Angel Lauren Wall from Waterford City lives with two debilitating conditions, Neurofibromatosis Type 2 and Bulbar Dysfunction.
She needs significant medical care, and her conditions have severely impacted her ability to live independently.
But her friend Stephanie Hyde hopes to change that.
She has set up a GoFundMe page to raise €13,000 for care and technology that could improve Angel’s quality of life.
“She is the strongest girl you will ever meet. We just want to help keep my friend kicking ass and fighting NF2 and Bulbar Dysfunction.
“We want to give her a better quality of life to enjoy with her little family,” said Stephanie.
Angel is a 26-year-old mother from Waterford City.
Stephanie said her friend suffered from migraines throughout her time at school, but was not diagnosed with NF2 until after she graduated.
Angel now has a nine-year-old daughter, Ivy, and fiancé, Jordan.
Angel, her fiancé Jordan and their daughter Ivy at Ivy’s First Holy Communion.
Currently, Angel is in a hospital in Dublin awaiting surgery.
But before that, Angel and Jordan are to be married.
Stephanie told us that they are trying to “get the pair married” before the surgery and were able to go dress shopping recently.
Despite her condition, Angel is looking forward to her wedding.
In 2022, Angel holds a BS in Molecular Biology from SETU in Waterford.
Her graduation from which took place just nine days before her first surgery.
Angel has had 12 brain surgeries and 28 rounds of stereotactic radiotherapy.
But despite that, she still lives with chronic pain, paralysis of one vocal cord, hearing loss and balance problems.
Neurofibromatosis Type 2 or NF2 is a rare and incurable genetic condition that causes non-cancerous tumors to grow on the nerves, brain, spinal cord, and inner ear.
Recently, Angel was also diagnosed with Bulbar Dysfunction.
Bulbar dysfunction is a condition caused by neurological diseases like NF2.
The condition caused by a weakness in the cranial nerves can affect a person’s ability to swallow, breathe and speak.
Angel’s condition is not terminal, but it has a profound effect on her life and her family.
“It is a terrible, scary diagnosis,” said Stephanie.
But Stephanie said the money they hope to raise may help to improve that.
The money Stephanie hopes to raise will go to care and technology that will make Angel safer and more comfortable.
The money raised will go toward specialist hearing aids, doorbell cameras and safety technology, vestibular therapy and rehabilitation, as well as personal and mobility aids.
At first, Stephanie said her friend was hesitant about asking for help, but many of the things she needs are not available through the HSE and are too costly for her family to pay for by themselves.
Stephanie said that just the hearing aids can cost €5,000 each.
But the technology and rehabilitation care will help Angel to live more independently and spend more time with her daughter.
“This is to improve the quality of her life, not to pay for a funeral,” said Stephanie.
At the time of writing, Angel’s GoFundMe page had almost reached its goal.
Through the generosity of the public €12,193 had already been raised.
“Thank you also to everyone who has donated so far. From the bottom of our hearts, it means the world to Angel and her family,” said Stephanie.
You can make a donation by visiting Angel’s GoFundMe page here.