Meghan Hickok battles rare and genetic diseases, help wish her Merry Christmas!
Christmas is the season of hope, of generosity and love. But, it was hard to write this story. Meghan Hickok of Buchanan represents all three and is in a tough battle, readers. One for her life and future. She just graduated from high school this year but with a litany of genetic and associated diseases clouding her way.
Erin Hickok is a mother on a mission to help her daughter Meghan, whom she describes is the picture of chronic, invisible illness. She has numerous genetic conditions. All of these conditions lead to life quality issues. Though she is on a liquid diet, one of the disease keeps her weight up. Meghan used the example of a Spinach leaf having the same effect on her as junk food.
Last year, Meghan Hickok had what should have been a normal surgery. She ended up in the hospital 4 different times for over four weeks. This was the beginning of her health taking a turn for the worst.
Her mother describes her, “Meghan- she’s smart and stubborn. She’s always proved the doctors wrong. She’s also always faced Doctors doubting her illnesses and struggling to treat her. Thankfully, in the last few years, she’s met doctors who worked to find answers.“
Another genetic disease she has is beginning to change how her body functions. She’s facing issues with several organs (liver, spleen, kidneys and the heart). She’s awaiting a port revision. She can go from sitting to standing and her heart rate will hit 178. She had to have an IVC filter removed that was placed to prevent blood clots from going to the heart.
Last week the family van broke down and Meghan’s wheel chair broke on a trip for appointments in Richmond at VCU, and so that added to the tensions of getting a new Pic line for her medicines. She is feeling better at home with her pets and looking forward to her service dog from “Paws Up Service Dogs.” Lumos, her service dog, will be viral in helping her. She will be trained to help with allergic reactions, heart rate fluctuations, anxiety and more.
Meghan has fought her health battles with strength and determination. Often she is advocating for herself as the hospital staff performs procedures with out understanding exactly what is going on with her. One of her wishes, “The medical staff educate themselves with what is going on with me.”
She maintained A’s and B’s in high school despite constant absences. She graduated from James River High School in May. She’s a freshman at Dabney S Lancaster for fall semester but had to drop her class due to some serious health issues as infections caused by her port were life threatening. But she moves forward. She hopes to become a child life specialist one day.
She currently travels to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, Children’s National in DC and to VCU. Each trip is necessary but exhausts her. Her body simply gives up. These trips mean hotel costs, food, and gas. Her uncovered medications are $450 per month and with the new year comes the meeting of deductibles and new co-pays. In January she has a new port and some exploration of her abdomen to see exactly what is going on.
How can we help? With love back to her. Here are two ways.
A GoFundMe account set up for her will help cover those expenses. Meghan’s Medical Journey is a Bank Account set up at the Bank of Fincastle to help with these expenses, too. Funds can be deposited directly into the bank account.
Share this story. Tell your family and friends. Help however you can, even if just a few dollars. It might be the best thing any of us do in 2020. It will truly mean a great deal.
“And it was always said of him (Scrooge) that he knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man possessed the knowledge. May that be said of all of us! And so as Tiny Tim observed, “God bless us every one.”
– From A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens, (ie the last paragraph.)
–Cathy Benson. Photo courtesy of Erin Hickok
