The Financial Burden of Lung Cancer

I have recently moved and I've found that I can't even pay my medical bills with my whole Social Security check. Since moving here, I haven't been able to find any odd jobs to earn money.

I somehow injured my shoulder and have had x-rays and a shoulder, neck, and brain MRI. My medical bills are already in the thousands, and I still owe for breaking my lease. Therefore, all of Christmas went on credit cards already loaded with copays and moving expenses.

Health and financial struggles

So, now, on top of my cancer scans, I've got a whole new reason to have MRIs. Between my strokes, my shoulder, and having cancer, I'm not sure how to make it.

I can't really buy anything for myself. I'm just keeping my head above water. I've never been the type of person to count on anyone. 

However, since moving here, I've applied for assistance. I know I'm not the only one with financial troubles, as some of you have shared your experiences.

I've kind of lost joy in things I once loved. I'm crafty, but don't have any motivation. 

When I'm stressed, I sleep. So, if you can't get me to call you back, it's because I'm stress sleeping.

It's not what I like to do, but it's my only coping mechanism with my daughter being at school. I've just been really down.

Assistance frustrations

I'm hoping to get some sort of government assistance. It really sucks to bust your butt and go to college, graduate cum laude, and rise in your field, only to be knocked down by this disease. 

So many people tell me how they've worked so hard for everything they have. It is absolutely maddening.

I didn't choose to get sick, but I am. I can't pay my bills because the government has no idea what they are doing with Social Security. 

I don't need to tell you all this. Everyone in the country seems to be roughing it.

Unseen rising costs

I can't believe how much hourly wages have risen.Yet Social Security doesn't keep up with that equivalent.

Therefore, with pay raises and inflation, I can't afford anything for myself or my daughter anymore. Her birthday is right around the corner, and I can't get her anything. It brings on such a feeling of low self-worth.

The people who brag about working so hard for everything didn't get what I had. Therefore, it makes me seriously want to cry when I hear that. 

It's like being a caged animal. Sure, I'm alive. But at what cost?

I may not be working a job, but having this disease is a full-time job in itself. Referral after referral because no one wanted to prescribe any pain medication, so they passed me on to another doctor who would do another set of tests and have an outrageous copay. 

It's a vicious cycle. It is a constant burden.

Painful realities

Right now, I'm dealing with a "slap tear."  It hurts so bad.  Falling asleep, turning my neck, every little thing my head and shoulders do hurts.

My father was on disability until he passed away in 2021. He used to throw me fundraisers. That money helped me survive. 

I will always be so grateful to him and miss him so much. He was my hero.

My mother does what she can but is also hurting, and so she goes with me to all the appointments.  I keep them in Atlanta so I can see her every three months. Now that my father is no longer with us, I know she's been sad. 

If anyone is going through the same, I'm all ears. I'm tired of stress sleeping.