I wanted to fill you in on a project that's been going around the blogosphere.
Operation Layla is a project founded to help Layla, the beautiful woman behind Wish Fulfillment Everyday.
(Now bear with me, I stole this part from the Operation Layla website)
One month after her 30th birthday, Layla was diagnosed with early stage cervical cancer (1A Adenocarcinoma). She was extraordinarily lucky that it was caught early, and had a simple surgery to remove the cancerous cells.
Layla on her wedding day
Three years later, Layla was in horrible pain that affected nearly every aspect of her life. Temporarily uninsured due to a job change, she paid out of pocket last October to go to the doctor and make sure the cancer had not returned. Thankfully, it had not. However, her doctor believes that she has pelvic adhesions and Endometriosis due to the previous surgery, but it can’t be diagnosed until an additional surgery (laparoscopy) is performed. The doctor also found out Layla has cervical stenosis, which basically means her cervix has completely shut down due to the scar tissue from the previous surgery. These issues make her miserable most of the time, making simple things like going to the bathroom and menstruation horribly painful, and sexual intercourse impossible. He stated that if she wanted to have children one day, even sperm could not pass through her cervix, and she would have to have intrauterine insemination.
The doctor wanted to schedule surgery as soon as the insurance at her new job went into effect. Her company fired her the day her insurance became valid, ten days before Christmas, plainly stating that it was because of her health issues.
Fortunately, she got on her husband’s insurance, which went into effect February 1st. As soon as she could, Layla scheduled surgery for March 22nd. Then her insurance company dropped a bomb: because she went to the doctor (even as a self-pay patient) within a three month period prior to her enrollment date, they were considering her health issues to be a pre-existing condition, and would not insure any doctor visits, medication, or surgery for 388 days.
When you are in near constant pain and can’t work, 388 days is a long time to wait. The sooner Layla can have this surgery, the sooner she can return to work (hopefully with a nicer company!) and start living her life again. Her doctor has been nice enough to work out a deal with her if she can pay as a cash patient: he decreased the amount of her surgery to $4,000, and the cost of the anesthesia to $500, with additional fees for biopsies of removed tissue to be determined.
The problem is, Layla is unemployed due to this, has used her savings to pay for living expenses and medical bills, and has been denied loans for the surgery because of her unemployment status. She does not have close family, so she can’t ask them for help. Surgery is scheduled for March 22nd, and Layla and her husband are still trying to secure a loan through several banks.
As someone that suffers from Endometrosis I can attest to how painful & sucky it is. As someone that has had trouble getting health insurance I know how sucky & frustrating it can be. When I read about Layla & watched her VOTMC rant I knew I had to do something to help.
At Christmas this year my grandparents gave everyone in our family $100 to donate to a charity/cause we thought was worthy. I held on to my money, not sure where to donate it but when I read Layla's story I knew there was no question.
Operation Layla has raised enough to cover the cost of Layla's surgery but she will have lots of tests & follow up appointments but once Layla's costs have been covered the left over money will be donated to help aid Japan.
If you're looking to donate head over to the Operation Layla site or if you're feeling hungry check out the bake sale!
The Operation Layla bake sale runs all day today, bids start at $15 and can be increased in increments of $1, you're extra lucky you'll end up with some of my homemade whoopie pies!
And be sure to stop back by this afternoon when I feature Layla & her husband, Josh, as my Real People in Love!
3 comments:
Thank you so much, friend!!! <3
Yay Operation Layla! This is such a worthy cause and Layla is amazing!
And I had no idea you had Endometrosis. I can't even imagine dealing with that.
The bake sale is going wonderfully!! I can't wait to see your feature on Josh and Layla.:)
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