Support Arch Supports!
My name is Lindsay Jack, which is in fact my first name, and I'm starting this campaign because I need new arch supports. Health problems with my feet began shortly after I was born when my parents noticed that I had inward turned feet, or pigeon toed feet. Some children's feet self correct but mine were not self correcting. As a result, I was required to wear steel reinforced braces on my feet every night to bed for two years between the ages of two and four. One result of having pigeon toed feet is that I also have flat feet. It might not seem that having flat feet is really all that impactful but it's a condition which affects my health every day. Having flat feet means that I experience chronic foot pain in the form of bunions (big toe pain), plantar fascitis (arch pain) and achilis tendinitis (back of the foot pain). Having flat feet also means that my entire skeletal structure is out of alignment and has resulted in both knee and lower back injuries. My custom made arch supports greatly reduce my daily pain and help me to walk comfortably but after four years I have worn them through. I'm asking for help, something I don't do easily, because I work a low paying job as a waitress and I am already thousands of dollars in debt due to related medical treatments such as physiotherapy. As my family are from a working poor background they are unable to contribute to my campaign in any major way. Your help will mean that I can get a new pair of arch supports which will have a noticeable, long lasting impact on my quality of health and my peace of mind.
The links below will take you to my performaces pages as slam poet LtwothaJ and as one of the community organizers of the KW Poetry Slam.
Where's this all going?
For helping me I want to help you in return so I'm offering some bonuses most of them are skill sharing based and aimed at people who live in or near Kitchener-Waterloo. I am an acclaimed and winning slam poet and am willing to offer slam lessons. I'm also a trained bartender and eager teacher. I'm a certifide reiki practitioner and more than happy to offer distance healing to campaign contributors.
Custom made arch supports cost 400$ plus tax and come out to loosely 450$. I'm asking 500$ also to off set the costs of using the services of this website, about 50$. If I reach my goal I break even and can get my arch supports at no cost to me. If I don't make the full 500$ I'm still planning on getting my arch supports though this will likely cost me in the form of continued medical debt. I'm very eager not to indebt myself further.
The Big Picture
The reality is that I am a person with chronic pain and that I was born on the wrong side of a system that favors those with priviledge. Most likely I will experience some form of pain on a regular basis for the rest of my life. This doesn't mean that getting arch supports is futile though. On the contrary, any improvement to my daily quality of life is a BIG improvement for me. Right now, I'm on my way back to school and hoping to become a naturopath. I want to spend my life helping people who experience chronic pain conditions like mine and educating individuals on self care as well as communities on how to create better circles of care for those in need. By helping me today you are part of that work tomorrow. You're making the future now and helping me be better able to help others.
No Money, No Problem
I get not having money and it's hard when you really want to give money but you don't have it. There are a lot of ways you can contribute to my health and well being without money. If you are a distance healer please send me healing energy (indicate the date and time before doing so). Give me a gentle hug. Offer me your seat on the bus since riding the bus standing is painful for me. If we're comfortable enough I like foot rubs and they help. Most importantly, you can help me by asking me about my health and talking to me about my life so I don't feel so alone in what I'm going through :)