Neurologists said her two-year-old daughter, Mia, would never walk or talk. After several trips to the hospital and a barrage of tests, she learned the little girl needed palliative care. Jollymore’s depression deepened, her anxiety increased. The Ottawa woman had been out of work since May 2021 as she focused on her daughter and her own deteriorating mental health. In late January, the next blow fell. Sun Life, which had approved Jollymore for long-term disability in August 2021, withdrew its coverage. “It just made everything worse,” Jollymore said through tears in a recent interview. “I feel like my body is five times heavier because I’m so depressed, but I have to keep going because of my kids.” Jollymore has now taken the insurance company to court. She filed a lawsuit in May claiming she is entitled to long-term disability because of her depression and generalized anxiety disorder — diagnoses supported by her doctors — that prevent her from working. The insurance company, for its part, denies that Jollymore is entitled to long-term disability. In its statement of defence, filed last month, Sun Life said Jollymore initially qualified for long-term disability in August 2021 when they approved her claim. The information Jollymore sent at the time met the definition of “total disability” as required by the policy, the statement of defense said. However, after reviewing medical records on file and other information, Sun Life said Jollymore “no longer continued to meet the definition of ‘total disability’ or ‘totally disabled’ within the meaning of the policy” and terminated benefits on January. 31, 2022, the defense statement said. “We sympathize with Ms. Jollymore and her difficult situation,” Sun Life spokesman Gannon Loftus said. “Our teams are looking into the matter and are working with Ms Jollymore and her legal counsel to find a solution.” The statement of defense did not specify what led to Jollymore no longer meeting the definition of total disability, and Sun Life did not respond to detailed questions about her case, citing confidentiality. Jollymore and her attorney, Albert Klein, said they do not know what led to the revocation of her long-term disability coverage. “Amanda has been paying into these premiums for years thinking she had a safety net, some peace of mind, then Sun Life arbitrarily decided on a whim that they weren’t going to cover her,” Klein said. Jollymore’s daughter was born on March 4, 2020. Doctors noticed physical symptoms that suggested birth defects and referred her to the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario in Ottawa, thus beginning her health odyssey. The doctors examined every part of Mia’s little body. They examined her brain, tested her blood and genetics, and took bone biopsies. Some thought he might have dwarfism, others thought it was a bone marrow problem. “It was a grueling first few months,” Jollymore said. At the age of nine months, Mia had infantile spasms and was diagnosed with a rare form of epilepsy. She had urinary tract infections, other times she got colds and her oxygen levels plummeted. Mia was admitted to hospital 13 times in her first 18 months, Jollymore’s claim states. Doctors diagnosed the little girl with a hole in her heart, severe shortsightedness, low white blood cell count, global developmental delay, brain damage that affected her vision, frequent bouts of pneumonia and lung disease, among other issues. She is fed through a tube in her stomach and burps through a syringe. “He’s at the developmental level of a two-month-old baby,” Jollymore said. Doctors also said Mia had an undiagnosed genetic syndrome. “Every time she’s accepted, it’s realistic that she might not come home,” Jollymore said as she cried. “Obviously that made my mental health very, very bad.” Jollymore returned to her job as a workforce analyst in March 2021 once her maternity leave ended. She worked remotely from her daughter’s bedside every day. She and her husband also have a 12-year-old son who needed love and attention. “I couldn’t concentrate because I was constantly crying, late for meetings or phone calls,” Jollymore said. “I made mistakes.” She said she was exhausted, but couldn’t sleep, lived with a constant stream of headaches and had angry outbursts. Her doctor said she wasn’t in the right mindset to work, so she told her boss and the company approved her short-term disability leave. A few months later, Sun Life approved her long-term disability claim. “It was amazing,” Jollymore said. “I could focus on my mental health.” He diligently followed Sun Life’s monthly requirements, providing updates and medical records, he said. She sought counseling, tried various medical treatments, and spoke with a support group for families with children with special needs. But treatment proved difficult. In January, a caseworker told her that a review found nothing to support her claim that she was unable to work. Her appeal to Sun Life was rejected. “The decision really made my mental health a lot worse,” Jollymore said. Her husband works long hours in the restaurant business to try and support the family while she takes care of Mia. They also took out a line of credit to pay the bills. Jollymore said she tries to focus on the positive when she can. They celebrate Mia’s “milestones” — her version of milestones — like a recent one where she can hold her head up for three seconds. Mia’s bright green eyes light up when she hears her dad’s voice and she “absolutely adores her brother”. “We call her our warrior,” said Jollymore. The overwhelming sadness that falls daily, however, is hard to overcome. “I spend my days snuggling her and taking it all in because I don’t know how much time we have,” Jollymore said. “I’m not well.” This report by The Canadian Press was first published on July 7, 2022.
