Christie Patient,  —

In 2019 Christie Patient relocated to San Francisco to care for her mother, Holly, before and after her double-lung transplant. Holly’s idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis diagnosis came only months before an acute exacerbation that led to a four-month stay in the intensive care unit, and her eventual transplant. Years later Christie is still writing about the experience, in hopes that her family’s story will connect readers to all the beautiful and terrible parts of the transplant journey. Holly has returned to her home in the Sierra Nevada mountains, and Christie currently resides in Hawaii with her husband, Jonny, and their two four-legged friends.

Articles by Christie Patient

Providers Who Go the Extra Mile to Support ICU Families

I recently spoke to Dr. Heidi Engel, the physical therapist who directed my mom’s pulmonary rehabilitation while she was in the ICU at the University of California, San Francisco. We discussed ICU relationships and how providers can better support family members who are experiencing the trauma of having…

Fighting Fatigue while Processing Trauma

It is 9 pm. My deadline for this column is in 12 hours. Some people would call this procrastination. I call it practice. I’ve been writing several columns in my head for the past three days. I decided not to worry about it and instead enjoy the last glorious days…