The spouse & I have gone through times like that--nothing goes right, debts piling up, illness & seemingly no way out.

Keep trying is all I can say. Fill out the aid forms, see if there is a local food bank (where you and your mom can volunteer a couple hours and in return get a weeks worth of groceries (and save $$), and check these people out. I've been told they can help:

http://www.dbsalliance.org/site/PageServer?pagename=home

Good luck!