The day before yesterday my mother was connected to a ventilator and other life-support systems. But her brain damage is irreversible, and we now have only one path left. I don’t know how much time I have — maybe 5 minutes, maybe 5 days — while her body is still accepting oxygen.
On December 23 at 13:05 my mother went to the bathroom and collapsed there. My son Yan was at home. He heard the crash but couldn’t open the door. He called us. During the 10 minutes it took us to get there, I managed to call an ambulance and friends who live in a nearby building. They broke down the door, carried my mother into the room on a blanket, and a few minutes later we and the ambulance arrived. I’m terrified for Yan, who spent several minutes alone, waiting and crying. Given his ASD (autism spectrum disorder – BYSOL note), I don’t know how this will affect him.
Within an hour after the stroke, my mother was already taken into surgery. Everything happened quickly, because a CT scan and other necessary procedures had been done in advance. Doctors removed the blood clot through a blood vessel.
But a miracle did not happen. Half of her brain is flooded with blood. This is irreversible.
While I waited for seven hours, I called a medical worker from the organization that helps refugees awaiting international protection. They told me that the Office for Foreigners had not entered my mother into the insured persons database. Until Monday, no one is working there because of the holidays. By law, my mother should have insurance, but due to bureaucracy, she doesn’t.
I don’t know if I will manage to secure coverage for her. I don’t know if she will still be alive by Monday. The bill for the surgery and other medical procedures ranges from tens to hundreds of thousands of zlotys. I don’t yet know the exact amount, but the scale is precisely that.
And I need to prepare to say goodbye.
The children have withdrawn into themselves. We were very close: I with my mother, and they with their grandmother. Right now I feel derealization. On the dresser are clothes my mother took down from the drying rack; in the fridge is food she cooked.
I promise that if I manage to secure coverage through the authorities, I will not use a single extra cent.
The most terrifying thing is not having the strength to influence anything at all — and realizing that miracles don’t happen.
Fundraising goal
€15,000
Emergency diagnostics and hospital admission — approx. €2,000–€3,000
Urgent surgery — €3,000–€5,000
Intensive care and mechanical ventilation — €2,500–€3,000
Other medical expenses — approx. €1,500
Funeral arrangements — approx. €3,000
I promise that if part or all of these expenses are covered through the medical insurance system, any unused funds will be redirected to other BYSOL aid fundraisers.