Shawna & Joe Peterson - Just a little help

Hello. My name is Heather and I hope you take a moment of your time to read my story of Joe and Shawna Peterson.

 

I have known Joe for many years, as some of you have also. I became friends with Shawna, as our stories were very similar. So please, take a moment to read the story of Joe and Shawna.

 

Joe and Shawna Peterson are two of the most giving and loving people I have ever met. They have always been a two income family and now, now they are down to barely half of an income. Let me take a moment to introduce Shawna.

 

Shawna is a devoted wife, an amazing mother to her son Caleb, to their daughter Chloe, 14, and a step-mother to Kyra, 17. And now, now she Shawna needs 24/7 care herself to a traumatic outcome to a recent lumbar spinal fusion.

 

Instead of Shawna keeping a household and job going so smoothly, she is the one now needing assistance with walking, bathing, going up and down stairs, no matter how many there are. Shawna needs assistance getting off the toilet, showering and drying. She can no longer cook a meal for her family or keep the house clean. She is off of work indefinitely, and sadly, Joe had to go down to part-time to care for her. This lovely and outgoing two-income family, is now barely scraping by and staying afloat.

 

April 20, 2018 is they day Shawna's life would begin to change forever. She was working in a nursing home. this day before Easter. As recent struggles with staffing was getting worse, here she was, once again, faced with completing a two-person transfer on her own.

 

Shawna needed to get a resident out of bed. which required a 2 assist The very few others nurses were trying to assist other residents, as well as the CNA, As Shawna was getting the resident up, she felt, and heard, and excruciating pop in her back, immediately followed by sharp shooting pains. Shawna being the amazing woman she is, did not drop the resident and transferred him safe and sound.

 

Sadly, Shawna didn't fair as well. She had blown L4 & L5 discos completely

out. On June 18, 2018, Shawna underwent her first fusion. This consisted of the lumbar are of spine from L4 to S1.

 

Over the next three years, Shawna's symptoms continued to worsen and the pain unbearable, but she pushed on. Regretfully, in May of 2021, she was getting out of bed and felt a pop in her back again. At first glance, etc., the doctor thought it was Bursitis in her hip. Cortisisone shots, PT, OTC medications; this was Shawna's new norm. And yet, she still took care of everything she was supposed to.

 

Things started to feel better; until she fell. Her left leg simply gave out. This bar far is so true, as I battle the same issues. Anyway, Shawna's MRI showed that L3 had been compromised and she underwent a lateral microdisectomy in August2021. Sadly, after being sent home early due to lack of beds and rooms at hospital from COVID, she was sent home.

 

Within a very short period of time, Joe reached out to me saying he thought something was wrong. I have undergone the same spinal surgeries, cervical and lumbar, so I am glad her reached out. We discussed options, etc., but 2 1/2 weeks later, Shawna's pain was unbearable. He was finally able to get her in to be seen, and to their dismay, the level she had just got out of surgery for, the disc blew out the rest of the way.

 

She was scheduled for another surgery on Oct. 20th, that got moved out due to lack of rooms and beds again. Then she was moved to late November, and you guessed it, that was also cancelled. They are supposed to be doing a third fusion on her, a tier fusion at L3/L4. And as each day passes her pain becomes worse, her number of falls increases,

 

So while she awaits another surgery to repair L3/L4, Joe has had to move to a part-time position. Just to keep their heads above water, and to become caregiver, double-duty parent, and homemaker. Medical bills keep coming, regular living expenses don't stop, and household bills keep coming.

 

So please, this is where I ask for your help. Joe and Shawna would do this for any one of us if the rolls were reversed. They never ask for help and keep their chins up, even when they feel there is no end in sight. Can we please pull together to help support them in any way we can while Shawna awaits getting back on their feet.

They have filed workmans comp two years ago when this started and they have no recourse with surgeon, as this is a possible side-effect of this surgery.  

 

Thank you everyone!!