Diane Needs Emergency Medical Help

UPDATE 5/22/2024: Your kindness and generosity is helping me pay for expensive medications and doctor visits. I am still trying to afford to repair the car so that I can get to job interviews that I have lined up. MOST IMPORTANTLY: Having no air conditioning in the Summer in Oklahoma is deadly, especially for someone with serious health problems. I am planning to buy window units, have them installed, and save for having the air conditioner repaired or replaced another time. The 4 inside window units will cost around $1000, and the window sealant kits will add $200 on to that. Because previous donations are covering medical and transportation costs, I am hoping some of you will donate or please share with friends and social media contacts. Thank you for your help!

UPDATE: I got some initial help from a doctor yesterday, but the treatments need to continue. I have Degenerative Arthritis that I have been fighting for years. X-rays taken yesterday showed that I need to replace the right hip. I have already replaced 3 large joints.

I think I can get by for a few months wearing hip braces, and then could get the replacement on a vacation from a job I am hoping some great company will provide for me.

I NEED transportation. I need to pay my bills. I haven't shared all of my difficulties this year because I know folks get tired of hearing about that, and employers who see my posts will not consider hiring me. They say they do not discriminate again people with disabilities, but they do. I have heard all the excuses.

I cannot teach any longer, but I have many transferable skills. I also worked for the government in two very responsible positions.

I understand that the world is difficult right now and you may not be able to donate, but if you would share this GoFundMe with your friends, your church, your work, or your social media, it would really help me!

I can't believe how many kind and generous strangers are trying to help. Any amount is appreciated! It really restores my faith in humanity! Thank you all.

Hi, my name is Diane. Asking for help does not come easily to me.

I am a disabled former school teacher. I have spent my life in public service. I taught school for decades and created and managed numerous Fine Arts, literature and Gifted and Talented programs for schools and Foundations. I worked as the Education Specialist for the United States Army, and have been a Disability Claims Representative for the Social Security Administration. Working for Social Security I helped people who were too ill to work get health insurance and money to provide the basic necessities of life. It is ironic now that I, too, need the same kind of assistance.

Recently I have had an unbelievable run of bad luck. Lots of emergency room visits, my car quit running, my air conditioning had to be fixed, my plumbing had to be fixed (for the 3rd time this year!), and of course I have tried to continue buying food and medicine. I had to quit teaching last year after I caught a serious case of COVID at my school. I have spent the last year using up all my savings while job hunting. I have been trying to find a "work from home" job, but have had difficulty finding a reputable situation. I have found that ageism is alive and well! I promise you skills learned in other careers are transferable and with age comes wisdom, maturity, and reliability. (If you know of anything, I have a varied resume having worked multiple jobs over the years. Teacher salaries always require supplementary work. Writer/Editor, Data Entry, or Customer Service would be ideal.)

I just got out of the hospital again yesterday trying to deal with severe pain from a back injury that happened years ago. I have damage to my sciatic nerve. Until you deal with that pain that runs down your legs and hips, and will cause your knees to collapse when walking, you don't know back pain! No sitting, standing, or lying down relieves it. It is so severe it makes me nauseated.

I will need to get permanent treatment for the injury as soon as I can afford it and I need to do something about it right away. I am ready, willing, and able to work!

I have applied for every government and state and church program I can find. All of those require waiting periods of some kind, so I just have to wait and see. But the bills keep coming! I have nothing left in the bank and I could use your help. I can't pay my utility bills (due this week), my mortgage, get my car fixed, or buy food and medicine.

I have been fighting several illnesses for years now, without the doctors being able to identify exactly what was wrong. I was diagnosed with numerous illnesses and I have been given drug after drug. Most of the doctors would send me to other Specialists. For the last year and a half my health continued to spiral downward until I was suffering from so much pain and exhaustion I could no longer walk without help.

I have been to Rheumatologists, Neurologists, Internal Medicine doctors, Pain Management doctors, decompression groups, and the list goes on and on.

I have been in the emergency room 2 times in the last 3 weeks. The first visit put me in an ambulance rushing to a larger hospital better able to address the blood I was vomiting and my incredibly high blood pressure of 200/120. When I arrived I was covered in doctors and nurses attaching monitors and machines to me; everyone was talking about heart attacks, strokes and Cancer. For the first time in my life I can tell you I was truly frightened. And I was facing all this illness alone. The doctors were telling me everything wrong with me could take my life. All I could think about was “who would take care of my beloved puppydog?

I do not have months to wait! I need medical help right now, and I have exhausted all my funds and accounts. I have even sold everything I own with value that was small enough for me to carry.

I am not ready to be an invalid or to die. I have too much left to do and far too many ideas and plans for new programs and artwork. I am willing to fight to get my health back, but I need your support to do so.

If you can help me, I would be eternally grateful. If you would like to share this information with friends, I would appreciate that as well.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. Bless you and I wish you good health! It truly is your greatest wealth! And

whatever you could offer would be greatly appreciated.