I woke up one night last November suddenly with a horrible pain in my left foot emanating from a toe. It went away as quickly as it came but I looked and saw nothing. The next day I continued to feeling slight tingling and see redness. By Thursday it was swollen and I knew it needed to be evaluated by a professional. Unfortunately Tropical Storm Nicole hit our region and power was out. By the time I had gotten I had it evaluated the infection had increased and the toe had begun to turn black. I was told gangrene had set in. It was recommended I go to a hospital which I immediately did and was given antibiotics for 5 days. Tests were run for circulation in legs and there is a blockage in my left leg. An operation is necessary to bypass the blockage and allow circulation so when the toe is removed the wound can heal. I am now frightened because I do not have insurance to help pay for this. A catheter was put in to clear my heart for surgery on my leg and everything stopped. I need a quadruple bypass before surgery could be done on my leg or I wouldn’t survive. Now the doctors are talking three different surgeries. One for my heart, one for my legs and then the removal of my toe. The bypass was performed on January 10. It went very well and I am recovering. The surgeon has now informed me that, due to no insurance and the open heart surgery, my bill is too high and the hospital will not allow me to be admitted for the leg bypass surgery to improve circulation until it is paid. So I sit here with a toe infected with gangrene that can reactivate and spread at any time and possibly go so far as to lose more ties, my foot or even my leg if this infection isn’t stopped as soon as possible. It has even been mentioned that gangrene, untreated, can cause death. I’m scared. There were no indications that any of this was going on before that night in November. Blood test and other test, for years, showed no signs of any internal issue. Great BP, good cholesterol reports, healthy lungs, strong heart. I truly had no idea anything was hapoening. Thank you for your time reading this. Truly any help you can offer would truly be a blessing. The amount I am asking for help with is just for the hospital part of my bills. This does not include the surgeon, anesthesia, pulmonary or other aspects of my care. Once I can get the hospital portion under control, I can be admitted again for the second surgery. God’s blessing be upon you. Thank you.
