Have you looked at flights into Westchester County Airport. I have flown out of this airport to various cities in Florida. Typically less congested then other regional options.
It is 55 miles from Vassar and will take less than an hour to drive. Just a thought.
Driving in NY sounds absolutely terrifying! 
Just as easy to fly into Newark NJ, itās a very easy drive.
I actually live in the area and while itās only an incremental 35 miles it can easily cost you an extra hour or more, plus the airport itself is tougher to navigate and more prone to delays.
I think most locals will tell you to avoid the Garden State Pkwy or NJTPK if possible. Just my experience.
I live 20 minutes from Newark airport, I canāt tell how many times Iāve navigated the airport, waze has made it much easier, and I donāt have issues with the parkway, prefer it over the turnpike (although I donāt mind driving in nyc ether).
Does she take the meds right before bed? Sometimes just switching that up can help with those types of side effects. My ds has had this experience. I would ask the dr.
From Florida, it looks like Frontier flys into Stewart as does Allegiant - but these are not every day flights or multiple times a day flights. Iām not sure which part of Florida you are in. Stewart is, I believe, the closest airport to Vassar - about 40 minutes (26 miles). The airport used to have more airlines there so not sure about the viability of the schedule.
Itās about 1 hour 20 to Albany but an easier 1 hour 20 than from coming South (IMHO). Southwest flies from pretty much all locales in Florida - so that could be another option.
If you all decide to go this wayā¦
I do worry - I know kids need to learn coping skillsā¦some can and some donāt. But most arenāt needed to be pulled out of school for multiple weeks. At most, maybe a day off and usually not even that.
I hope the counselors have this one right. Iām not one - but it seems a bit off that one could have such an episode and have it magically disappearā¦but again iām not a counselor.
I hope good thoughts for you and know you are doing the best. In the end, remember mom and dad are paying and in some regard, you have the right to set rules - and thereās justification. At the same time, we all know, Iām sure, how hard it is to say no to our little ones.
Best of luck - and I hope to read about a positive finish in the future.
Wait! Even better than the NYC airports mentioned is Stewart International Airport in Newburgh. Thats about a 30 minute drive from Vassar, and there are direct flights from Tampa, Orlando, St. Pete/Clearwater and Ft. Lauderdale. Stewart is a former army base, and has international flights, even though it is so small. Extremely easy to navigate!
https://www.swfny.com/flight/airlines
ETA: @tsbna44 is correct to mention Albanyās airport; plus Westchester Airport is about an hour away and has direct flights to West Palm Beach, Tampa, Orlando, Ft. Lauderdale, Ft. Meyers.
https://airport.westchestergov.com/airlines/airline-information
Yāall are so incredibly kind to research airports for us! Wow! Thank you. I truly appreciate your thoughtfulness and it looks like we donāt need to totally discard the Vassar dream quite yet. And when it seems like a good time, Iāll suggest some closer schools (there are things about Emory she likes, and she even likes some things at Wake Forest, which is also on her twinās list and within driving distance) and some like Sarah Lawrence (Brandeis and Pitt are already on her long form list). Her school actually has a January term and the entire Junior class will be doing work with the college counselors so I am sure it will be on her mind when she heads back.
And on the meds . . . Yes she takes them in the morning. But drinks a lot of tea and caffeinated beverages 
You all certainly have helped me have a positive start to 2023. Thank you!
I do not think that one B+ and one A- is going to have any significant impact on university applications and admissions chances. Brown was always a reach, and is still a reach (but not necessarily impossible). Tufts and Vassar also sound like reaches.
The more important issue is to figure out what college or university would be a good fit. The other important thing (that would have been important even without a stress breakdown) would be to find safeties. Reaches for strong students are often easier to find because they are famous.
I do not want to get into details, but I am familiar with a similar situation: A child who is at or near the top of their middle or high school with mostly A+'s and maybe a few Aās, who finds that the stress is just too much, hangs on with quite good grades in spite of a stress breakdown, gets counseling and appropriate medication, improves a great deal, and then needs to find a school that is a good fit.
The first thing might be to congratulate your daughter on both her recovery, and on the fact that she was able to hold onto very good grades in spite of her issues. Perhaps the second thing is to recognize that stress related health issues are very common (way too common) among high school students in the US. Somehow a hug plus really good ice cream come to mind as appropriate.
I think of the highest ranked universities in the US as being stressful. Perhaps each student needs to figure out how much stress and academic challenge is appropriate for them. It is probably easier to add more academic challenge at an easier school than to remove academic stress at a highly ranked ātopā school. I am also sympathetic with the discussion above about advantages of having a student nearby in case the parent needs to drop by in a hurry.
Right now I agree with other comments that the first step might be to just step back from thinking about colleges and universities. At some point (spring or summer?) a few visits to schools that are not super highly ranked might be appropriate. There are a LOT of very good LACs and universities in the US. Then listen to what your daughter wants to do.
One professor that I know once told me that he thinks that all of the strongest and smartest students that he has ever worked with at some point have dealt with some mental health issues. I think that he might have exaggerated a bit, but this is certainly very common among very strong students. Most of them do seem to come back and find a level of stress and academic challenge that works for them. This can take some time and effort however.
Has she considered a gap year? Some famous teens have done them and they speak highly of them. Malia Obama did it. She has a summer birthday so was on the young side for her grade. She didnāt want to miss the last year of her fatherās presidency. She probably had a stressful high school experience and could spend a year relaxing (although I think she worked an internship with hollywood types).
Prince William did (also a summer birthday). We know he had a stressful high school experience, including Princess Diana dying.
A friendās daughter went to school (high ranked) immediately after hs but it was a disaster. She left after first semester, ended up taking a whole year off, and then started at a local school. Much better experience because she knew her doctors (medical and therapists), needed to be close to family, was once again the smartest kid in the class and that was important to her (more important than the rank of the school).
I would have objected if someone told me to take a gap year, but as an adult see how beneficial it would have been to me and to anyone going through a difficult or transition period. No rush to get to or through college.
Personally, I would make attending college contingent upon her authorizing your present and future access to her therapists. This is too big a decision ( and too much at risk, both financially and emotionally) not to have all the facts.
Please get tuition insurance when this student goes to college. Make sure to read the fine print carefully to see if it covers preexisting conditions.
I donāt think your daughterās grades are an obstacle to applying to her reach schools. They are, after allā¦reach schools.
But having oneās mental health issues in a good place is far more important than attending any college.
College will always be there. This should be a journey, not a race.
Totally agree re: tuition insurance.
I got tuition insurance for my son for this reason, he had an isolated mental health issue senior year, that turned out not to be isolated, and the insurance paid only because it wasnāt noted as a pre existing condition, otherwise it wouldnāt have due to being pre existing (we happen to have a child psychiatrist in the family who dealt with the initial issue, no medication was prescribed).
Itās not fun but itās not terrible either. All highway driving from any of the airports - you wouldnāt be on city streets at all.
For my child (also a twin and a junior) with mental health issues (I donāt know if they are similar to your childās issues) one of the most important things we did was figure out sleep. It may be the medication interfering with her sleep or it may be a symptom of another issue. My child has used a sleep aid (prescribed by psychiatrist) for a while now. In my opinion it has been a great choice for them.
My child is also a junior. We have had to take a step back from college planning. We have talked up a couple of likely/safety schools that are easy to get to and focused on those for now. I had been thinking my child was okay to go far away, but we had a recent setback that has me questioning that. I think mine will be staying within a 6-8 hour drive or 2 hour direct flight (ish).
One other thing that I have found helpful with both twins is introducing them to likely/safety schools that are in fun areas and have some other ācoolā factor associated with them. For example, Iāve mentioned Rollins to the other twin. That child likes warm weather, likes the theme parks, likes being close-ish to the beach, and is familiar with the area because we had family in Winter Park and have visited often. It might not make the list for various reasons, but that is an example. Tulane or Loyola in New Orleans might be close enough to your home and could get a boost from the New Orleans location. (no clue about other fit or major factors, again just an example of schools that are less competitive but have something kids can latch onto). Or maybe a cool club or EC the school offers. Just something to help them feel excited about that school when classmates ask where they are going. It could be anything.This may not work in the end, but that is what weāve been doing.
ETA: Iām not a professional anything, just a parent!
One other random thought - she sounds like the type of student who might benefit from the Oxford => Emory setup. I donāt know much about it, but it seems like itās near you, sheād have the support of a smaller school at Oxford while learning to be on her own and then ending up at a prestigious university in a great city. Without going back and reading, I think you may have said she didnāt like Atlanta (?) but itās a fun city so you might be able to change her mind?
If Pitt, rolling admission, stays on the list, you may want to encourage your daughter to apply as early as she can. If she applies in August, she will likely hear back in September. Getting an acceptance early on in the process can be helpful in alleviating at least some of the application anxiety. At least it did for my D23!
I appreciate all of your helpful comments and insight. I plan to try to follow her lead but do some research on closer/likely schools so I am prepared with ideas when she is in the mood to talk about college. I will try to arrange some tours closer to home. The Oxford at Emory suggestion is good. She still thinks she hates the south but maybe she will change her mind. Iām not sure yet how to plan college tours without bringing up college, but I will work on how to do that. Her twin is doing a tour of NC/VA schools in February so maybe that will be an opening for discussion that is not about her, so less pressure
She heads back to school in VA tomorrow and I am grateful itās been a really good visit. She seems to be happy and not anxious or depressed. Grateful for every good day and hopeful for continued progress