Gettin' by with a little $help$ from our friends

Hi, my name is Lillian Pickering. This photo shows my daughter Tatiana and me several years ago. We love blurry pictures the best!

Tatiana has had an awful 2 years with her health. In addition to the problems created by genetically-transmitted Fabry disease (pain, numbness, burning, kidney issues, high blood pressure, severe anxiety and depression) she has been experiencing unexplained and progressive pain in her lower spine. She has been under the care of a pain and spine clinic, with limited improvement.

Since March, she has been less able to work (she is a psychotherapist) and has struggled to pay all her bills. Since then, to now, she has been finding it too painful to sit up to see clients at all. Her income has been smaller and smaller.

She had a procedure for the pain at the end of June, which only partially helped. And then on July 31, she had major elective abdominal laparoscopic surgery, from which she is recovering now.

Through all this, this 75-year-old mother has been helping with finances and also by living with her (she lives in VA, I live in VT) because in-house health care is too costly, and Tatiana has been unable to complete basic household tasks, such as housework, laundry, grocery shopping.

Her balance is poor and I was needed to help her into and out of the tub and to help her with bathing.

Both our savings have been depleted and I am now getting by with credit cards. I have approximately $7500 in credit card debt, which feels overwhelming to me with my fixed income.

This fundraiser is an appeal for help with getting out of debt and also to help to pay my daughter's bills for one more month (after which we fully expect her to have graduated to full-time work).

We both know money is tight for every single one of you, and wish to instill ZERO guilt in anyone!

Thank you for reading this far, and for your consideration. And, an especially exuberant thank you to all who reach out to help.