‘I just want to live a normal life’
Woman with multiple illnesses seeks financial assistance for urgent operation
At age 16, Lawrence Tavern resident Hanna Dixon was diagnosed with polymyositis and her health has been deteroriating since.
Now, the 31-year-old is urgently in need of $500,000 for an operation to remove a blocked stent (splint) and draining tube from her body and is seeking the public’s assistance in acquiring the necessary funds.
“I am unable able to work. I have been battling all these ailments from I was a teenager. I have sickle-cell trait as well. I was even very ill when I was going to high school. It was so bad that I didn’t get a chance to do all my subjects. I remember fainting during CXC time. I just want to live a normal life and work and take care of myself and family. God has been sparing my life … I just want to live, so I will be appreciative of whatever help I can get,” she said.
Polymyositis is an uncommon inflammatory disease that causes muscle weakness, affecting both sides of your body.
Having this condition can make it difficult to climb stairs, rise from a seated position, lift objects or reach overhead. It affects adults in their 30s, 40s or 50s.
It’s more common in black people than in whites, and women are affected more often than men. Signs and symptoms usually develop gradually over weeks or months.
“One of the side effects from the medication that I got gave me diabetes, followed by seizures and blood clots. I was given a lot of painkillers but there was this constant pain that wasn’t going away. It got so severe that I was rushed to the ICU (Intensive Care Unit) department at UWHI (University Hospital of the West Indies) where I spent a week. I was in a coma all that time but God allowed me to survive that,” she said.
Dixon has also developed kidney stones. The draining tube and stent need to be removed in order to prevent further infections.
“I tried not to ask for help but I can’t do this on my own,” she said.