In five days, Bay of Plenty mother Pam Coburn will travel to Germany to get surgery she is in “desperate” need of.
Unable to eat or drink, the 40-year-old’s surgery is confirmed for July 23 to treat abdominal vascular compression syndromes (AVCS) which is unavailable in New Zealand.
Vascular compression syndromes are a group of conditions occurring when blood vessels are under abnormal pressure, restricting blood flow, which can make a person feel weak and cause extreme pain.
“I’ve got these migraines that never stop. And because I wasn’t getting adequate fluid ... it’s just been harder and harder and harder on my body.”
While she was excited the surgery was happening soon, she knew the recovery would be “brutal”.
She would be away for six weeks and her sons had been finding it difficult in the lead-up to her leaving.
Coburn said she had been doing more with them such as going to a Lego bricks show in Tauranga and a children’s building class at Mitre10.
“Knowing that I’m not going to be with the kids, I want to be doing a bit more with them ... that’s the first time I’ve done anything for a while like that. And it was good - it was hard but I’m glad I pushed myself to do it.”
Coburn needs extra $5000 before leaving
Coburn and her family have raised $145,000 of their $180,000 goal.
But she needs an extra $5000 for flights, transport, and accommodation before she and her mother leave on Sunday.
She and Jon have applied for their superannuation funds in Australia to be released.
Their applications have been approved but the money has not yet been released. This will make up the remaining $30,000, she said.
Coburn said she and her family were grateful to the community for their donations.