Make a Microloan for Karen & Megan's Health!

This loan has been repaid in full!

Karen is the youngest, with glasses. Megan is behind her in the pink shirt. They are at the park with their sister, Logan, in the jacket, and their brother, Kevin.

First Posted On: May 15, 2009

Name: Karen & Megan

Age: 8 years old (Karen) and 15 years old (Megan)

Location: Kansas, USA

Diagnosis: Karen: Suspected lyme disease, juvenile rheumatoid arthritis (JRA), and uveitis; Megan: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), suspected lyme disease, severe dyslexia, and central auditory processing disorder (CAPD).

Loan Sought: $520

Loan Needed For: IGeneX basic lymes disease panel for each child. The test is $260 each, so $520 for both.

Repayment Terms: One lump-sum repayment by February 28, 2010.

Other Notes: Karen and Megan are sisters from a family of five children, each of whom have various health issues. The parents believe that the children are suffering from Lyme Disease, and that some of the children may have Lyme-induced autism. They would like to conduct a test for Lymes that is not covered by insurance but that is considered to be a definitive test for Lymes. By having the results from this test, the family will be better equipped with information they need to pursue treatments, if needed. The family originally requested a loan to test four of the children, but in the hopes that the loan will be fulfilled more quickly if it is a lesser amount, they have decided to get Megan and Karen tested first.

Their mom, Shelly, writes, "Karen is 8, and very smart. She is apparently neurotypical. She was diagnosed with JRA [juvenile rheumatoid arthritis] and uveitis at age 6. She has been on homeopathic remedies from the naturopath, probiotics, antivirals, acupuncture, chinese herbs, supplements, curcumin, allergy shots, allergy drops from the naturopath, rebirthing for birth trauma resolution, proteolytic enzymes, porters milk cure diet, IGG food allergy testing, a diet of 8 foods ramping up to 30, and is possible celiac per a gastro specialist. She was negative on her lymes test from the hospital but we think she has lymes, and this test would prove it and allow me to pursue treatment for lymes and not get into a hassle with her rheumatologist or opthomologist. She is 2 1/2 years inflammation-free and off all steroids as well as NOT on Nsaids or immunosuppressors like 99% of all of the other kids with uveitis.

Megan is 15 years old with Aspergers, central auditory processing disorder, dyslexia, insomnia, headaches, and fatigue. She tested positive for mercury and lead on her hair test. She has been made sick by almost every biomedical treatment we have tried, and her adrenal cortisol test revealed that she makes almost no cortisol (only one time a day, in the evening, it reaches a 3, but the rest of the day, nothing). Attempts we've made with chelators have failed because of the adrenal problem. She has adverse reactions to the sauna [used for therapeutic purposes]. She has fevers, chills, weakness, and brain symptoms. She has been going to a naturopath for a year, and we still have not been able to see any improvement because so far everything we try, fails. Megan is a beautiful girl but has a difficult time keeping her energy up and becomes weak often. She loves playing video games. We would like to get the IGeneX test for lymes induced autism. Her older brother regressed between ages 10 and 14 into autism, and we fear she will continue a downward spiral to regression also if we do not do something."

Special Note: Shelly also writes, "Their 20 year old older brother Shawn made a full recovery from doing Andy Cutler chelation for 8 months; three months into treatment he was showing amazing gains. During biomedical treatment his OCD fear of bathing and leaving the house went away, as did his insomnia, headaches, and nausea. His eye contact and socialization went through the roof, he learned basic life skills, and he was then able to learn to drive and attend college and held down a job. He discontinued treatment early after 8 months, and two and a half years later is experiencing regression but he is no longer living at home. He is no longer well enough to attend college or have a job. We would like for him to move home so that we could take care of him."

Reference Provided By: Dana, Anna C, and Judith Weeg (President of the Lyme Disease United Coaltion. The Coalition's website is not up yet, but Judith refers people to THIS WEBSITE).

Karen and Megan's Community of Lenders:

Karen S: $50 ["So glad to see them getting Igenex testing, know that even Igenex can have false negatives, but is a much better test than standard labs. If they can get the kids to a LLMD (lyme literate doc), to be assessed for co-infections as well, that would be a good goal after the initial testing. Best of luck to the family, lyme is a very rough road."]
Cara: $10
Noel: $25
Grandma Gini: $15 ["I like helping sisters."] Note this loan was made outside of ChipIn, so the ChipIn goal amount has been reduced by $15.
Sean: $10
Cathleen: $50
Karen F: $5
Liz (Dazmen's mom): $4 Note: This loan was made outside of ChipIn so the ChipIn goal amount has been reduced by $4.
Karen F (again): $5 [Re-loaned from Jordan's repaid loan] Note: This loan was made outside of ChipIn so the ChipIn goal amount has been reduced by $5.
Bonnie: $5
Petra: $20 [Re-loaned from Jordan's repaid loan]
Henry: $20
Kristina (Jordan's mom): $10
Karen F (again): $5 ["Early Cinco de Linco"]
Tori: $5 ["Cinco de Linco"]
Jan: $25 ["Cinco de Linco"]
Jeanne: ["Cinco de Linco"]
Petra (again): $10 ["Happy Cinco de Linco"]
Heather (Brock's mom): $5 [Note: This loan was made outside of ChipIn so the ChipIn goal amount has been reduced by $5]
Jennifer: $25
Jeanne (again): $10
Jan (again): $50 ["For Jeanne & Petra's challenge"]
Karen F (again): $10 ["Petra's challenge"]
Jennifer P: $10
Cara: $5 [Note: This loan was made outside if ChipIn so the ChipIn goal amount has been reduced by $5]
Petra (again): $50 ["Fulfilling on my pledge.. I know the universe will respond in kind and contribute the remainder.."]
Michlyn: $45
Karen S (again): $10
Dana C: $21

UPDATES - UPDATES - UPDATES

June 13, 2009: This loan has been fully funded!

June 14, 2009: Promissory note sent to Shelly for signature.

June 19, 2009: Signed promissory note received.

June 19, 2009: Loan of $520 sent to Shelly via PayPal. This loan will be due in one lump sum by February 28, 2010.

June 20, 2009: PayPal was charging a fee for the loan because Shelly has a business account, so she denied the payment, and I sent the loan to her via check in Priority Mail.

September 17, 2009: Update from Shelly: "My family was very skeptical that our children could have lyme disease induced autism. Lend4Health helped me get a loan to get two of our daughters tested. When both daughters' lyme disease tests turned up positive, I got the blessing to begin treating them for lyme. Since beginning treatment for lyme, our entire life has changed for the better, we have a new outlook, and understanding of the symptoms and the causes, and a new road ahead towards recovery. Thank You Lend4Health!"

December 22, 2009: Update from Shelly: "Karen and Megan tested positive for Lyme Disease through testing done with a loan from Lend4Health. We did some initial treatment for Lyme since then, but found that we don't have enough die-off "moppers" and supportive herbs to support our detox pathways enough to begin killing off lyme as fast as we had hoped. We are now waiting until we get our tax refund to pay off our Lend4Health loan, then try to get another loan next year to pay for herbs and supplements for the treatment of the Lyme Disease. The girls' Naturopath moved, and the new Naturopath we feel, doesn't really know how or want to help them with Lyme Disease. We are hoping to attend the Lyme Induced Autism conference in California in April 2010 as a family so that the children can get a feel for all of the treatment options and take an active role in their health. We are so thankful to Lend4Health and all of our lenders for taking away the question of "Is it Lyme Disease or not?" That was a huge thing to be able to accept the diagnosis and then to make a plan together for how do deal with Lyme Disease. We also plan to find a Lyme Disease Specialist for Karen who is experienced in dealing with children with Lyme and uveitis but also familiar with herbs and biomed and form a specific treatment plan for her in 2010. We would like to thank all of our Lend4Health Lenders for making the girls' Lyme Diagnosis possible by lending us the money for their IGENEX tests. Merry Christmas Everyone!!"

March 1, 2010: Lump-sum repayment of $520 received, on-time. This loan has been repaid in full!

March 5, 2010: All 20 lenders have been sent their repayments via PayPal.