Susan's Save Our House Fund
Donation protected
Dire situations call for drastic measures. Four years ago after a weekend walk with our dog, my husband,Craig, was acting odd. He sounded funny, as though he was drunk. He was slurring his words and was having trouble communicating what was going on. Since it was 9am and he doesn't drink I could rule out drunk and immediately got him to the emergency room. Cut to 4 weeks later when we received the official diagnosis that Craig, was striken with Multiple Sclerosis.
Multiple Sclerosis (MS): A disease in which the immune system eats away at the protective covering of nerves.
Multiple Sclerosis is an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system that disrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body.
This devastating diagnosis turned our world upside down. First, we ended up with the wrong neurologist for us. For almost a year Craig was on a medication that was not working for him. The neurologist wouldn't listen to anything I had to say. She asked me not to speak during his appointments. She wanted Craig to talk about what was going on with him, which I understand. However, when you have Multiple Sclerosis, like Craig, you don't remember what you want to say to the doctor and you don't remember to look at the list you made before you left the house. I was furious, frustrated, heart-broken, and devasted, with and for Craig.
Fortunately, about six months in after much research, we landed with the right doctor for Craig. The new neurologist was competely on the ball and ordered a new round of tests including many tests that Dr. Number One failed to ask for. New MRI's, Neuropsyche Evaluations, Eye Exams, and a round of steroids later, we knew we were in the right hands and some of Craig's symptoms became a bit more manageable. He suffers from chronic fatigue which means he has very little energy. His hands and feet cramp up constantly, which is very painful dispite the medications that are supposed to help. He is depressed, which is part of the disease of Multiple Sclerosis. He has a very difficult time sleeping and only get a few hours of sleep on average per night. He has quite a few cognitive issues which only allows him to focus his attention on one thing for a short amount of time. He has major issues with his short term memory. We have the same conversation over and over, just like it was the first time.
I met Craig in Washington state at our first real jobs out of graduate school. Craig was the technical director and I was the costume shop manager. We moved to Minneapolis when Craig landed the gig as assistant technical director at the Guthrie Theatre. He was there about ten years before he moved on to a coporate theatre job in the engineering department of a national theatrical rigging company.
Working is no longer an option for him, he has been unemployed for almost 2 years now. During this time we have applyed for disability for him. He has been denied disability and we are now working on an appeal. This is a very slow process.
So, Craig has been unable to work for almost two years. We have been hoping that the disability will kick in soon and allow us to remain in our home. Unfortunately I do not make enough as a full time teacher to keep up with all the household bills, medical bills, medical insurance, food, etc.
I received a letter last week informing us that our mortgage company is starting the process of forclosure. I don't know how much time we have right now, but, we would like to remain in our house. I need to pay almost $10,000 in back mortgage payments and I would also like to raise an additional $15,000 which we hope will allow us to keep our house till we get this disability issue worked out.
Since Craig is not working, he spends so much of his time trying to help other people. He belongs to several online Multiple Sclerosis communities. He shares his experience with others hoping it will help them. He has a monthly MS support group and he has close links to our local Multiple Sclerosis chapter.
Thank You all for your time. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers. I know the answer will come.
God Bless you all,
Susan and Craig
Multiple Sclerosis (MS): A disease in which the immune system eats away at the protective covering of nerves.
Multiple Sclerosis is an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system that disrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body.
This devastating diagnosis turned our world upside down. First, we ended up with the wrong neurologist for us. For almost a year Craig was on a medication that was not working for him. The neurologist wouldn't listen to anything I had to say. She asked me not to speak during his appointments. She wanted Craig to talk about what was going on with him, which I understand. However, when you have Multiple Sclerosis, like Craig, you don't remember what you want to say to the doctor and you don't remember to look at the list you made before you left the house. I was furious, frustrated, heart-broken, and devasted, with and for Craig.
Fortunately, about six months in after much research, we landed with the right doctor for Craig. The new neurologist was competely on the ball and ordered a new round of tests including many tests that Dr. Number One failed to ask for. New MRI's, Neuropsyche Evaluations, Eye Exams, and a round of steroids later, we knew we were in the right hands and some of Craig's symptoms became a bit more manageable. He suffers from chronic fatigue which means he has very little energy. His hands and feet cramp up constantly, which is very painful dispite the medications that are supposed to help. He is depressed, which is part of the disease of Multiple Sclerosis. He has a very difficult time sleeping and only get a few hours of sleep on average per night. He has quite a few cognitive issues which only allows him to focus his attention on one thing for a short amount of time. He has major issues with his short term memory. We have the same conversation over and over, just like it was the first time.
I met Craig in Washington state at our first real jobs out of graduate school. Craig was the technical director and I was the costume shop manager. We moved to Minneapolis when Craig landed the gig as assistant technical director at the Guthrie Theatre. He was there about ten years before he moved on to a coporate theatre job in the engineering department of a national theatrical rigging company.
Working is no longer an option for him, he has been unemployed for almost 2 years now. During this time we have applyed for disability for him. He has been denied disability and we are now working on an appeal. This is a very slow process.
So, Craig has been unable to work for almost two years. We have been hoping that the disability will kick in soon and allow us to remain in our home. Unfortunately I do not make enough as a full time teacher to keep up with all the household bills, medical bills, medical insurance, food, etc.
I received a letter last week informing us that our mortgage company is starting the process of forclosure. I don't know how much time we have right now, but, we would like to remain in our house. I need to pay almost $10,000 in back mortgage payments and I would also like to raise an additional $15,000 which we hope will allow us to keep our house till we get this disability issue worked out.
Since Craig is not working, he spends so much of his time trying to help other people. He belongs to several online Multiple Sclerosis communities. He shares his experience with others hoping it will help them. He has a monthly MS support group and he has close links to our local Multiple Sclerosis chapter.
Thank You all for your time. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers. I know the answer will come.
God Bless you all,
Susan and Craig
Organizer
Susan Binder-Pettigrew
Organizer
Minneapolis, MN