An Update From Me

I think I’ve taken my health for granted. Not intentionally, just in the way you do when everything is working and life is full and busy. Until it isn’t.

I had just come home to Chicago after two weeks abroad, and I am so deeply grateful that I was home, with my family, when everything happened. That alone feels like a quiet kind of luck. Because I don’t really slow down.

I move fast. I pack my schedule. I push through things I probably shouldn’t. And for the most part, I’ve always been able to.

The backstory starts in Houston. I was there for a trunk show hosted by my best friend Ally. It was one of those trips that fills you up. I was with her daughters, Sadie Pearl and Teddi Paige, my namesakes. I was so happy and so excited to be with our clients in Houston.

That afternoon, I got a headache.

Not a normal headache. One that wouldn’t go away, no matter what I took. I remember telling Ally a few times that I had a headache, but not fully understanding what was happening. We had a late flight that night, and I felt so sick that I actually thought about getting off the plane. My head hurt that badly.

But then the pilot said the flight was two hours and twelve minutes, and I had this thought: you can do anything for two hours and twelve minutes. You’re strong. This is nothing. You just did 14-hour flights. Two hours is nothing.

So I stayed.

I got home, went to sleep, and woke up Thursday still with a headache. I moved through the day in a haze. I saw friends. I asked for a little help, but I wasn’t really explaining what was happening.

By 6:30 PM, everything changed.

I couldn’t stand. I couldn’t see properly. I couldn’t stop vomiting. I was completely, undeniably unwell.

Friday morning, I called 911. Not because I wanted to, but because I physically could not get myself to the door, let alone to a doctor. The pain was excruciating.

At the hospital, they ran scans and quickly realized something was wrong. When I was lying flat, the pain eased. The moment I sat up, it came rushing back.

That led to an MRI of my brain and spine that lasted two and a half hours. That’s when they found I had a leak in my spine.

Over the weekend, everything slowed down in the way hospitals do. But I was also cared for by some of the most incredible people. I am in awe of nurses and the kindness and care they show their patients. I wish I knew Kallie and Ana’s information to thank them again. They were so wonderful.

On Monday, the neuro IR team stepped in. Because they couldn’t locate the exact source of the leak, they performed three blood patches. They use your own blood to try to seal the leak in your spine.

I was in the hospital from Friday to Tuesday. There was no real pain medication that could fix this. The treatment was caffeine, fluids, and time. The pain was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced when I wasn’t flat on my back.

I am so grateful for my family. My parents flew in immediately. Jonathan was there every single day. My girls have been unbelievably brave. Friends showed up in ways big and small.

It was a reminder of something we all say, but don’t always feel this clearly: your community is everything. When everything else stops, that’s what holds you.

I haven’t worked in a week, and for someone like me, that is not normal.

But I’ve been trying, really trying, to listen to my body. To respect it. To understand that pushing through is not always strength. Sometimes strength is stopping.

This experience shook me, not just physically, but mentally. It made me realize how fragile things can be and how quickly everything can shift.

We talk so much about ambition, growth, building. But none of it matters if you don’t have your health.

So this is me, saying it out loud, mostly to myself: take care of your body. Slow down when you need to. Pay attention when something feels off. Because you don’t get to choose when your body forces you to listen.

I’m home now, recovering. Taking it day by day.

And hoping for better, healthier days ahead.

xx

Dana