Story
Name
Gerald Allen Jr
Injury/Illness
Heart Disease
My name is Gerald Allen Jr. I live in Saint Charles, Missouri. I was diagnosed with heart failure in August 2018. I learned of my heart condition when I collapsed while walking Stone Mountain in Atlanta, GA. Every day was a challenge for me due to the fact that I would blackout uncontrollably. I later found out the reason that kept happening is due to my heart having a low EF (Ejection Fraction), which is the measurement of the amount of blood my heart pumps every time it beats. My heart continued to get weaker and weaker but I continued working in order to survive and provide for my daughter. Even so, I continued to get worse.
About a little over a year after I was diagnosed with heart failure my father passed on Christmas of 2019. That was one of the hardest times of my life. And after he passed my health begin declining further. Doctors said my heart was failing rapidly. All I could do was do my best to survive, stay strong and positive. So from Jan. 2020 through Jun. 2022, I spent a lot of time in and out of the hospital due to my heart becoming increasingly weak. On Father's Day of 2022, I was very sick so my daughter and I went to the hospital to find out why I was so violently ill. I was told I had Covid and almost immediately after that, I got influenza, all while in the hospital. I could barely walk, talk, or stand. I was still alive though so I had hoped I'd get better. I remained in the hospital as they were trying to figure out what was going on with me. I had a heart pump connected to me through my leg and yet my heart was not getting better. Once the doctors saw that I wasn't getting better they did another check on my heart. That is when I was told we had to do something different soon for me to survive. My heart was on its last leg. I was told I only had days to live so I needed to get an LVAD (Left Ventricle Assistance Device). On July 7th, 2022 I went into surgery for the LVAD. After rehab and some healing, I was discharged from the hospital.
Within about 2 weeks of being discharged, I broke my foot due to I blacking out. After leaving the hospital again, I was notified that my grandmother, my father's mother, died in the hospital. No family was informed she was in the hospital until I received the call she had passed. And soon after her passing, I started having blackout episodes, extreme discomfort, and pain almost 1-2 times a week. I was having a hard time keeping income coming in to pay my bills. I took out a title loan on the car I own last year to try and cover some of my expenses for Jan. and Feb. 2023. It was my only option. Now I'm on the verge of losing my car and my apartment.
The title loan is costing me over $1k per month and my apartment is $1501 per month. I am looking for help to get my car out of this title loan and my rent caught up for the month of April and possibly a couple of months ahead so I have some time to get back to consulting. In order to keep my car I either have to get help paying the $1k due May 2nd. 2023 to keep my car another month or pay the title loan off which is $8,400
I know this is a lot to ask for and I'm only asking for help because I truly need it. My daughter graduates high school in June of this year and will be starting nursing school in the fall. I need my car to get to Dr. appointments and therapy. I need my apartment because I have nowhere to go. I am already looking for work that I can do from home but right now I need to get the immediate things taken care of so I keep a roof over our heads.
Any help would be appreciated. We thank you in advance.