Care should always be taken, but that doesn?t negate such activities from taking place. Stigmatizing it and criminalizing it means only greater harm to those it supposedly is protecting. Muddied waters blind us all and could see us hurting those, like Alexander, who don?t deserve it.
:D
Rochard
05-20-2014 02:21 PM
Don't they all just have Romneycare?
AsianDivaGirlsWebDude
05-20-2014 02:36 PM
This one hits home...
I've hired Eden for various projects over the past 3-4 years that I've known her, and I can only say that she has been a nice and sincere person in all of my dealings with her, and a fun model/performer/entertainer, so I was saddened to hear about what happened to her. :(
Here is Eden doing a burlesque routine at the YNOT Summit in San Francisco back in 2011 (sponsored by ADG):
There has been a positive outpouring of support already on the new fundraising site for Eden Alexander:
Being an independent contractor often means that a dehabilitating illness can put you out of operation for an unknown amount of time. This loss of stability can be the difference between paying rent and suddenly finding yourself buried under bills you can?t pay. Without any services available to help freelancers recover and get better, we sometimes overwhelm ourselves, taking on gigs and clients we?re ill-equipped to handle just so we can survive.
My friend Eden Alexander, a director, model, artist and muse, is dealing with this situation now. She?s been ill and in chronic pain for over a month after having a near fatal drug reaction to a commonly prescribed drug. This triggered a skin infection called Steven Johnson?s Syndrome,, which might have been addressed sooner had the doctor not embarrassed and shamed Eden, dismissing her experience and refusing her the care she needed.
Due to this, Eden developed full blow MRSA/staph infection on top of the skin infection, which trigged an existing thyroid condition. This caused her to go into something called myxedema coma, the most severe form of hypothyroidism, and she almost died.
After going untreated for so long, she was too weak to handle the medicine she?d needed the week before. In a better medical system, she likely would?ve been hospitalized to help her with recovery? as we?re in the US, however, she was not.
Now her illness has spread to her heart and lungs - since the drug poisoning poisoned her entire nervous system, Eden still does not have full motor control back yet. She is struggling to recover, which might take anywhere from another week to another month.
Meanwhile, she had an unfortunate personal situation happen in the middle of it all, and was left without enough money to pay bills for the past 2 months. Of course her illness meant she had to cancel all work, and now has no income and no way of working for income. Eden?s been trying to juggle all this on her own and needs care and help badly.Eden needs funds for:
- a homecare nurse to come by and help her care for herself
- light physical therapy on the muscles and joints that have been aching and seizing for a month.
- a dog walker, dog food, and dog treats/toys as her dogs are severely traumatized and hyperactive- additionally, since Eden is unable to walk them, she?s locked inside the house alone with 2 barking dogs all day every day and needs a break!
- a housekeeper/maid to come by and help Eden with her chores and laundry. Her current respiratory and heart condition prevent her from doing pretty much everything domestically? she?s finding it impossible to keep up!
- her bills and living expenses for the next 6 weeks to 2 months as she has no idea how long it will take her to get well, and has nothing but a slew of medical appointments ahead of her.
She tried to get support through WePay, but they shut her down citing TOS violations that were overzealously enforced - learn more about that here.
Ideally we?d live in a system where health care was accessible, and holistic, giving people time to heal properly. Unfortunately we live in a work or die society. Sometimes, we need to reach out for help. I know it was extremely difficult for Eden to ask for help in the first place, and I hope that you?ll consider supporting her in this difficult time!
Some wonderful news...as of this post, the new Eden Alexander medical fundraiser has 255 Contributors and $9,514 in donations! :thumbsup
An Update from yesterday:
Quote:
Thank you so much everyone for your continued generosity!
We'll be sitting down with Eden to make a financial plan that we'll make transparent to you, the donators. She and I have figured out a way to get funds directly to her as soon as she's ready to receive them - and thanks to people like you, she won't be overwhelmed during her recovery with increasing debt.
Money not directly going to Eden's recovery, medical bills, and care will be donated to organizations run by and for sex workers. We want to ensure that *any* sex worker can ask for and receive the help they need, and want to put any extra funds into sustainable community care.
Thank you again for proving, en masse, that sex workers do matter. As a sex worker who has struggled similarly myself, it's humbling and gratifying to see.
