Health Rising’s Quickie 2025 Summer Donation Drive Has Begun!

The Big Question

It’s been a long road, but some of the puzzle pieces seem to be fitting together.

The question I keep asking myself lately is, “Are we on the cusp of something big?” It looks like pieces of the puzzle are starting to fit together, and it’s largely happening as our creative researchers use the latest technology to dig deeper and deeper.

If ME/CFS and long COVID were not real diseases, they’d keep hitting dry wells, but just the opposite is happening. The more technology they bring to bear, the more they’re finding.

Single-cell immune studies suggest that B, T, and NK cells are all exhausted. The muscle studies are revealing, at a very precise level, issues that may be hindering blood flow. Metabolic studies consistently reveal issues with energy production.

Whether it’s proteomics, metabolomics, transcriptomics, or lipidomics, we observe the same general trends emerging. Immune cells that are too exhausted to be effective or mature, systems and cells with energy production problems, dysregulated parts of the brain that are producing fatigue and pain, entire systems that aren’t responding to exertion on a molecular level.

It seems like something is trying to emerge from this puzzle board. We see its outlines but can’t make out how it all fits together. it seems, though, researchers know where they want to look. This hasn’t always been the case. Go back a decade or two, and the ME/CFS field was struggling to come up with ideas. That’s not so anymore. In a recent interview I did with Michael Peluso, he said he’s excited every day to open his emails.

Good solid treatments, of course, are where the rubber meets the road, and while we’ve certainly seen many creative, new approaches (nicotine patch, stellate ganglion block, oxaloacetate, GLP-1 agonists, rapamycin, metformin, plasmapheresis, natural anticoagulants, etc.), what’s really wanted and needed are big, rigorous trials. They’re easy to miss, but large trials are underway (mostly) in long COVID.

Every trial below, for instance, involves over 200 participants – reflecting an interest and commitment we’ve never begun to see (outside of CBT/GET) in ME/CFS. Each of these trials (Ibudilast, pentoxifylline, Temelimab, a xanthine derivative, TNX-102 (Tonix- fibromyalgia), baricitinib, Rinvoq, IVIG, Selzentry® (maraviroc) plus Lipitor (atorvastatin) (Patterson), Apabetalone, Rapamycin, Bezisterim, Metformin, Ivabradine, f luvoxamine maleate, budesonide/formoterol/montelukast) presents the possibility that a useful treatment could be rapidly recognized.

In other words, while it’s sometimes hard to spot, the curve is definitely arching upwards.

Health Rising’s Commitment

Health Rising is doing its best to put the pieces of the puzzle together. That’s why we cover every aspect of these diseases, from the brain to the blood, to the muscles, the immune system, pathogens, and the gut. It’s a heavy lift, and the blogs are complex – and getting more complex (as they should be), as researchers dig even deeper into the foundations of these disorders.

Nobody can tell when things will come together or when treatments will become readily available for people with ME/CFS, long COVID, POTS, and fibromyalgia. Our commitment, though, is to be there every step of the way.

Coming up, we have a series of interviews with some leaders in the field: Ian Lipkin (“we’re getting closer”), Michael Peluso (excited every day), Dr. Ruhoy (her new book), Thomas Henderson (laser red light therapy) and Klaus Wirth (why ME/CFS can be so disabling and why his drug may help).

Our Quickie Summer Drive

Over our quickie – two weeks or so – summer drive, our goal is to raise $15k to keep Health Rising moving forward. Our needs are modest but real. Donations provide a roof over my head and enable Stavya to produce programs and keep the website running smoothly.

Aside from a few sponsorships (thanks to the Solve ME/CFS Initiative, the Open Medicine Foundation, ProHealth, and the HHV-6 Foundation), Health Rising is wholly community-supported.

Small, medium, or large donations – they all add up over time. If you’re up for a recurring donation, it’s one way to painlessly make a big difference with Health Rising. Sign up for a $5 or $10 (or more) recurring monthly donation – you’ll probably hardly notice it, but that little bit, multiplied many times over, has become a vital source of revenue for Health Rising.

Or grace us with a one-time donation via Givebutter, Amazon gift card or Bitcoin donation. Health Rising also gratefully accepts bequests.

Transitioning from PayPal to GiveButter!

PayPal has always raised some hackles, but it was a simple, if cumbersome, system for us to use. Health Rising is growing up a bit, though, and as of June 22nd, we transitioned to a system called GiveButter, which significantly reduces my workload.

Note that you can still use your PayPal account to support Health Rising via Givebutter. (You can also use Venmo.) Recurring donations made with PayPal will also continue to work, and if you’re happy with PayPal, there’s no need to switch.

If you would like to switch your recurring PayPal donation to Givebutter, see below.

One-Time Donations

(4) Make a One-Time Donation — One-time donations are Health Rising’s biggest source of income.

Use our handy donation widget to make a one-time or recurring donation. You can use your debit/credit card, PayPal, or Venmo account to donate via Givebutter.

Recurring Donations

Please push a little money our way.

(1) Become a Recurring Donor – Health Rising’s recurring donors provide our financial bedrock. They allow me to sleep better at night.

The great thing about recurring donations is that even small ones really add up. You might not notice the $5, $10, or more dollars going Health Rising’s way monthly, but we do. Small recurring donations make up about 40% of our budget!

To become a recurring donor, use the widget below, the one found on most blogs or pages, or on the right sidebar of any page, choose monthly, and click the amount you would like to donate ($5, $10, $15, etc.) and click continue.

You can use your debit/credit card, PayPal, or Venmo account to donate via Givebutter.

(2) Already a Recurring Donor? Want to give more? – Simply contact me using the Contact form (accessible via the link in the teal menu bar below the logo area). I will stop your current donation, and you can restart it.

(3) Become a Recurring Donor with Online Banking (non-Givebutter – Use Bill Pay or similar programs at your bank to send checks straight to us. If you’re with Wells Fargo, we can set up automatic monthly donations. Please get in touch with me using the Contact page link found in the teal menu bar below the logo area..

Checks

We love checks! Please make out checks to Health Rising and send them to the address below.

Cort Johnson
404 Boulder Hwy
PO Box 91245
Henderson, NV 89015.

Please note that, as I am away during late spring and summer (I operate Health Rising out of a trailer/van), it may take several months during that time before I can cash your check.

Bitcoin

Get Rid of Those Darn Currency Conversion Charges – Use Bitcoin! – Bitcoin has been very good to us. A Bitcoin donation from around ten years ago is now worth a hundred times what it was.

If you’re not a U.S. resident, those currency conversion charges can be killers. Make those charges a distant memory by using our Coinbase account to funnel some bitcoin our way. Our Bitcoin address is 18D9JkiGxPcpx8RYNcG5p2Be1joU9J6v5D

Amazon Gift Cards!

Amazon is Health Rising’s go-to place to get electronic accessories, books, solar power to keep us in the web, etc. Simply go here, find your gift card, and put my email address (cortrising@gmail.com) in the “To:” box, and voila – instant Amazon gift card!

Bequests

Health Rising gratefully accepts end-of-life donations. Please use the address below. Contact us at cortrising@gmaill.com for more information.

Cort Johnson
404 Boulder Hwy
PO Box 91245
Henderson, NV 89015.

Become a Sponsor

The Solve ME/CFS Initiative, the HHV-6 Foundation, ProHealth, and others have sponsored Health Rising. Interested in having your corporation sponsor us? Find out more here.

Switching Your Recurring Donations to Givebutter

You can turn off your recurring PayPal donation using the method below. Alternatively, you can use the Contact link on the teal menu bar near the top of any page, and I will take care of it.

Log in to your PayPal account on the website.
Select “Payments”.
Choose “Managing Your Automatic Payments”.
Select the subscription you want to cancel from the list of merchants and follow the instructions.

Thanks for your support!