In just a few days, I went from being a healthy college student to someone who couldn't stand without passing out.

After several days in the hospital, I was diagnosed with POTS and sent home in a wheelchair with nothing more than a pamphlet and a follow-up in a couple of months.

At the time, I had never heard of the condition. I had no idea what to expect or what to do from there. Would I get better? How long would it take? What if I didn't improve?

In the beginning, I was mostly bed-bound. I had to take a year off of school just to stabilize my health. I did everything I could to get better as quickly as possible (…it still took me five years).

I quickly learned that chronic illness is different from any condition I'd dealt with before. I was used to things like strep: I'd get diagnosed, get a prescription, and feel better. Chronic illness isn't that. Recovery isn’t linear, symptoms constantly change and reappear, and there’s no clear answer for what will help.

Like millions of people living with chronic illness, I was determined to figure out how to feel better and get my life back. I spent countless hours searching forums, reading research, joining support groups, and talking with other patients.

Over time, I pieced together my own care and figured out what worked for me. There wasn't one solution – it was a combination of lifestyle changes, medication, other diagnoses, physical and occupational therapy, IVs, exercise, acupuncture, and a handful of other random things I tried. I slowly figured out how to respond when my symptoms flared and adapted my life to manage it.

As I talked with other people living with chronic illness, I realized my experience wasn't unique – everyone was facing the same challenges. We lacked clear guidance on what to do to feel better, felt alone when dealing with flare-ups, and had no instruction for what to do as things changed.

To fill these gaps, we become experts of our own care. We piece together information, learn to navigate the healthcare system, and find the products and lifestyle hacks that help.

Living with chronic illness is hard enough. It shouldn't also require near professional-level expertise or hundreds of hours just to find and get the support, resources, and care we need.

I believe that across healthcare, research, and the chronic illness community, we can find the answers we need. We just have to connect our knowledge and resources in a way that works for people living with chronic conditions.

That's why I started Krue.