Speaker: Sam Norpl
Why is long COVID patient advocacy important to you?
Sam Norpl: Long COVID advocacy is important to me because when I was at my sickest, I decided that, well, I guess I was wallowing in the, why is me? Why did this happen to me phase? And I decided that if this was going to happen to me, that it must have happened for some reason and that was for me to help others, for me to understand what this level of pain meant. And that if I was going to get better, then I was going to use any ability I had, even if it went low and I was lying down to help others and to pay it forward for all of the people that had helped me along the way. And that's why it's important to me, whether it's to wish someone, you know, just give them a virtual hug to say I understand hang in there or send an email to a politician or fundraise for a group that I believe in all of that. Um It's really just a way of paying it forward for the people that have helped me along the way. But also because I understand really what it feels like to be in so much pain, both physically and emotionally and I don't want anyone to ever feel like that again.
