Help Jessie fight Lyme Disease

Hello family, friends, loved ones and friends of loved ones.

This GoFundMe page is dedicated to raising money to help fund Jessie’s Lyme disease treatment. She has been suffering from this horrific illness for seven years, and it has progressed to a life-threatening and severely debilitating stage.

We are rallying to try and help her regain her health, life and independence.

Anyone who has met or remembers Jessie knows she is a big-hearted and generous soul. Who was once so vibrant and passionate about life, nature, her career in forestry, her family and friends.

In 2015, after a bullseye rash, Jessie’s life turned upside down when she went, almost overnight, from healthy and vibrant to bedridden and sicker than anyone should have to experience.

It’s been heartbreaking to watch her experience this life-shattering disease and to see her suffer for so long. She has exhausted all resources, spending over 100K on specialists, diagnosis, failed treatments, care and just surviving over these years with loss of her job. 

Complicated by COVID, the ability to travel to see appropriate specialists in the US, Canada and beyond was impossible, and her condition severely declined these past two years.

Finally able, she is booked for treatments at one of the most sought-after Lyme clinics for complex cases on October 19th, but she needs our help.

Unfortunately, neither our healthcare system nor insurance provides treatments or support for Lyme disease in Canada and it generally ranges from $50,000 - $100,000 out of pocket for cases that require clinical interventions and travel. 

After exhausting all life savings, assets, and incomes – taking out a line of credit, Jessie has had to sell her home to save her life. Her estimate from the clinic for treatments alone is $71,000, not including accommodations, support, food, supplements and supportive therapies.

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If you are interested in contributing to her recovery, or are able to donate other forms of assistance to make this trip possible, please reach out; any help is welcome.

You can also support her by sharing this page to your network to help spread awareness of Lyme disease and the many others who suffer in silence and help us reach as much support for Jessie as possible.

Thank you all so much. 

What is Lyme Disease?

Lyme disease is a tick-bourne illness caused by a bacterium that the tick injects into the host. The bacterium then multiplies and can affect every body organ, including the brain, nervous system, gut, muscles and joints, and the heart. Unfortunately, if not treated in the early stages, Lyme disease can become chronic, at which point treatments and recovery can become highly complex and expensive

Untreated, Lyme disease leads to autoimmunity, severe chronic fatigue, multi-organ, multi-system failure and, in extreme cases, death – as the body slowly shuts down. It is excruciatingly painful and debilitating, isolating, leaving the person unable to get up, sit up, walk, talk, or have any quality of life. Careers, relationships, hobbies, and lives crumble into silent suffering. It puts a horrible burden on caregivers and family members left to manage this disease at home.