I need a CT scan because I’m sick. (Content warning: mental health, medical discussion)

Jul 26, 2026 7:29 AM

DarkRatLord3000

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28835

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781

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152

I know ppl hate selfies. I’m sorry- I can explain. My reason for sharing- is that I’m historically an artist- and the profession of my disease (EGPA), combined with a neck injury and slow healing, has left me with gnarly, radiating nerve pain. This has greatly impacted my ability to draw, play guitar, play video games… clean my own dishes, or laundry. I feel pathetic and useless and the way my art manifests these days is in the form of makeup and light body painting. I’ve shared my makeup looks here before and have received some really sweet feedback, it means the world.

After the makeup pics… and some nonsense…. It gets a little real. There’s a CT scan report from my first time with this recurrent issue. I was inpatient at the hospital, with “opacified” sinuses, with fungal involvement. Thus began my personal hell with my sinuses and lungs at the hands of my disease.

I’m posting again- to ask for help- because as this is going on, I am uninsured, awaiting my appeal to be approved (thankfully after that I’m supposed to get reimbursed for my out of pocket costs )

I just got over the hump with the help of some kind imgurians for my rat boys who had mites. I feel embarrassed and ashamed to be in this position. With the gradual decline in my wellbeing, and the one bit of sanity hanging on by the thread that is my rats…. I just have to try, push forward, not give up.

I’ve tried to give up on life twice and I cannot do it again.

This is a link to my ko fi where u can see and support my art- https://ko-fi.com/darkratlord/goal?g=87

Or my direct PyPal is- @sillygooseinc

Again warning there’s some stuff that shows my disease in this post. Skin symptoms, swelling, the reports, etc if that is sensitive for you do not proceed. (I have medical trauma and I get it.)

Thank you for anyone who bothered to check in and the buddies I have on here who check on me. I lose hope in a lot of ways…. But this community helps me hold on to hope.

Have a good day

digital_art

makeup

pet_rats

pets

surgery

Scam, dont give money to any of these posts ever.

2 days ago | Likes 13 Dislikes 15

Is sharing so much of personal information any good?

2 days ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 1

🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️

2 days ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

Sending long distance hugs. I'll try to throw a few your way. Wish I could do more to help

2 days ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 1

Everything helps <333 thank you so much I appreciate you

2 days ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 2

You in America… of course u are! Apply for Medical Assistance for aged blind and disabled. (MAABD) it’s a form of Medicaid. Describe all of your disabling conditions in detail (think of absolutely EVER thing you can’t do that is a typical daily thing, and list all your doctors and hospitals and meds. You have to need medical care to prevent “institutionalization.” Like a nursing home. So include all the bathroom stuff. If you get past the first hurdle, choose “fee for service” it is best.

1 day ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

I’m sat here wandering why my social worker hasn’t brought up this specific type of Medicaid… I’ll call her about this today. I’ve been on Medicaid for years! I just got booted off and she was explaining that a lot of people have been and she’s helped with a lot of appeals

1 day ago | Likes 1 Dislikes 0

2 days ago | Likes 109 Dislikes 2

Needed and appreciated 😢😢

2 days ago | Likes 35 Dislikes 4

Love the animals and the middle finger, but can I just say you remind me of Stanzi Potenza

2 days ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 1

Can I just say I love your username?

2 days ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 1

Thanks, yours is also quite exquisite

2 days ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 1

Hope you can get in touch with an ENT surgeon to review the CT. Not the same thing my husband had a long bacterial infection that resulted in pockets of air and puss mostly in the nasal and maxillary areas. The masses/obstructions pushed his septum out of place which made it "deviated septum" then he could surgery to cover for the "deviated septum" Stuff in the head is a maze and a mess on the best of days. Sucks your having head troubles that really sucks

2 days ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 0

I am lucky to have an awesome ENT, and he did both of my last two surgeries. He ordered this after I got the endoscope,,,, I can always tell when he doesn’t like what he’s seeing cuz if I’m clear, he is immediately like “wow looks great!” And is like. Excited. lol and then if it’s bad… he is v quiet til he takes out the endoscope. It’s crazy like how severe sinus stuff can get. I always thought if sinuses infections as pretty chill

2 days ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 1

The first time this happened I got so sick they ended up doing a spinal tap because of how close the sinuses are to the brain, they were worried I had encephalitis and my results came back abnormal. I’m sorry to hear your mans went through anything even remotely like this. I wouldn’t wish it on anyone

2 days ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 1

I wish you all the best, and I hope these examinationa helps you get to better health. Some times, having a body fucking sucks.

2 days ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 2

These last two years I’ve hated having this mortal vessel and all it perceives is pain 😓 I appreciate you. Thank you. My last surgery was November and I’m hoping it’s not already that bad again- and I hope it doesn’t progress that bad.

2 days ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 2

.

2 days ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

Imgur has officially hit an all time low when a selfie/begging post hits front page. Im officially done.

2 days ago | Likes 7 Dislikes 7

Thanks for the comment? You can just scroll or block me?

2 days ago | Likes 6 Dislikes 5

Oh rats!

2 days ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 0

I say this all the time haha

2 days ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 1

Something something, orphan crusher.

2 days ago | Likes 70 Dislikes 2

I’m right there with u

2 days ago | Likes 21 Dislikes 2

fyuck! that is some bulshit gene lottery!

2 days ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 4

To me, a high compliment for makeup...and I hope it is a compliment to you, too... is that it calls natural attention to what's already there. And you do that.

2 days ago | Likes 6 Dislikes 2

Appreciate you :-)

2 days ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 2

You're very welcome!

2 days ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

What

2 days ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 2

There’s a meteor unfortunately

2 days ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 2

#6 this reads like a roast.. Unremarkable brain. Doesn’t think of mass effect often.

2 days ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

I know right hahaha I’ve always thought that. Like damnit too much on me now… so all my head is, is either unremarkable or filled with pus? WHAT ABOUT MY HOPES AND DREAMS!?!

On another note I once got a repost back from an exam that said I had a “supple neck” and it haunts me. HAUNTS ME

2 days ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 1

Hopes and dreams? Sounds like some french thing the rich can afford.

I can confidently say i have never, once, said somebody has a supple neck. But if nothing else, it's not negative! I wish i had a supple neck, mines stiff as a work meeting.

1 day ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

You remind me very much of Florence Pugh. Chronic pain and illness are discouraging and frustrating as hell. I hope things improve for you.

2 days ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

Looks like SOMEONE is very loved by folks all over the world.

2 days ago | Likes 13 Dislikes 5

Not your cuppa tea @op?

1 day ago | Likes 1 Dislikes 1

Can you provide the name of the hospital?

2 days ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 0

I ask because I can check to see if they participate in certain programs you may qualify for

2 days ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 0

I’m in the Henry ford system and I have a social worker

2 days ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 2

So it looks like they’re non profit so legally they have to forgive certain amounts of your debt based off of federal poverty guidelines. You would qualify for 100% forgiveness if you made approx 45k a year in a single household. This information is meant to help lmk if you need info on how to go about this process

2 days ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

Fungal disease is going to become more common as global warming gets worse.

2 days ago | Likes 101 Dislikes 3

Nice Earth we're gonna inherit. Kinda sad because I suspect my generation is gonna do shit all to fix it, just prevent it getting worse, and pass it over to the next one who'll have to deal with all the crap. :'(

2 days ago | Likes 7 Dislikes 1

My immune system doesn’t do well with it. Before my second surgery I was hospitalized for almost two weeks and started getting IV antibiotic in one arm IV antifungal in the other

2 days ago | Likes 38 Dislikes 2

Well, your system isn't necessarily worse than that of everybody else. Our immune system just isn't that good in fighting fungi. Our main attack vector is our body temperature, since fungi usually do not like higher temps. With global warming they will adapt to higher temperature and our main defence mechanism is gone.

2 days ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

How did you find out initially about this disease? I'm having recent nerve pain in my head and did an mri but nothing can be found.

2 days ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

My disease has multi organ system involvement, since it’s a kind of vasculitis. It took a LONG TIME,,,, like. I had signs and symptoms around 18 years of age. And I’ll be 32 this year

2 days ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

But you’re female it must all be your imagination. Said at least 3 doctors.

1 day ago | Likes 1 Dislikes 0

Thanks for responding, hope u can get that CT soon. Sucks what youre going through. Hope u find some peace from the pain

2 days ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

"EGPA stands for Eosinophilic Granulomatosis with Polyangiitis, a rare autoimmune condition formerly known as Churg-Strauss syndrome. It causes inflammation of the small and medium-sized blood vessels and is typically marked by adult-onset asthma, high levels of white blood cells called eosinophils, and sinus problems."

2 days ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 0

Thanks for throwing this in here. It didn’t occur to me to put the definition

2 days ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 0

I wish you luck. I haven't been able to get my followup CT/MRI scans since my insurance got dumped by the state. No idea if I'm still good.

2 days ago | Likes 31 Dislikes 1

I’m so sorry to hear that… have you sent an appeal? A lot of people are getting kicked offs

2 days ago | Likes 11 Dislikes 4

When it comes to these issues I am completely incompetent. I'll just add it to the list of stuff to back into next month.

2 days ago | Likes 6 Dislikes 1

I get it. I had a social worker help me. Maybe loo into it

2 days ago | Likes 6 Dislikes 3

You look like Florence Pugh

2 days ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 0

You might me the 3rd person in the comments who has said this so thank u all for the lil confidence boost 🥲🥲

2 days ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 1

No cap fr fr

2 days ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

I'm Canadian, can I adopt you so you can have free healthcare?

2 days ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 0

I wanna run away somewhere I can tell you that for sure. Maybe I’ll run away when I get my reimbursements

2 days ago | Likes 6 Dislikes 1

A better way to manifest things... I would frame the thought more something like "when I get my reimbursement, new adventures in far away land await!".. I wish you endless love, good health and success.

2 days ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

How did they find out it was fungal? My husband is in constant pain and no longer works because of the headaches and pressure in his opacified sinus, they did two surgeries and so far nothing helped, but he occasionally gets relief when he takes antibiotics

2 days ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 0

I know for sure they did a culture of some of the…. “Hyper dense material”. Also, let me ask this. Does your husband get a terrible smell up in his nose? Like, that is detectable to him and not you necessarily. I’m sorry if this is gross but it’s like a dead rotting smell. I would say that’s a telltale sign for me. This has been such a recurring issue for me- I wanna help if I can

2 days ago | Likes 6 Dislikes 1

I really appreciate you responding. Yes, he gets occasional flareups for which his ENT prescribes antibiotics (these are occasions when he feels better on them and gets more energy), the nasal discharge becomes yellow/green and he gets that bad smell that only he can smell. I think they’ve done culture on something from the sinuses but didn’t find anything unusual I guess.

2 days ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 0

That’s how it was for me for a long time- like, the cycling thru antibiotics and stuff. The thing is, I do have an underlying illness wherein this is a hallmark complication. So- that would be my next question. Does he have a history of anything? Even allergies? For me- I had signs and evidence for my illness dating back to when I was 18, I’ll be 32 this year. It’s so exhausting to have to fight and advocate for yourself so much but it’s the only way. With the diagnosis, a lot more made sense

2 days ago | Likes 3 Dislikes 1

Every one of your posts asks for money snd most of them as selfies

2 days ago | Likes 31 Dislikes 36

OnlyFans with extra steps

2 days ago | Likes 15 Dislikes 15

Im not sure there are fewer steps

I guess it’s to be expected that Imgur, like instagram, would eventually become a source of revenue for posters…. Just bums me out to see every other post with an option to donate

Ive also become jaded to sad stories - you hear them all the time and they all have a monitory solution it seems

2 days ago | Likes 9 Dislikes 9

Nah this person does this. She had other accounts too with which she (or people claiming to be her relatives) asked for money. Don't try and start a conversation, though - that's not what she's here for. Just the money.

2 days ago | Likes 9 Dislikes 12

Okay just lie I guess lol

2 days ago | Likes 7 Dislikes 5

And you keep asking for money, and we'll both keep doing what we do.

2 days ago | Likes 6 Dislikes 11

Not a lie by the way, but I guess you don't remember me among all the posting you do. Figures.

2 days ago | Likes 6 Dislikes 11

I’m looking to other avenues aside from monetary to solve my issues. I’ve appealed my denial for state insurance, I’ve applied for disability…. I don’t want to be this way. I always tell myself to make posts not asking… I’m not gonna lie, I be getting depressed as hell and I’m like what is even the point. I just simply don’t have the luxury of stability I wish it was different. And ofc it’s not like o expect anything from anyone! I know times are hard for everybody

2 days ago | Likes 7 Dislikes 4

lol you def full of shit - using bots too?

my comment had 100% upvotes and the minute you saw it and replied or it went down by double the points it had

If there’s one thing we know about scammers is that theh always double down, see: Donald trump.

2 days ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 11

Bots? I can’t tell if I’m just being trolled or rage baited… rn. That is excessive. Even the post itself has gotten plentyy of downvotes. Maybe people saw my response to you being pretty rude, and saw my point of view- I can’t say for sure. You choose whatever you wanna believe. Everything is documented extensively. Comments like these make me wanna violate my own hipaa rights… ugh. If you genuinely wanna message me and get to the bottom of it, feel free. Like if you genuinely think this.

2 days ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 3

Former Nurse here ( I am not diagnosing here ) have they checked for systemic fungal infection ( blood , urine , stool , sputum ) , If so and if its confirmed are you taking Fluconazole or any other anti fungal medication . Have you been checked for Valley fever ?

2 days ago | Likes 14 Dislikes 0

I could send you my blood results and you tell me what you think? Historically yes, I have been treated w antifungals but the infection comes back w a fury.

2 days ago | Likes 6 Dislikes 2

You can send it but again I cannot diagnose , I am just a Nurse , I would go to an immuno doctor if you can or infectious disease one , If you have Valley Fever you might have that for live and need to take the Fluconazole for life , I am not trying to scare you but you need to ask that they identify the fungus in you , and you need to know if its systemic or just skin or just lungs/ sinus etc . Skin lesions plus your sinus does gravitate more to the systemic .

2 days ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

Treatment will look different for valley fever vs other fungi . If your lungs are involved it needs to be done sooner rather than later . I live in AZ we have Valley Fever everywhere . Send me a DM and you can ask further questions and again I just have to stress I am not a Doctor and I cannot diagnose you

2 days ago | Likes 1 Dislikes 0

This shouldn't be a thing, in Canada you just walk into the hospital.

2 days ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 0

I fell down a hole of looking into chinas health system and got really sad.

2 days ago | Likes 4 Dislikes 1

OP out here looking like Florence Pugh in the Avengers. Best of luck my friend

2 days ago | Likes 50 Dislikes 6

I honestly clicked on it thinking it was her

2 days ago | Likes 14 Dislikes 1

Stop it rn 😭

2 days ago | Likes 8 Dislikes 2

2 days ago | Likes 6 Dislikes 1

So flatter d when people say this!

2 days ago | Likes 21 Dislikes 6

Genuinely thought that's so it was from the thumbnail. Wow.

2 days ago | Likes 1 Dislikes 0

I seriously thought, when I saw the first photo: "FLORENCE PUGH IS ON IMGUR!?" You are gorgeous. Hope things get better for you.

2 days ago | Likes 2 Dislikes 0

Better than me, I get Martin Starr, who in the MCU is exactly on the other end of the badass spectrum. (He plays the teacher in Spider-man.)
People like "you look like the guy from Silicon Valley" and I'm like, I don't know if I'm taking that as a compliment https://media2.giphy.com/media/v1.Y2lkPWE1NzM3M2U1b2ZhOWpqMnhmemtlamJkdTBwN3huM3ZyOTd6Z2llcG1hdjQ5NHVnYyZlcD12MV9naWZzX3NlYXJjaCZjdD1n/3o7qDDquZ5Yi4ZlJ4I/200w.webp

2 days ago | Likes 7 Dislikes 3

I used to get Seth Rogen and oddly enough it usually meant the opposite of how I took it.

Oh, hey come on now, be nice "Oh no that is a good thing"

Aw thanks *that little twitch of the eye* "ok"

2 days ago | Likes 6 Dislikes 0

The story i tell is from when I was bartending and the same conversation comes up with some people who were fairly drunk. "You look like Gilfoyle" (I've never seen Silicon Valley this this the only reason I know any of the character names) and same thing like, playing along cuz I'm at work. And the lady goes "no you should take it as a compliment! I'd fuck Gilfoyle" and her friend just goes "dude."

2 days ago | Likes 5 Dislikes 0