Please help our daughter get the Neurosurgery she needs
Our 14 year old daughter is needing urgent neurosurgery to relieve her from her daily delibrating pain. Please help us raise the funds.
Rotherham, Canterbury
Alicia is our 14 year old daughter and has recently been diagnosed with Chairi 1 Malformation, an issue affecting the base of her brain. This causes intense and debilitating head pain which has increased in both frequency and intensity as she has grown. She daily experiences the intense pain that is bought on by simply laughing, coughing, sneezing and other similar movements. The pain is so severe that she describes it as daggers in her head. She gets double vision, loses balance and nausea / vomiting and at times she can be on the verge of unconsciousness. It has impacted her attendance at school (only managing half days recently), friendships and overall wellbeing.
We are currently on the public waiting list for surgery that the neurosurgeon says has a 90% chance of correcting the issue and restoring Alicia's health and wellbeing. We do not have private health insurance which would allow for the surgery to be completed as soon as possible as opposed to in the public system which may be over a year away.
We would not normally do something like a givealittle page; however we are so desperate to help Alicia end her daily suffering that we are reaching out for help to raise the $45,000 needed that would enable Alicia to have the surgery privately.
We would appreciate any help you may be able to give us to reach this goal and see Alicia's health restored.
With grateful thanks
The Barlow Family
Phillippa Barlow's involvement (page creator)
Alicia is our daughter. It has been really difficult watching our daughter this year face this new challenge of a condition that we never knew existed. She has deteriorated very quickly, now at a stage that we struggle seeing the pain she daily endures.
Use of funds
This money will go towards the $45,000 that it will cost for her to have the surgery she needs.
Latest update
Nearly Two Weeks On 27 August 2023
Alicia is doing really well with her recovery. She is gaining strength each day. It is amazing seeing how far she has come in nearly two weeks. From those early days where she struggled to sleep as her pain was so immense and no position was comfortable no matter the amount of drugs she was taking to try and dull it. She struggled to chew and swallow, and walking and talking took so much effort and thought. We are grateful that those days are starting to be behind us. She still has pain in her wound site, still fatigued and relying on medication to help her each day. She physically looks a lot better but still the day to day tasks can be a challenge.
She still has a lot of swelling in her wound site so is experiencing a few headaches from time to time. As the swelling goes down over the next two months we will see how successful her surgery was. We are praying and hoping that it was extremely successful.
She is such a tough kid and has had to bear so much pain in the past and her threshold is so high that it is hard for her to work out what a normal level of pain should be. She is really good at covering up pain as it was her way of life and she was determined to not let it beat her. Hoping that over the next two and a half months of recovery that she start to gain a new normal pain threshold. Alicia blows me away with her determination and attitude and we feel privileged to be her parents, walking this journey with her. THANKS for helping her get on this road to recovery
Latest donations
Thank you so much Heidi and Jess! You overwhelmed us with your generosity. Your prayers mean a lot to us too!
Thank you so much for this generous donation. We are so humbled by it.
Thank you so much for providing this donation to help Alicia have hope and good health again. It truly means so much to us. Thank you
Thank you so much for providing these funds to help Alicia get her operation. We are SO grateful for your generosity.
Thank you Tracey! We are so grateful for your donation. Hoping she will be able to live her best life again soon.
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