Help Me Stay Housed While Recovering From a Life-Changing Accident

Before my accident, I kept saying the same thing to myself: I want to be in the best shape of my life when I turn 60. I meant it. I was hiking, walking, going to the gym. I was building strength in my body and imagining a future where I kept getting stronger, not weaker. Then the accident happened. I was still 59. I turned 60 in a hospital bed. I lost a leg. I fractured my other leg in multiple places. I broke ribs. I had vertebrae injuries. My body went into heart and kidney failure. Pain became constant, not occasional. Everything I thought I was building… was suddenly gone. And for a long time, I couldn’t understand something: If I was focusing on health, strength, and vitality… how did I end up here? I used to think maybe I did something wrong. Maybe I thought wrong. Maybe I “manifested” the wrong thing. But I’m starting to see something different now. Life isn’t a formula where good thoughts guarantee safe outcomes. Bodies exist in a world where accidents happen, s...

Help Me Stay Housed While Recovering From a Life-Changing Accident

Help Me Stay Housed While Recovering From a Life-Changing Accident

On September 6th, my life changed in an instant when a driver crossed into my lane on Ortega Highway and hit me head-on. My car was thrown into the air and I nearly lost my life. My vehicle was completely totaled.

I spent four months in the hospital. The first part was in a trauma unit where I was placed in an induced coma and underwent multiple life-saving surgeries. I was then transferred to an acute care facility where I required critical support, including IVs, a tracheostomy, a feeding tube, and dialysis.

My injuries included:

After returning home, my focus has been recovery. I’ve faced infections, complications, and delayed healing that have slowed my ability to use a prosthetic. I am now preparing for another surgery to remove hardware from my left ankle due to rejection.

I am currently unable to work. Even basic movement requires effort, pain management, and rest.

Before the accident, I was a working photographer, independent and supporting myself. I never imagined that one unexpected event could completely change everything—no one prepares for something like this, or how quickly life can shift.

I had already survived a stroke during the pandemic and spent years rebuilding my health and independence. I had just reached a major recovery milestone in August 2025 when this accident happened in September, setting me back into another long recovery.

I’m into fitness and holistic healing, and I’ve always been health-conscious. Right now, I am focused on rebuilding my strength and learning to live again after this trauma.

While I’ve been focused on healing, the financial reality has caught up with me. My landlord was patient at first, but I now owe back rent and need to show how I will move forward. As of May 1st, I am approximately $8,800 behind on rent.

The driver who hit me carried minimal insurance, and while my attorney is pursuing additional legal options, these processes take time. Disability support is still in progress and has not provided immediate help.

I knew this moment would come. I had anticipated needing to have a plan, but everything available to me—disability, legal processes, and assistance programs—moves slowly and is outside my control. Now that this moment is here, I do not have immediate answers, and the situation is urgent.

Up until now, I’ve been getting by through a combination of support from friends, SNAP benefits, and IHSS caregiver assistance, but even with all of that, it is not enough to cover housing and basic living expenses.

I am at risk of losing my home of 11 years.

This home is not just a place to live—it’s the first home in my adult life where I truly started to feel rooted. In my earlier years, I moved often and lived my life more as a single woman in transition, where it was easy to pick up and go when I wanted a change, and I never really put down roots or built something that felt permanent. Over time, that changed. This became the first place where I began to settle and build a life I could see as stable and long-term.

This was the home I had started to think of as my future and even my retirement home. The thought of having to leave everything I’ve built and created here is devastating.

If I lose my home, I don’t have another place to go.

I’m also not in a position where I can simply relocate. Because of my injuries, I have specific physical and accessibility needs. I rely on equipment like a bedside commode and a shower chair, and I cannot navigate stairs or multi-level housing due to my mobility limitations. This home has already been adapted to support my current needs, and finding another place that is safe, accessible, and available is not something I can quickly or easily do. I also do not have the financial means to relocate.

I also have a small 8-pound Shih Tzu who was in the car with me during the accident and somehow made it through without a scratch, and a cat at home. They are my family, and this home is theirs too. Keeping us together and in a stable place while I recover means everything to me.

I also want to share that I hesitated to start a GoFundMe or ask the public for help. It has been emotionally difficult and humbling to be in this position, and even putting this together has been challenging.

On top of everything, I’ve dealt with brain fog and cognitive fatigue from pain management medications during recovery, which has made it harder to focus and organize my thoughts.

I am asking for help to stay housed and cover basic living expenses while I heal.

Funds will go toward:

If you’re able to contribute or help share my story, I would truly appreciate it. Even if you’re not able to donate, sharing may help me reach someone who can.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

https://gofund.me/780a696d1

#GoFundMe #HelpNeeded #SupportSurvivors #AccidentRecovery #InjuryRecovery #MedicalRecovery #LifeAfterTrauma #SurvivorStory #HealingJourney #FinancialHardship #EmergencySupport #CommunitySupport #RebuildMyLife #StrongerTogether #DisabilityAwareness #TraumaRecovery #HopeAndHealing #SurvivorStrong #Fundraiser #DonateIfYouCan

Survivor of Ortega Highway Head-On Collision Speaks Out on Life-Altering Injuries, Recovery, and Road Safety Awareness

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Jean Marshall The Artful Woman

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I Wanted to Be in the Best Shape of My Life at 60. Then I Lost My Leg.