Tomorrow on Giving Tuesday – the biggest giving day of the year for non-profits – the big guns of the ME/CFS movement will be vying for your support.
Health Rising gets the word out.
Health Rising is going a day early. We’re different. Produced by one full-time, one part-time person and two editors, HR is just a baby next to the big non-profits that are providing important research and advocacy efforts for ME/CFS. (Health Rising is not a non-profit but relies on donations to keep afloat.)
We have our own important task. We’re committed to provide in-depth reviews on the latest research and treatment findings. Plus, we make a major impact on ME/CFS research through our efforts to inform the community of what our non-profits are up to.
The word gets out. Over 700,000 users visited the 1,800 articles and resources found on Health Rising over the last year, producing almost 1,900,000 page views. All that happened on an almost ridiculously small budget (See our financial statements here).
Coming Up
Over the next month or so, Health Rising is going to introduce a new program, and I’ll provide a series of blogs on, among others:
-
Coming up – the biggest ME/CFS exercise study yet provides new insights.
the rest of the cannabis series,
- intriguing results from a massive exercise study,
- new fibromyalgia drug trials,
- an upcoming study from Ian Lipkin that could tell us much,
- a sleep series,
- two ME/CFS experts on the dark side of treating ME/CFS,
- an energy blueprint,
- the HHV-6 dilemma,
- an update on the Stanford ME/CFS Center
- a raft of recovery stories (all different) and more.
BIG (little) Fundraising Drive
On “Giving Monday”, then, we’re asking for your support. We call this the BIG (little) Fundraising drive because a little bit goes a long way with HR. We’re confident that your return on investment with HR can’t be matched anywhere else.
Our goal is to raise $45,000 – peanuts for many organizations – but critical for us.
Seven Ways to Support Health Rising
Recurring Donations
Please push a little money our way.
(1) Become a Recurring PayPal Donor – Recurring donors provide the financial bedrock for Health Rising. To become a recurring donor simply go the right sidebar of any page, click the amount you would like to donate, and hit the Subscribe button.
(2) Already a Recurring PayPal Donor? Want to increase your donation? Simply send me an email stating that and I will stop your current donation and you can restart it.
(3) Become a Recurring Donor with Online Banking (non-PayPal) – Don’t want to use PayPal? Use Bill Pay or similar programs at your bank.
One-Time Donations
(4) Make a One-Time PayPal Donation — One-time donations are Health Rising’s most important source of income. You can make a one-time donation by clicking on the Donate button in the right sidebar.
(5) One-Time Checks! – We love checks! Please make out checks to Health Rising and send them to us:
Cort Johnson
2555 Hampton Rd Unit 6308
Henderson NV, 89052
(6) Bothered by Currency Conversion Charges? Use Bitcoin and Avoid Them – Use Health Rising’s Coinbase Bitcoins account and save on currency conversion charges on your one-time donation. Our Bitcoin address is 18D9JkiGxPcpx8RYNcG5p2Be1joU9J6v5D
Outside the Box
Amazon gift cards! Amazon is Health Rising’s go-to place to get electronic accessories, books, stuff for the vehicle, 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!
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Hi Cort, I’ve been a small monthly donation donor for a few years, and can keep it up but unfortunately can’t increase it.
I was a fairly smart cookie (with a science degree) before I became ill. Now I’m very cognitively effected, and it fluctuates. Sometimes I can read the blog and comments, sometimes I can’t. Often it’s a choice of reading vs getting through paying my bills or some other task.
When I was cognitively better, I could hold different information in my memory and make connections, or decisions on treatments to try. Now I mostly can’t.
I don’t think I’m alone, and I’m just wondering if there are, even small, things you can do to help make the information you provide more accessible to those of us who really do need it but are on the severe side of the spectrum.
It’s VERY helpful when you provide The Gist.
Another suggestion is an even shorter summary, maybe at the top or bottom that says- This blog covers …, like “an update on Robert Phair’s metabolic trap research.” I could copy that into Notes, and categorize things, making it easier to do targeted reading when I am able.
It would also be helpful if you could call out if the blog covers information that could be used to pursue some treatment to try.
In the past I’ve gotten basic information about potential treatments like mestinon, then went out and found published research or other information I could present to my GP to give her what she needs to feel comfortable prescribing something for me to try.
It’s much more difficult for me to do this on my own now.
I think people probably do it on their own, but we’re all doing it on our own & it’s redundant and not helping people who can’t do it.
What about providing a section like- If you’re interested in trying mestinon, with a summary of why you might want to try it, and a packet of facts & publications you could print out for your doctor. This would really help people who aren’t capable of this kind of work on their own.
Just my 2 cents- In the future, adding Features that would make the information more accessible and useable for those, like me, who are really struggling cognitively from this disease. More and more I’m finding it skewed to those people who are not very cognitively effected.
Perhaps a bit of rethinking about the spectrum of abilities of your audience, and things that can be done to make, at least the basic information, accessible to the widest audience?
Thanks for your consideration, and all you do for our community!
Thanks for your support and ideas Birdie – you’ll see some changes. I like the idea of an abstract at the beginning. I keep forgetting to do the Gist -but am committed to using that the blogs. Treatment options is another good idea. Thanks!
I would like to donate for use of Stem Cells and Exosome for treatments of CFS. Like to know if there are any studies yet using these ? There are now clinics that offer Stem Cells and Exosome for treatment of strokes, Parkinson’s, Lupus and similar diseases.
None that I know of. Maureen Hanson is researching exosomes right now. I don’t know of any treatment efforts yet, though. If the research comes through who knows?
Birdie; Just finished reading your comment about getting a bit more simplification on some of the deeper articles & I just want to thank you so much for saying well what I too have been unable to say myself. Over the last 15 years I have become a mere shadow of the “smart cookie”, to quote your words, that I used to be. It is bane of my existence now & on days like today, when I am “with it” mentally, that the loss is difficult to fathom, so reading your comment made me realize I am not alone & neither are you. I value Cort, this blog & all it’s insight, information & help it brings. Appreciate all involved & all who benefit. That’s all, thoughts to words is hard work.
Good to hear. I have a nice, juicy, very complex blog coming up I will try it out on. 🙂
Well Maggie and Birdie there’s at least 3 of us with compromised mental abilities…
But I do think if we’ve built up lots of connections within our brains previously, we’re probably better off now. I’m a great believer in brain plasticity and maybe I’m deluding myself – but I feel better when I believe I can improve.
However I do also get glimpses of how I function now and how I functioned previously and only I am aware of that loss.
Anyway it’s my new mission to improve my brain ?
Yes Birdie, I am very aware that I find it difficult to hold on to information in my brain, whilst looking at more information. I used to thrive on holding multiple concepts simultaneously. Executive functioning is a bit sporadic – better in the morning, when I’m less tired – but if I use up my daily quota I’m struggling for the rest of the day ?
Thank you Cort for somehow managing to keep this site going – I find it invaluable ?
Birdie, those are great suggestions. With double line spacing: it was much e
easier To read. Thank you and THANKS CORT. Maryann .Happy New Year/
to read.
Cort,
Done! I just sent $100.00 via PayPal. I want you to know that your blog is awesome!
There may never be a cure for our illness (or maybe there will), regardless; if we need data about the latest and greatest research, treatment, etc…
This is the best place in the world to find it!
From the bottom of my heart, thank you for what you do for the community!
Next year I’ll try to make it $200 but I’m kinda on a budget right now.
Chris
Thanks so much Christopher! 🙂
Hi Cort,
Didn’t you mentioned in the past that Amazon gift cards are welcome too?
If so, that would be a good option for European people without credit card. We all have debit cards, but most people here only have and use credit cards for traveling. Most of your audience doesn’t travel much and therefore feels no need to spend scarce money on a credit card.
I can do a bank wire transfer but costs to the US are excessive. Very likely you don’t have a European bank account ;-). So that would make the gift card a compelling and cost effective way for many of your readers. If it would be a good source of funding for you, please detail on how we could proceed. Never used these fancy bitcoins things. Too modern for me.
Thanks for the huge load of good work you do for us!
What a great idea! HR uses Amazon quite a bit.
I just added it.
Thanks!
Hi Cort,
Great ideas Everyone and I am looking forward to all upcoming blogs! Could I suggest a blog on Essential Oils and possible Chiro. Care?!
I know these have been my saving grace and with the proper Chiro. Care (lots of hacks out there so if not done correctly..assessment in the beginning) can and will help with pain and functioning!
Thanks for everything you do for us, Cort..Your a Godsend?
Thanks Lora and thanks for the suggestion. I actually love to get suggestions about how to make the website better. 🙂
What is Chiro. Care?
Thanks to the 19 donors – and one Amazon gift giver (:)) who have contributed $1942 to Health Rising. 🙂
Update! Thanks to the 69 people who have contributed more than 5,000 to HR!
Our two fundraisers raise almost half of all the money HR needs to keep going. Please support us in whatever way works for you. 🙂
Hi Cort. Another year of fantastic information and great writing from Health Rising! I am leaving my monthly donation where it is. I barely squeak by on my Social Security each month. (Do you hear violins yet?) Haven’t seen if we’re getting any COLA increase for 2020. The SSA statement of benefits for 2020 should have come by now. If we DO get an increase, then I can up my donation a bit.
Keep on keepin’ on, Cort! Cheers! Judith
Wow. Thanks so much Judith. I hate to see you giving up some of your SS – on the other hand I am very grateful for your support. Good luck with a potential COLA increase.
OK, Cort. Just received my 2020 Social Security benefit statement. We got a small increase…very small. But it lets me increase my monthly donation by another $5. So, I believe that you cancel it from your end in PayPal, and then I go back in and do another donation with the new amount in PayPal. Am I right? 😛 Judith
Now 78 – count em – 78 people have contributed almost $5800 to keep HR going. Thank you very much!
Hi Cort:
I have been donating $10/month, using my husband Derrell Riley’s PayPal account. I would like to increase the amount to $20/month. I tried to increase it on PayPal, but they wrote me that I have to contact you.
Just let me know how to do it.
Thanks, Dianne Riley
woo- woo! Thanks Dianne. I need to cancel your account and you can start it up again. Thanks so much! 🙂
Thanks so much to every one of the 175 donors who’ve provided $20.730 to HR. Donations have ranged from $3 to those in the four figures. Every single one helps!
Cort, your hard work is appreciated more than you could possibly know. I’ve had ME since 1986 and started receiving research publications in 1988 back when the CFIDS Association first began sending out their monthly journals.
But you have single handedly taken communication of current research to the ME/CFS community to a whole new level, and we are eternally grateful! I only wish I could donate more!
I certainly don’t want to add to your workload, but would you please consider summarizing your wonderful articles at the end of each piece into a very simple (short paragraph) of the findings. It’s really hard for some of us to concentrate and comprehend all the details, but we really want to know the basics of what you’ve discovered.
Again, THANK YOU and God bless you.
Thanks for your support and your encouragement!
It’s funny I added the Gist – one place to quickly see the results – and stopped focusing as much on the conclusions. I will try to add a pithy summary! 🙂
We’ve both been through this for a long time!
Thanks again. 🙂
Our end of the year donation drive is pretty epic – it lasts for a month! With about 10 days left, a sincere thanks to the 225 people who have donation over 23,000 to HR. We’re over fifty percent of the way to our goal of $45K 🙂