Dishing For Dana

This post is titled Dishing for Dana, but it could easily also be titled Why Insurance Sucks or Health Care is a Right Not a Privilege or I Support Universal Health Care For All (Even If That Means Higher Taxes).

Folks, our health care system is broken. People shouldn't have to become thousands of dollars in debt just to receive adequate health care. That's just crazy talk. But, it is the reality.

Why do I care so much about this issue?

1. My father has a chronic neurological disease and the cost of his mounting medical expenses was and still is a tremendous strain on my family.

2. When I was 14 I had to have spinal fusion surgery for an 80 degree curve in my spine. The surgery was successful and I've never once had any complications from it. Eight years later, when I was 22, I was denied insurance coverage due to this surgery, which they considered a pre-existing condition. When a healthy 22 year old can't get insurance coverage, you know there is a problem.

3. As a psychologist-in-training, I get to see first hand how people are unable to access the mental health services they need because of ridiculously high deductibles and out of pocket expenses. Everyone deserves treatment - not just those with extra cash.

But, this isn't even about me or my family or my clients. And this post isn't even about politics. Its about Dana aka The Broke Ass Bride.

image via http://dishingfordana.com/about/

When I was planning my wedding, I fervently studied followed Dana's posts on weddingbee. I remember how relieving it was to read about the experience of another bride who didn't have a billion dollars to spend!  So when I read her story today, I knew I had to participate somehow in Dishing For Dana. 

Here is her story, in her own words (taken from here).

Hi, I’m Dana… but I’m better known online as blogger behind The Broke-Ass Bride. I started my blog in 2008, as a real bride chronicling my wedding planning journey on a broke-ass budget… and it has since evolved into a surprising yet utterly perfect career. The Broke-Ass Bride inspires thousands of brides in 140 countries to think outside the box, turn obstacles into opportunity, and use their creativity as currency to craft bad-ass weddings and lives. My passion for this is inspired by years of experience with my own personal obstacles.


Here’s the bulletpoint rundown, to keep things brief. If you want the whole story, you can find it below the line.

The problem
♥  When I was 19 I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease called Uveitis.
♥  My immune system doggedly attacks my eyes causing inflammation, visual disturbances and blurriness. It is incurable and will cause blindness if left untreated.
♥  I also have a very rare deep-tissue form of a disease called Granuloma Annulare, causing a different type of inflammation in my foot, for which I had surgery last year. It is so rare, I am unable to find a doctor who knows how to treat it moving forward.
♥  I’ve had 11 surgeries (at least one, each year, for the past 5 years), to control my diseases and their side effects.
♥  Last month my left eye came out of remission and I’ll be having a 12th surgery.

My surgeries and ongoing care (even with health insurance) have left piles of bills in their wake, and I am now at a point where, without help, I cannot pay for my medical care.

I can't even imagine the strength and fortitude it takes to make it through twelve surgeries!

But, unfortunately it also takes cash. And lots of it.

So Dishing for Dana was born to help Dana get the treatment she needs. In the end, we're hoping to raise $22,000. That's a big number, but every single dollar, retweet, and blog post helps. So, I hope you'll think about visiting the how you can help page and join in on the cause.

Thanks for reading,
Alisha