Tanya Leonard's Medical Fund

GoFundMe has told me I need to write my story, so here it is. The is the story of the strongest woman I know. A ruler of the house, a full time worker, a cook, a cleaner and an unbelievably brilliant mother. Tanya Leonard, my mother, my guide and the pillar that which I would not be standing today without, is asking for help. Now if you know Tanya, you’ll be well aware that she hates asking for help, because she prides herself in been the most independent person you’ve ever seen. But when you withstand the constant pain and torture her body has taken out on her everyday for almost three years, there comes a point when help needs to be asked for. 

My Mum, a former avionics engineer and long time business manager, hasn’t been able to work in over two years and can now barely remember to take her medication or turn off the oven at 38 years old. She was diagnosed with an auto immune disease, and both Trigeminal Neuralgia (TN) and Occipital Neuralgia in February 2013, which are both known as the Suicide Disease (named this due to their extreme levels of absolutely paralyzing chronic head pain), along with suffering from serious vertigo and migraines daily. Tanya struggles daily with stroke-like symptoms and it’s common for her to need a walking stick for getting around. Put simply, in her words, my symptoms are a lot like Wolverine is clawing my head off every moment of the day. Tanya’s deterioration as a functional human being has been a shocking and very eye opening experience for those of us left around her; as many people couldn’t handle the situation and had decided to leave her life when faced with the so called ‘burden’ of being around a very sick woman. This woman has lost so much already, and it is terrifying to say she worries daily about the loss of her life due to illnesses on top of it all.

Tanya is on enough medication to open her own pharmacy, and the medical bills for procedures such as RFN’s, nerve blocks, appointments with specialists, surgeries and other medical care to aid her in recovering from these diagnoses that have ripped apart her life, are nowhere near affordable for a woman who survives off of a government disability pension. 

This fundraiser is my cry for help, for her. This is me trying my hardest to give my mum the long, healthy life she truly deserves. I want her to travel the world like she’s always wanted, and be able to go back to a field of work she loves without having to fear the chronic pain flaring up or having a seizure because the lights in the building are too bright for her. 

My mum is in dire need of costly medical treatment for her illnesses, of which we cannot afford on our own. I want Tanya to continue her story, I can’t let this be the end and I can’t stand to let her live this chapter of her story anymore. 

Please help me raise money to help my Mum live the life she deserves.