Help Emi fight MCAS and Eating Disorder

Hi, my name is Cameron Kaminski. My girlfriend, Emily Jones, is currently undergoing multiple medical problems that our family is struggling to afford. Emily was diagnosed with OCD due to an unfortunate circumstance regarding a traumatic experience that caused her to lose trust in food and drinks given to her by others. Her weight began declining in 2020 because she was too afraid to eat. Her fear of eating the wrong thing as well as her OCD both began to worsen together. After getting Covid in June of 2022, she developed Long Covid and Mast cell activation syndrome (MCAS).

MCAS is a condition in which the patient experiences repeated episodes of anaphylaxis symptoms. MCAS causes a person to have repeated severe allergy symptoms affecting several body systems. For those who have MCAS, mast cells mistakenly release too many chemical agents, resulting in symptoms in the skin, gastrointestinal tract, heart, respiratory, and neurologic systems.

Emi suffers severe gastrointestinal problems like Acid Reflux, Stomach numbness, shortness of breath, and severe abdominal pain. She also suffers skin problems such as dermatographia and burning skin when she encounters any chemicals, especially those with fragrance. Additionally, Emi suffers from ear fullness, brain fog, memory problems, and neurological symptoms such as loss of sensation on her skin.

Even foods and products that are "safe" for a while can suddenly become triggers and have extremely bad consequences. For example, eating potato's, which used to be a safe food, caused her heart rate to spike up to 185 with severe shortness of breath that can cause her difficulties breathing for as long as three hours.

She has been officially diagnosed with Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) by an eating disorder specialist that costs a few hundred dollars to see each time. Because of this eating disorder, she is dangerously malnourished to the point where I now need to ask for help so I can provide the support that she needs to fight these conditions.

Avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) is an eating disorder similar to anorexia. Both conditions involve intense restrictions on the amount of food and types of foods you eat, but unlike anorexia, people with ARFID aren’t worried about their body image, shape, or size. For her, her OCD causes her to be extremely worried that any and all food is tampered with, either by medication or other harmful substances. She cannot control these thoughts at all. I have to literally record videos of me getting her food so she can keep her anxiety at bay enough to eat at all. If I am making chicken at home, she is watching every second. If she accidently looks away or I am with her food alone at any point, I have to throw it away and get more. She currently weighs 85 pounds and suffers from several deficiencies.

We are under state insurance that sadly makes seeing the proper specialists she needs to get healthy to fight both MCAS and her eating disorder nearly impossible, and she is growing sicker by the day.

Symptoms that she suffers from nearly every single day are:

Dermatographia

Skin flaring

Burning and skin redness when rubbed or interacting with anything

Severe Itching

Neurological symptoms on flared up locations and areas that get scratched.

Scratching skin causes it to become numb

GERD - Acid reflux every day

Numbness in stomach every time she eats or drinks

Severe shortness of breath

Stomach pain from pressure

Sweating

Bloating

Extreme congestion in face and head

Brain fog

Neurological symptoms on face when congestion is extremely bad

Ears clogging and fullness

Head pressure

Worsened migraines

Memory lapse problems

Visual disturbances

Worsened DP/DR

Severe deficiencies

Fear of contamination

Doubting and having difficulty tolerating uncertainty

Severe anxiety and depression

The money is needed to cover her medical expenses because she is unable to work due to being sick and our insurance is not the greatest. I need help supporting her so she can become more stable. The money will all go towards seeing specialists, tests, additional appointments, and treatments.