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Hello from the UK
Good Morning all (it’s 11.30am here in the UK),
I’m not sure if some of you may remember me. I posted quite regularly on here a few years ago, I think the last time was in the early days of the Covid pandemic in 2020 in fact. I originally found this forum through Charlene’s incredible blog posts of living with IPF at a young age, and have just found myself falling down a rabbit hole of inspiration again from her incredible writing.
For those I haven’t met, my connection to IPF is that my Father was diagnosied in 2015 at 59 years old, and he sadly passed away just two years later in June 2017. I assisted my Mum with his care at home, and at the same time, conducted research into the psychological impact of IPF on patients and carers as part of my Masters degree. I have since gone on to retrain as a Diagnostic Radiographer, and am now working in MRI with a hope to move into research once again with the innovative techniques they are conducting in lung capacity testing within MRI.
It’s been nearly six years since my Father passed away, the trauma of what I personally witnessed with the symptoms of his disease is something I still have to deal with. From a very honest point of view, my mental health has suffered tremendously with the grief and is something I still have to take a lot of energy to deal with. Sadly, in this time, IPF still feels far behind where it should be regarding research, funding and general awareness here in the UK, though this has been slowly progressing thanks to some wonderful charities and advocates.
I hope to become more active again here on the forums, so I look forward to reading all your posts and becoming involved again within the PF community.
Wishing you all the very best,
Katie
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4 Replies
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Welcome back Katie and thanks for sharing that story. I was also diagnosed at age 59 in January 2017.
Sam …
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You are a good person, Katie. Six years after your loss and after a slight break (very understandable break) you’re back plugging away. I like your profile background picture. I train border collies in sheep herding for a hobby, one I am grateful I can still do, although, no more high-altitude sheep dog trials. Your picture reminds me of prime UK sheep country (aka border collie country).
I was diagnosed at 59 (2020) as a third generation IPF’r. Your perseverance is admirable. Your dad must have been an incredible person. You and your mother as well. IPF can be extremely tough on family members. Thank you for caring.
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Hi Katie,
I am also in the UK and was diagnosed in 2021.
Would you be interested to join me in the APF, or are you already involved?
Kind regards
Jeff
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GO GIRL GO! Get crackin and find a cure for all of us. chuck
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