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Ruptured Cyst & Endometriosis = Unable to Work

Intro

Hello, my name is Randall Corey Oltman; to avoid any confusion, I'll let you know up front - I usually go by my middle name, Corey. My wife, Bridget, was recently diagnosed with an ovarian cyst, which causes lots of pain and other symptoms. Now, that cyst has ruptured (i.e. burst, like a balloon) and is bleeding inside my wife's abdomen. This is causing even worse pain, as well as nausea and dizziness. Needless to say, she is unable to work because of these symptoms - she had a hard time working already, before the cyst had ruptured, but now she can't work at all and is on short-term disability and/or FMLA, effective today.

Bridget and I have a 14-month-old daughter named Rachael, who we both love very much, but (like all babies do), she needs a lot of care. As Bridget is unable to do much more than lie in bed most of the day, she can't take care of herself very well, let alone provide the care that Rachael needs. This has forced me to take a leave of absence from my work to take care of Rachael and Bridget, effective today.

Needless to say, WIth neither of us working, Bridget and I won't be able to pay for any medical expenses associated with caring for Bridget's cyst. We also won't be able to pay for our monthly bills, like electricity, water, rent, internet, phones, baby needs (diapers, formula, etc.), or even gas for our cars or food for our mouths. I admit that I (as the leader of my family) haven't made the best financial decisions in the past, and, even though we've been turning things around financially, we have very little money set aside for situations like this.

On top of all that, Bridget's OB-GYN thinks that Bridget may have a condition called endometriosis (which probably caused the cyst in the first place), which causes even further pain, dizziness, nausea, etc. He wants to perform a surgery that will allow him to find out exactly what is going on inside Bridget as well as remove any problems. This is an outpatient surgery, and will likely be covered by Bridget's insurance (I am without insurance right now), but in the best case scenario, we will still have to pay a portion of cost of surgery and anything else associated with it.

I am asking for money to help cover the cost of medical bills, surgery, and other monthly bills (including food, gas, baby supplies, etc.)

How We Will Use Donations

Any money that we raise will be used to pay ONLY for one of the following things:

Electricity bill

Internet/phone bill

Cellphone bill

Rent/water bill

Car/renter's insurance

Food/groceries

Baby supplies (diapers & such)

Necessary household supplies (such as paper towels, toilet paper, A/C filters)

Transportation expenses (i.e. gas, bus, etc.)

Please note that I may add things to this list in case I think of anything I forgot.

Donation money will NOT be used for entertainment (movies, recreational things like bowling) or other things that we DON'T need to stay healthy & safe.

Bridget's short-term disability does provide $150 per week, but that barely covers rent, so we need everything we can get.

Other Ways You Can Help

A friend of ours is an independent consultant for Thirty-One, a provider of quality totes and handbags, and she is hosting a special online-only fundraiser for us. You can visit the page here. 20% of the proceeds from those sales will be donated to our fund.

You can also purchase anything from my BandCamp page, where I host & promote my independtly-produced music. You can make donations there as well. Any proceeds from purchases or donations made there will go towards this fund.

Anyone who knows us and lives in the Phoenix Valley is welcome to bring us home-cooked meals. Nothing is off-limits except for tree nuts and sunflower seeds. I am allergic to those.

Finally, anyone can help by spreading the word about this fundraiser. Tell your friends, family, Facebook friends, Twitter followers, etc. - anybody who will listen. Even if you can't give us money, maybe you know someone who can!

What We Will Do if We Exceed Our Goal

We set a goal of $6,000 based upon our normal monthly expenses and what we think our medical expenses will be. If we get a better estimate of the cost of everything, we will adjust that figure.

If we get extra money above and beyond our needs, we will use it to pay off any other debts we have (mainly our car loan and some old doctor bills) and save anything else for a rainy day (i.e. if we have more problems paying bills).

How We Will Thank You

Welll, we'll pretty much just say, "Thanks!"

In seriousness, there's not much we can offer you. We'll make a point, however, to say "thank you" to each and every one of you, and we'll send regular updates throughout and after the course of the fundraiser to let you know how Bridget is doing and how our financial situation is progressing. Make sure you check back here for the latest news.

More About My Family & Me

I am a 26-year-old progressive Christian living in the Phoenix valley in the U.S. state of Arizona. I produce electronic music as a hopeful dream, and in the meantime I work as a sales floor attendant and cashier at Target part-time as a making-ends-meet reality. I enjoy playing the drums, listening to various kinds of music, and watching anime. My wife Bridget works as a deli clerk at our local Safeway store and loves reality TV shows and pop music. Our daughter Rachael is 1 year old and loves music, cartoons, anime, and talking to grandma on the phone.

What Is an Ovarian Cyst?

The ovaries are a woman's internal organs that produce eggs for reproduction. A cyst happens when an egg isn't released properly like it should every month, and a bubble of sorts starts growing on the ovaries. (You can actually get cysts just about anywhere on your body). This bubble fills with fluid and can keep growing and growing, or it can shrink and go away entirely, or it can rupture (i.e. pop), releasing lots of blood and fluid. Cysts normally cause lots of pain, and ruptured cysts even more so.

Doctors can sometimes give medicine to try to control the growth of cysts, but it doesn't always fix the problem.

For more information, visit this page on WebMD.

What Is Endometriosis?

Endometriosis occurs when the inside lining of the uterus (another female reproductive organ) somehow winds up on the outside. Since it's not supposed to be there, it winds up embedding itself in small spots on various tissues and organs, and can cause internal bleeding and lots of pain. This lining is somewhat sticky, so it can also cause things to get stuck together that aren't supposed to.

This condition can't be detected by an ultrasound (like a cyst), so the only way to know for sure if it's there is to do an exploratory surgery; if any bad tissue is found, it can be removed with a laser blast.

For more information, visit this page on WebMD.