Columns

An unfortunate reality of living with a chronic illness is that most people will never fully understand your experience. They can’t understand the complexity of living with a chronic lung disease or other debilitating chronic illnesses. Even when someone else has the same diagnosis as you, their experience likely…

An integral part of my recovery from single-lung transplant surgery is the close monitoring of lab results. My case is even more interesting because I have autoimmune hemolytic anemia (AIHA). Simply explained, my red and white blood cells and platelets are significantly lower than those of someone who…

Each person’s experience of having a sick parent is different. For me, it was relatively easy until my mom’s condition became a crisis. From the start, I refused to research any terms that I’d overheard. I didn’t want to know what Dr. Google had to say about “interstitial lung…

Being diagnosed with any type of life-threatening illness will inevitably change a person. This is especially true when there is no link (i.e., genetic predisposition) or reason to think that anything could be wrong, or when the illness is unlikely to target someone due to their age. That was my…

It is hard to admit that my chronic lung disease is having more than a physical impact on me. Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a relentless, cruel disease and sometimes it causes me to behave in ways that leave me feeling ashamed. This disease sets me apart from most of…

I named my column “Courage to Care” because I wanted to convey that it takes a lot of guts to be a caregiver. The moment I decided to take responsibility for protecting my mother, I became a courage-making machine. I have mustered courage all day, every day, to face…

I vividly remember being told I had something called idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). That day and conversation will be forever etched in my mind. I looked at the specialist revealing the news and said to him, “OK. What’s that?” Like most people, I’d never heard of this disease before…

Another Mother’s Day is upon us. As each year comes round, it seems that I think about my mother more and more. My mom passed away on June 27, 2007. She suffered a fractured pelvis from which she didn’t fully recover. Afterward, she lived with ongoing pain and contracted frequent…

It’s reasonable to assume that dizziness would be a common symptom of having poorly functioning lungs due to chronic underoxygenation. However, now that my lungs are weak thanks to idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), the causes of my particular symptoms are more complicated. I have had occasional bouts of dizziness in…

It started with a cough that just wouldn’t go away. Many of you probably know what that cough feels like. I don’t. I do, however, know what it feels like to learn that harsh, persistent cough isn’t just allergies or a lingering cold. I know what it feels like to…