Meet Danielle Donatoni-Vargo, one of our Jingle Bell Jog '22 Recipients
Meet Danielle Donatoni-Vargo
In 2009 , when Danielle was 19 years old , she was the passenger involved in a horrific motor vehicle accident. The driver struck a tree head on which caused Danielle’s intestines to perforate in several areas of her small intestines, tore her left side flank and resulted in a broken back.
Emergency procedures were performed in order to keep her alive but forever compromised both her digestive tract and lower back . Since then, Danielle has undergone 3 major abdominal surgeries , 3 separate back surgeries (2 of which the surgeon incompetently performed and worsened her conditions) the third one being a spinal fusion which alleviated most of the symptoms and damage from 1 & 2.
Over the past 13 years, Danielle has been hospitalized over 50 times for bowel obstructions and other digestive system related complications . Despite the challenges that she faced , Danielle has kept the most positive attitude and beautiful perspective on life . She continues to find the silver lining in every setback as an opportunity to better understand her very unique situation.
In 2019, Danielle opened her own business on Kauai as a colon hydrotherapist , where she has dedicated herself to helping others in achieving their best health and understanding of digestive health and diet .
Her last abdominal surgery was in April 2022, which was an 8.5 hour, 5 part open abdominal surgery in which she is still recovering from. There have been many victories and steps forward , but unfortunately, many setbacks. The intestines are incredibly finicky and often present a lifelong dedication of close attention and care. Therefore, Danielle has been on an incredibly restricted diet that requires lots of preparation in order to maintain a decent quality of life . Faltering from liquids, smoothies, & purees has proven to be near fatal. Physical therapy, holistic healing practices and diet are an everyday practice in which Danielle fully submerges herself in
As of September ‘22, Danielle developed a bezoar due to slowing in the small intestines.Where she previously had surgery in 2009, she now needs that specific area of her intestines to be removed and resectioned. The bezoar is causing significant weight loss and nutrient deficiency, as well as significant pain and fatigue and also needs to be surgically removed.
As of more recently, Danielle has discovered she has low levels of SIBO (small intestinal bacterial overgrowth). She also received results showing she is malnourished and has malabsorption due to chronic inflammation from the trauma and accident. Danielle is on a mission to get to the GI doctor she was referred to which will ultimately lead her back to the surgeon.
Danielle has managed to hold on to her business and continued to pay her rent , despite not working the past few months. Unfortunately, this is greatly impacting her own personal needs. The days are tough and heavy for Danielle, but she wants nothing more than to reclaim her health and return to her practice where she can continue helping others. We are honored to name Danielle as one of this year’s Jingle Bell Jog recipients.
