Courage to Care – Christie Patient

Five years ago, every change in my health status or that of a loved one had the potential to become a catastrophe in my mind. Learning that a loved one was unwell used to send me into a weeks-long obsessive panic. I would get freaked out by what…

Even in normal times, holidays can be a huge vector for illness. Viruses that thrive during the colder months, such as influenza, can cause serious problems for those with compromised immune systems or poor pulmonary function. This year, with the novel coronavirus, the…

Earlier this month, I wrote a column about mental health and therapy options available during the pandemic. Hopefully, I made a strong case for giving therapy a try if you have been hesitant. I will always encourage people to try it out, but I…

Oct. 10 was World Mental Health Day. I am a bit late to the party, but with a twice-monthly publishing schedule, this is my first opportunity to share a column inspired by Mental Health Day. In previous columns, I have discussed my mental health struggles and how I use…

The medical facility at the military base where my husband is stationed is enormous. Almost every specialty you can imagine is under one roof. The first time I had an appointment there, the scheduler instructed me over the phone to visit the “Jay Team”…

The University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), where my mom, Holly, received her double-lung transplant, has gone to great lengths to provide information at every turn on the transplant journey. The infamous blue binder contains everything you need to know about post-transplant life. UCSF’s approach to transplant…

Receiving a pulmonary fibrosis diagnosis is a life-changing event. Accepting this new reality may initially seem impossible. There are so many new things to consider that never were on the radar before they suddenly became important. In addition to finding your footing in the present, you must…

I’ve been going through a second (Third? Fourth?) wave of grief for all things pre-pandemic. I am still mourning things that once brought me joy but are currently off-limits — rugby, concerts, being a wedding photographer, and date night out, to name a few things. I’m still hurting…

Two weeks after my mom, Holly’s, double-lung transplant, she was discharged from the hospital. Although she was weak, she was walking, talking, eating, and, best of all, breathing on her own. After three months on a ventilator, the transplant brought her back to life.

The correct way to talk about lung transplantation in relation to pulmonary fibrosis is to call it a “treatment.” I learned this early in my caregiving journey through a combination of education from my mom’s medical team and a few not-so-gentle comments from strangers when, in…

As I sat in my mom’s hospital room on the day of her long-awaited discharge, I felt like we were bringing home a very fragile adult baby. Her body had been through a series of assaults starting with an acute exacerbation of IPF and ending with a double-lung transplant.

There is a phenomenon in psychology known as “lost possible selves.” Possible selves are the heroes in our life story that we create within our inner narrative. They are made from goals and wants, fears and risks. They represent the infinite possibilities, expectations, and desires for our lives.