Brandy has a new diagnosis — finally.  But it’s not exactly a good thing. The syndrome/disease she has is incurable and very painful. And since she still has no health insurance, it’s rather expensive to treat. Brandy wrote about it on her blog, so I just copied it here:

At my doctors appointment on Wednesday I finally received a diagnosis.  The Diagnosis was CRPS, known also as Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, it  is a chronic neurological disease.  It is also called reflex sympathetic dystrophy syndrome or RSDS.  It affects people of all ages although it is most common in people aged 20-35.  It also affects women more often than men and the disease can affect children.
There is no cure for CRPS.

Since there is no cure for CRPS, the goal of treatment is to try and help relieve some of the pain associated with the disorder.  The pain is pretty horrific some days.  Everyday is a pain day and it never goes away.  Therapies used include psychotherapy, physical therapy, and drug treatment, such as topical analgesics, narcotics, corticosteroids, antidepressants and anti-seizure drugs.

Other treatments include:

Sympathetic nerve blocks
Intrathecal drug pumps
Spinal cord stimulation

There are 3 stages, although some people (like me) don’t go through the 3 stages.  For me, I developed the severe symptoms right away.

Below are the severe symptoms:

irreversible changes to skin and bone
pain is continuous
muscle atrophy
severe limited mobility
contractions of muscles and tendons (limbs may be twisted)
muscle spasms and joint pain
severe burning, aching pain that worsens with the slightest touch or breeze
stiff joints and weak muscles

You know what’s funny?  Paula Abdul has the same condition.  That may explain her being spaced out on drugs all the time.  If I was a weaker person I could see being just like that.  Thankfully I can suck it up…don’t get me wrong…most nights you can find me crying in the garage after everyone else has gone to sleep.  I can’t fake it all the time.  It sucks….but I still don’t hate my life.  Just gotta keep on going!

So now that I have a diagnosis my next step is to contact an attorney to help me with the SSI and Disability forms.  This will help me get insurance to cover my medical needs.  It took them 3 years to diagnose me.  I have been out of work for over 3 years.  I did continue to do occasional web design work for a bit, but now I can no longer do that either.  The medications and treatments I need are beyond what I can do being a self pay patient.

Brandy still needs our help. The medications are very costly as well as the doctor visits. She desperately needs to see a Neurologist so that she can get a diagnosis that Social Security will accept as true in order to apply for benefits. Getting approved for SSDI will not only give her an income to help support her family, but also give her medical insurance so that she doesn’t have to sell one of her children to afford treatment. Please help her!

Ok, kids, the results are in…

While no one got Spike’s weigh exactly, some did get close. Spike’s actual weight was 10lbs 5.34oz. He was the size of a giant baby. No wonder she was in pain and looked 8 months pregnant!

I am announcing the top 3 because I am not sure if the actual winner or 1st runner up need a new header.

Drum roll please…

Andrea says:

I don’t need a redesign, but I’m still going to guess… 9.9lbs
Andrea´s last blog ..introducing…… LaughingSun Designs-

I’m going to guess 8.3 lbs
Kelly W´s last blog ..Quotes to Remember 7-5-10

Guess Spike’s Weight And Win A Custom Blog Header By StitchBlade Designs!

Miss Brandy has graciously offered to give  a custom blog header to one lucky person who most closely guesses the weight of Spike, her tumor.

That’s right folks, all you have to do is leave ONE comment with your best guess for Spike, that little bastard’s, final weight and you could win a beautiful new header for your bloggy. This is a $50 value (This is not a custom art design. She will not be drawing you original images from scratch, unless you would like to pay extra for that.). Click the logo below to see Brandy’s design site and portfolio.

Brandy is an awesome designer. In fact, she insisted upon making the header for this blog herself. I was going to do it, but she said that “no one knows me better than I do”. How could I argue with that?

What you need to know is that Brandy will have full creative control over your header. Of course you can pick the colors you want it to be, however, Brandy has the ability to find out who you are and make your design you. It will be original, it will be beautiful and it will fit you and your blog perfectly.

All you have to do is leave ONE comment, and one comment only, with your best guess of what Spike the Tumor weighed. The person who gets it spot on or closest will win the header design.

To help you out, here is what Brandy’s belly looked like just before Spike was surgically removed and what her belly looked like just a couple days after the surgery:

No go leave your best geusstimate and spread the word!

Contest ends July 23, 2010, 11:59 pm PST

CONTEST CLOSED

The following auctions were not paid, and the next person in line has been e-mailed.

-Gap Card 2 of 2
-Toy Story toy
-Iron Man toy
-Boogie Wipes
-Love of Baby ad space
-M&M USB hub
-Carrabba’s Card 2 of 2

These new auction winners will have until 6am EST Thursday June 17, 2010 to remit payment or it goes to the next person in line.

*Payments are through Pay Pal. If you are having issues with their system, please contact them.

Please make sure that we have your current mailing address for your prize. We are trying to confirm this with all of you individually, but some are not responding to our emails.

You can contact us at info@brandysbattle.com if you have any questions.

We are also in the process of verifying that everyone who won an auction paid. If they did not, we will be contacting the next highest bidder and declaring them the winner.

All winner info will be forwarded to the sponsor of each individual auction for shipment of the prize, once all pertinent info has been verified. We do not have the prizes. The sponsors are responsible for shipping, not The Team.

We will have the auction totals in a couple of days. In the meantime, please spread the word about Brandy’s Battle. Her medical bills are now topping $60,000 and not all the bills from her surgery have come in yet! Her battle is not over yet, as she still needs to figure out what her ongoing medical conditions truly are and that means being treated by very expensive specialists. A complete diagnosis will likely take a great deal of time and many visits to the specialists, so please continue to help if you can.

Thank you all for supporting Brandy.

~~ Shan

Boys or Girls Crayola Apron.

This Auction is for Reversible Child’s Crayon Apron with 24 Crayola Crayons. Winner will have choice of either boys or girls Crayon Apron and the fabric.

Shipping Options Available to US and Canada.

ARV:$25.00

Auction Rules:

1. Auction will begin at 9am PST
2. Auction is open to US residents only, unless otherwise stated.
   
3. Bidders will use the WP-Auction plugin/widget doohickey to place their offers. If the auction widget/plugin/doohickey is not working, bidders will place bids in the comment section and increase their bids according to the last bid showing.
4. Bidder must place the minimum bid as stated in each individual post or in $2 increments from the last bid listed.
5. Auction will end at 11:59 pm PST on June 8th, 2010. The highest bid on each post will win the item.
6. Winning bidder will have 24hrs to remit payment to the pay pal account or item will be forfeited and given to the next highest bidder who must follow the same rules.
   

Bidding will begin at $10.00

Boys or girls Crayon Apron

Reversible Childs Crayon Apron with 24 Crayola Crayons. Winner picks either boys or girls Crayon Apron and the fabric.

Going for $10.00

Refresh Current Bid

• Ending Date - 2010-06-08 22:59:00
• Ships to - US/Canada

Auction closed

Current bids

1. Tori bid $10.00 on 2010-06-08 03:05:21

Payment Details

Payment must be made using the following method

PayPal

Auction winner will get a PayPal payment link via email.

$25 Starbucks gift card

We all know and love Starbucks – from its frosty Frappucinnos to delicious gourmet treats. Treat yourself to this gift card!

donated by:

Bidding starts at $10.

Auction Rules:

1. Auction will begin at 9am PST
2. Auction is open to US residents only, unless otherwise stated.
   
3. Bidders will use the WP-Auction plugin/widget doohickey to place their offers. If the auction widget/plugin/doohickey is not working, bidders will place bids in the comment section and increase their bids according to the last bid showing.
4. Bidder must place the minimum bid as stated in each individual post or in $2 increments from the last bid listed.
5. Auction will end at 11:59 pm PST on June 8th, 2010. The highest bid on each post will win the item.
6. Winning bidder will have 24hrs to remit payment to the pay pal account or item will be forfeited and given to the next highest bidder who must follow the same rules.
   

$25 Starbucks Gift Card

$25 Starbucks Gift Card

Going for $25.00

Refresh Current Bid

• Ending Date - 2010-06-08 22:59:00
• Ships to - US/Canada
• Location - US

Auction closed

Current bids

1. kathy McNamara bid $25.00 on 2010-06-07 01:51:51
2. uthostage bid $23.00 on 2010-06-06 17:26:05
3. kathy McNamara bid $21.00 on 2010-06-05 22:13:22
4. Matthew bid $18.50 on 2010-06-05 20:56:17
5. Shannon bid $16.50 on 2010-06-05 18:32:58
6. Heather bid $14.50 on 2010-06-05 15:05:36
7. Tammy Klain bid $12.50 on 2010-06-05 13:15:12

Payment Details

Payment must be made using the following method

PayPal

Auction winner will get a PayPal payment link via email.

$25 GAP gift card

GAP gift cards can be redeemed online at gap.com, oldnavy.com, bananarepublic.com, and piperlime.com, at any Gap, GapKids, and BabyGap.

donated by: Penelope’s Oasis.

ARV: $25

Bidding starts at $12

Auction Rules:

1. Auction will begin at 9am PST
2. Auction is open to US residents only, unless otherwise stated.
   
3. Bidders will use the WP-Auction plugin/widget doohickey to place their offers. If the auction widget/plugin/doohickey is not working, bidders will place bids in the comment section and increase their bids according to the last bid showing.
4. Bidder must place the minimum bid as stated in each individual post or in $2 increments from the last bid listed.
5. Auction will end at 11:59 pm PST on June 8th, 2010. The highest bid on each post will win the item.
6. Winning bidder will have 24hrs to remit payment to the pay pal account or item will be forfeited and given to the next highest bidder who must follow the same rules.
   

$25 GAP Gift Card (2 of 2)

$25 GAP Gift Card (2 of 2)

Going for $20.00

Refresh Current Bid

• Ending Date - 2010-06-08 22:59:00
• Ships to - US
• Location - US

Auction closed

Current bids

1. Martha Clements bid $20.00 on 2010-06-09 04:10:10
2. Martha Clements bid $16.00 on 2010-06-05 20:16:43
3. Jacqueline bid $14.00 on 2010-06-05 17:50:35
4. Tori bid $12.00 on 2010-06-05 14:44:27

Payment Details

Payment must be made using the following method

PayPal

Auction winner will get a PayPal payment link via email.

$25 GAP gift card

GAP gift cards can be redeemed online at gap.com, oldnavy.com, bananarepublic.com, and piperlime.com, at any Gap, GapKids, and BabyGap.

donated by: Penelope’s Oasis.

ARV:$25

Bidding starts at $12

Auction Rules:

1. Auction will begin at 9am PST
2. Auction is open to US residents only, unless otherwise stated.
   
3. Bidders will use the WP-Auction plugin/widget doohickey to place their offers. If the auction widget/plugin/doohickey is not working, bidders will place bids in the comment section and increase their bids according to the last bid showing.
4. Bidder must place the minimum bid as stated in each individual post or in $2 increments from the last bid listed.
5. Auction will end at 11:59 pm PST on June 8th, 2010. The highest bid on each post will win the item.
6. Winning bidder will have 24hrs to remit payment to the pay pal account or item will be forfeited and given to the next highest bidder who must follow the same rules.
   

$25 GAP Gift Card (1 of 2)

$25 GAP Gift Card (1 of 2)

Going for $18.00

Refresh Current Bid

• Ending Date - 2010-06-08 22:59:00
• Ships to - US
• Location - US

Auction closed

Current bids

1. Tiffany bid $18.00 on 2010-06-06 01:00:37
2. Tiffany bid $14.00 on 2010-06-05 17:20:46
3. Leanne bid $12.00 on 2010-06-05 17:07:35

Payment Details

Payment must be made using the following method

PayPal

Auction winner will get a PayPal payment link via email.