Treatment for Long Covid, POTS & FND

Hi, my name is Jess and I am raising money to give my 15 year old daughter Gwen access to POTS (Postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome) treatments that are not covered by our insurance. Gwen started having dizzy spells a year and a half ago and last August had her first fainting episode. Since September of last year, these episodes have only increased in intensity, frequency and duration. As of today, she typically faints 3-4 times a day with no warning signs which has impacted all of our lives. She can be unconscious for up to an hour and a half and then unresponsive for up to an hour following an episode. The presentation of these episodes varies from day to day and has now included long pauses in breathing (up to a minute).

Gwen can no longer do any of her typical daily activities independently, attend school in person, or even hang out with her friends without me around. She is now a fall risk and has injured herself causing many trips to the emergency room that warrant no answers or solutions.

Gwen was also recently diagnosed with long covid POTS which most physicians (even specialists in neurology and cardiology) have limited knowledge of. She is being seen at the Rainbows and Babiess long covid clinic with a team of physicians who are starting to come up with some ideas for treatments and pathways she can explore. Part of this treatment plan includes functional medicine brain mapping by a functional neurologist. This testing protocol is not covered by insurance but would be extremely beneficial in her treatment plan to help to identify the areas of her brain that are not working properly. The testing alone for this costs $2,500 with more costs attached for office visits, treatments after etc. We have also reached out to different POTS clinics within the US (John's Hopkins being our first pick) and are on year-long wait lists to be seen in their specialty clinics.

As a mom and primary caregiver the mental, emotional and financial stress of navigating a little-known condition and finding the right treatment has been very taxing. I have taken a leave of absence from my work as a special education teacher but can only afford to do so for a shortened period of time to maintain our health insurance and keep a paycheck coming. My husband Joe is a general contractor and is working 12-14 hour days to help and keep us financially stable and helping with physical care as much as possible when he is not working. We need some financial support to give us access to functional medicine treatments that are not covered by insurance and to help with costs associated with traveling to other

POTS clinics.