My friend Chase and I sat in my treehouse one sunny afternoon looking across the arid valley between my childhood home and the towering crest of the Sierra Nevada. We were 10. We noticed a plume of smoke rising from the hills, which soon turned into a blaze that destroyed…
Pulmonary fibrosis has stolen a lot from me over the years. Like most people, I’d never heard of this cruel and life-threatening disease before my diagnosis of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) in 2016. I also had no idea how many other body systems are affected by chronic…
Growing up in the Mexican culture, I was introduced to a lot of home remedies to treat everything — coughs, colds, stomachaches, fevers, bug bites, and even “el mal de ojo,” or the “evil eye.” Mexican folk medicine was an important part of my upbringing, but as an…
When I see an adult acting out in public, I find it annoying. If a front-line healthcare worker asks you to properly wear a mask in a clinical setting, please adjust your mask. Complaining about the rules and overreach of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)…
The day you’re diagnosed with a chronic illness is generally a day you won’t forget. The words from my doctor, Steven Nathan, made sense in the moment. They also became a collection of sound bites. They fall into three distinct categories: 1) you have, 2) you can expect, and…
A strong relationship with a medical specialist can make a world of difference. As a young adult living with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a debilitating and life-threatening lung disease, I have various specialists, but the one I value most is my pulmonologist. Before my diagnosis in 2016, I bounced…
Indulge me for one minute and think of some of the firsts you’ve experienced. What comes to mind? Is it the first time you tied your shoes? The first time you held your firstborn? The first time you drove a stick shift? If you flawlessly executed that last…
Did you ever play Pac-Man? The bright yellow Pac-Man would wander through the maze, happily munching down the blinking dots. That’s how I feel about my energy levels as a pulmonary fibrosis advocate. I pursue advocacy with a passion fed by all the opportunities that arise — my own…
It’s been awhile since I’ve really felt defeated, but life has a way of reminding us sometimes of how truly vulnerable we are. Dealing with a rare illness like pulmonary fibrosis can complicate things even more. The last two months have been tough for my family and me. We’ve…
Following my diagnosis of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) in January 2017, I knew the disease would diminish my quality of life. For about three years, my IPF progression stair-stepped — that is, I’d remain stable for a period, and then I’d experience a decline in lung function and…
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