Health, physical activity and wellness have been a huge part of my life for as long as I can remember. From youth sports to Get in Shape Girl™, grass has never grown under my feet. This active lifestyle followed me into adulthood with a college athletic scholarship and then a 23-year career in health and fitness. I met and married my amazing husband 16 years ago and couldn’t imagine a more loving and supportive confidant to navigate this road of life. Thankfully we share a love for boating, hiking and the great outdoors that we have been fortunate enough to experience with our son. Our family has made wonderful memories whether fishing the local waterways or on family vacations.
In March of 2023, complications from what was supposed to be a simple surgical revision, left me unable to walk for several months and ultimately with a debilitating medical condition that I’ll have for the rest of my life. I was diagnosed with complex regional pain syndrome or CRPS, following damage to the sciatic nerve from a surgical error. I currently have no feeling in the back of my leg below the knee, while the front of the leg and top of the foot and toes are extremely sensitive and feel “scabbed over”. I am unable to wear a shoe and have difficulty walking after a long day on my feet. As a PE teacher, that’s pretty much every day. Nonetheless, I LOVE my job and desperately want to continue teaching.
I’ve tried spinal nerve block injections, pain management techniques and narcotics without success. After extensive research (coupled with a leap of faith), our family has decided I will move to Fayetteville, AR on December 1st for at least two months to undergo a comprehensive treatment program. The Spero Clinic offers a program that uses fifteen different modalities, targeting the central nervous system, and has an 84% success rate of putting CRPS into remission. My days are filled with pain ranging from ant bites & bee stings to jolts of electricity and swelling through the leg, foot and toes. My family desperately wants to get back to our active lifestyle and we believe the Spero Clinic is the answer we’ve been looking for. Unfortunately, in addition to taking a leave of absence from work and leaving my family behind in Alabama, insurance will not cover the treatments. We are asking for any help from financial donations to prayers to help with transportation from school for our son while I’m away. This is not the first time we’ve had to navigate difficult times but we’ve always held tight to each other, the incredible village around us, and faith to see us through. I’m confident this will be no different!
“Being challenged in life is inevitable, being defeated is optional.” -Roger Crawford.