Howdy,
I am Steven Ryan Spence. Class of '01, graduated '03. My wife Alicia is class of '03.
We have a 9 year old daughter who was perfectly healthy until one year ago. She instantly suffered from great pain which led us to the emergency room and eventually to an orthopedist in Southlake, TX who discovered her birth defect. This defect is called Chiari 1 malformation. Her brain is bulging through her skull and pressing on her spinal cord. This causes a fluid filled cyst called a syrinx to form in her spine. She underwent emergency surgery at Dallas Children's performed by Dr. Bruno Braga. She has since been treated by neurology at Dallas Children's, a functional neurologist in Flower Mound, play therapy, and orthopedist in Southlake. Because the cyst in her spine was so large and compressed her nerves for 8 years, she suffers from complications. She has severe pain, several headaches, her body will go limp at times.
This has been a really difficult season of life for our family. In addition to my daughters medical problems, I began having seizures last week. I am now unable to drive for at least 90 days. That puts considerable strain on commuting and finances. My wife, Alicia has been a godsend as she works from home and cares for our daughter, Rebecca. In addition, Alicia just discovered her company is facing thousands of layoffs. If she loses her job, we lose health insurance as well.
We are thankful for anyone in the Aggie network that would consider supporting our daughter's medical needs especially and ask for prayers as we navigate this time in our lives.
God bless,
Steven Ryan Spence '01
https://gofund.me/2b3da4ec1
I am Steven Ryan Spence. Class of '01, graduated '03. My wife Alicia is class of '03.
We have a 9 year old daughter who was perfectly healthy until one year ago. She instantly suffered from great pain which led us to the emergency room and eventually to an orthopedist in Southlake, TX who discovered her birth defect. This defect is called Chiari 1 malformation. Her brain is bulging through her skull and pressing on her spinal cord. This causes a fluid filled cyst called a syrinx to form in her spine. She underwent emergency surgery at Dallas Children's performed by Dr. Bruno Braga. She has since been treated by neurology at Dallas Children's, a functional neurologist in Flower Mound, play therapy, and orthopedist in Southlake. Because the cyst in her spine was so large and compressed her nerves for 8 years, she suffers from complications. She has severe pain, several headaches, her body will go limp at times.
This has been a really difficult season of life for our family. In addition to my daughters medical problems, I began having seizures last week. I am now unable to drive for at least 90 days. That puts considerable strain on commuting and finances. My wife, Alicia has been a godsend as she works from home and cares for our daughter, Rebecca. In addition, Alicia just discovered her company is facing thousands of layoffs. If she loses her job, we lose health insurance as well.
We are thankful for anyone in the Aggie network that would consider supporting our daughter's medical needs especially and ask for prayers as we navigate this time in our lives.
God bless,
Steven Ryan Spence '01
https://gofund.me/2b3da4ec1