Hi everyone,
Yes, I realize it has been a very long time since I posted anything, but I wanted to check in and say that I’m still in business, and I’ll have a few more things in my store this week.
It feels like it’s been forever since I’ve been able to have my studio up and running. Normally I wouldn’t post such personal information, but there is a point to this story so please keep reading. In November of 2008, I woke up one morning with a horrible migraine. After 2 urgent care visits, a trip to the emergency room for a spinal tap, and 3 days in the hospital, I found out I had viral meningitis. Several weeks after that, I was still having horrible daily headaches, and the painkillers gave me an ulcer, which meant more trips to the doctor and more medication. On top of that, it turned out that the headaches were not caused by the meningitis, but that I had become severely anemic, which meant… more trips to the doctor and more pills. (This month should put me 2/3 of the way through treatment for the anemia, and everything else is gone!)
I had a lot of questions about how this happened since I try very hard to live a healthy lifestyle, and even my doctor said he had a hard time figuring out what was wrong with me because I am otherwise in very good health. I asked how this happened and how I could prevent it from happening again, and he said I couldn’t. It was completely random. I was exposed to a virus that could have been any virus, and my body for some reason, this one time, reacted the way it did.
Besides the obvious health concerns, the truly frightening thing was seeing the hospital bills. Luckily I have great health insurance, but if I hadn’t, this entire thing would have easily cost me $50,000. If I had known I didn’t have insurance, and how much it would have cost, I don’t know that I even would have gotten treatment for something potentially deadly. It was a huge wake up call to realize how quickly and randomly something can happen to your health that can financially devastate you. It’s very sobering to think how many people can’t afford to have health insurance, and can’t afford not to have it either. It’s not just the bills, either. I’m still amazed at how much of my life my illness has taken away for the past several months, and what a struggle it has been to get it back.
The point of my story is to bring attention to something that some wonderful friends are going through right now. They are uninsured and facing urgent dental issues that will cost tens of thousands of dollars. Their situation has been beautifully explained on the Friend of a Friend Healthcare Initiative website, so please visit and find out more. I can vouch for the fact that these are very real and beautiful people, and fully deserving of community support.
I have donated some and will continue to donate as I can. I want to encourage any of my friends who can donate even just a little to help out. Every little bit adds up, and it would mean so much to a very deserving family.
-Dione
www.inspiredglass.net
June 17, 2009 at 4:53 am
Dione, you are so very gracious in that way that can only come from someone who has shared tough circumstances. All three of us thank you for this, and I’ll look into linking to this post from the FoF Facebook cause page.
June 17, 2009 at 5:04 am
Thank you, Paul. If I could just give $50,000, I would, but it’s also great to see how it adds up if a lot of people work together.