Sam Rhodehamel (He/Him)

At 22 right after graduating from college and starting a new job in London, I developed Long COVID from a seemingly "mild" acute infection. I suddenly found myself bed-bound struggling to breathe, think, or function for months on end. Due to government and media minimization, lack of available research, and medical gaslighting I was left on my own trying to heal from this complex and misunderstood condition. My life was turned upside down, I felt doomed. Through years of resting and researching I was slowly able to recover enough to start a new job and later go back to university to complete a masters degree while still battling painful flares daily. After dozens of dead-end doctor and hospital visits I was finally able to see knowledgeable specialists and was diagnosed with Long COVID, Dysautonomia/POTS, and Crohns disease.

I advocate for Long COVID awareness because it is a public health crisis affecting millions of people across the globe that currently has no approved treatments, no cure, and almost zero recognition. Long COVID as an umbrella term covers all health problems triggered by a COVID infection. The Center for Disease Control now estimates as many as 1/5 Americans are living with some varying form of Long COVID related health problems. COVID can cause many forms of chronic illness, autoimmune disease, organ and system damage, mass inflammation, heart attack, stroke, blood clotting disorders, gutbiome dybiosis, etc. As this deadly SARS virus continues to spread like wildfire our government, media, and medical systems still fail to implement any meaningful mitigations to protect us such as universal clean air infrastructure and do nothing to warn people of how common and life-altering this debilitating disease is. Post-viral illness is not new and deserves funding and research to find a cure.

To learn more, my blog website can be found at www.chronicdiseaseliving.com.