POTS EDS Medical Alert Dog

Our Rotary set up this fundraiser to provide Rebecca with a medical alert service animal. Donations will go directly towards Service Dog Training in Raleigh, NC!

Rebecca Cook is a force of nature who is highly driven and gives back to the disability community in huge ways. Rebecca has spoken at national conferences and has worked with a variety of nonprofits, most notably making waves in the world of Orthotics and Prosthetics through education and advocacy.

About a year ago, Rebecca was diagnosed with POTS (Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome), a neurological condition that affects between one and three million Americans with 80% of them being female. . POTS is a form of dysautonomia — a disorder of the autonomic nervous system. This branch of the nervous system regulates functions we don’t consciously control, such as heart rate, blood pressure, sweating and body temperature.

Rebecca is a Certified Prosthetist Orthotist in the Raleigh, North Carolina area whose passion for service positively impacts the lives of those living with a range of disabilities internationally. Rebecca works with individuals with limb loss and deficiencies in her everyday career.

POTS is a chronic condition that affects the autonomic nervous system, causing dysfunction of Rebecca's heart rate and blood pressure, breathing and causes a variety of other challenges. POTS is a debilitating and invisible disease that is chronic and ultimately has no cure.

For people with POTS, the simple tasks of daily life can be overwhelming. Service Dogs make it possible for them to get to work, go grocery shopping, and make other necessary trips on their own. The benefits of having a Service Dog are physical and emotional. Service Dogs can help people with POTS disease by providing stability and balance when blood pressure drops too low. Even simple tasks, like bending down to pick up an item, can cause a person with POTS to have a dizzy spell. A Service Dog can pick up any dropped items and will be able to retrieve medication as required.

Rebecca was also recently diagnosed with Hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome. hEDS is a heritable connective tissue disorder that causes generalized joint hypermobility, joint instability, and chronic pain. hEDS is also associated with a variety of other symptoms and related conditions that affect many different areas of the body.

This service dog will be able to alert to symptoms and provide other tasks which will improve Rebecca’s quality of life and help her continue her passion of giving back to the world through the great work she does. Rebecca's goal is to fundraise enough to be able to pay it forward to the next person who requires a medical alert dog.

Any funding raised beyond this goal will go towards additional training costs that Rebecca will need over the next few months. For more information about Rebecca, Please visit her digital portfolio.

Rebecca’s Digital Portfolio

Checks can be made out and mailed to:

Rotary Club of Cleveland School

PO Box 1872

Garner, NC 27529