Stefan Buckley is 35 years old and lives with his
Jake Liam Dawkins is a 30-year-old trans man. He has
Discrimination: “I was left untreated in the ER
Women’s Health The top causes of death for women
Nate is a transgender man (female-to-male) who was suffering from intense chest dysphoria (a conflict between a person’s physical or assigned gender and the gender with which he/she/they identify) and back pain from degenerative disk disease. Nate’s doctor recommended his breasts to be removed to help with his back and mental health state. Like most trans men, the breasts were his most dysphoric body part, and caused him severe anxiety and depression.
Nate worked hard to save up for his surgery and with the help of many who donated to his cause, he was “reborn” this past Spring. “I am finally able to work significant hours… and my mental health is so much better”, says Nate. “I have been able to take up running which has helped my brain and my back”.
The depression and suicidal ideation rate in the transgender population is 3x of the general population. Studies show that the rates of depression and suicidal thoughts can decrease by rates comparable to the rest of the population after transitioning.1
References:1. Gunter Heylens, MD et al. Effects of Different Steps in Gender Reassignment Therapy on Psychopathology: A Prospective Study of Persons with a Gender Identity Disorder. J Sex Med 2014;11:119–126.
Steve Hendricks became disabled in December after a questionable hospital stay. His wife, Courtney, brought him home in January to care for him herself. She is a registered nurse and he was a chef. Their household of 2 incomes had no income anymore. Courtney couldn’t work because she had to take care of her husband. When he finally started getting disability in May, she started working again, hoping to be able to pay their back bills. On June 7, when taking the CAC lift to get Steve to an appointment, the wheelchair and Steve fell on top of Courtney from the lift. She has had a back injury and has not been able to sleep.
Most would think that once an individual is on disability and receiving social security income, their needs have been met. What the Hendricks family went through however, is not an uncommon reality for many American families. Eight months of urgent medical needs put the family behind on all their bills. They were about to be homeless. Steve, who became severely disabled in December, would not be accepted in any shelter or temporary housing. Furthermore, there are no vacancies for temporary housing anywhere in the region of Knoxville. On top of that, the family had to file numerous appeals with TennCare to receive nursing care and incontinence supplies that Steve was supposed to be getting anyway. Rescuing Health helped the Hendricks family with appeals, phone calls, calling other organizations to see if they could help… When other charitable organizations couldn’t offer anything, Rescuing Health had to appeal to the community of Knoxville for financial donations. Thank you for stepping up to the plate!
The Hendricks family went from the brink of homelessness to getting back on their feet. In the last few months, through your generosity, donations totaling $3,445.00 were collected to help them. That money was used to pay for inner cannulas for Steve’s trach tube (he has since removed his tube and can breathe on his own), many months of utility bills, phone bill, one car payment and the deposit to move into their new home. They have moved to a section 8 house (meaning that the rent is paid by KCDC section 8 housing), social security has raised Steve’s income from the $300.00/month to $779/month, and his doctor has finally referred him to the Patricia Neal Rehab Center. Courtney Hendricks expressed her gratitude to what you have all done for her and her family this morning. She is looking forward to getting out of “survival mode” and living life again.
You should all be proud of yourselves for making such a huge difference in this family’s life. From the bottom of my heart, THANK YOU!
Ana Goncalves
