her gallbladder removed.

In 2023 she had another episode of cellulitis, this time in her left hand. That then triggered lymphoedema in her left arm due to the removal of lymph nodes back in 2006. She has had to have multiple specialist physiotherapy sessions & treatment to try & deal with this, this is ongoing.

Now here we are in May 2024 and Nat requires an abdominal hysterectomy on the 16th because her uterus is filled with a large fibroid & is measuring the size of a 24 week pregnancy.

Her body is a patchwork of scars. All the surgeries & hospital admissions have required time off work, often extended. Financially it's draining, the lymphoedema & medication for her panic disorder alone are large ongoing expenses.

Nat has worked at her job as much as she can all the way through her health issues. Her husband, Gary, has also worked full time while trying to support Nat and be there for their boys.

They have budgeted in order for Nat to have private health cover for herself, which helps with the costs of the surgery & some tests (she’s had to have a number of MRI’s to diagnose the fibroid & ensure it is not malignant). However, there are still a lot of out of pocket costs & these are have taken a hit on their finances.

It’s been a really tough road for Nat & her family.

Your donation will ease the financial burden a bit. It’ll help Nat & Gary cover the out of pocket surgery costs, cover her loss of wages while she is in hospital and recovering, as well as hopefully help with travel costs too & from the city while Nat is in hospital. We also want to bless them with a house cleaner over the 6 to 12 weeks it will take Nat to recover from the hysterectomy as it won’t be a simple keyhole procedure due to the size of the fibroid.

Any donation, big or small, would be greatly appreciated & would go towards easing Nat & Gary’s financial & emotional burdens at this time.

Thank you so much for your support, it’s greatly appreciated.