Throughout my life with cystic fibrosis, I never thought about the prospect that I would outlive my loved ones. Now that I have attended some of their funerals, the thought of my own mortality has caught up with me.
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Hospice care helped my daughter, Desirée, through her final days.
I began fundraising and raising CF awareness soon after my son, Aidan, was diagnosed as a baby. After years of successful fundraiser walks, Aidan asked me to stop — opening my eyes to the difference between being a mom of someone with CF and being the person who is living with CF.
Raising three kids in daycare often involves runny noses and mystery stains. As a mom with CF, I’ve figured out how to balance our daily lives with keeping me healthy and daycare-germ free.
Dance was my life, but I had to give it up when my health was in decline. I then found a new way to express my creativity through poetry.
Once I started Trikafta®, I became healthy enough to go to culinary school and become a chef.
By learning how to cook diverse cuisines, I improved the quality of my own meals, ate more, and have been able to maintain my weight.
We’re highlighting six creators who are helping raise awareness of cystic fibrosis. By sharing parts of their life with CF on paper or on screen, they’re voicing the variety of ways that people experience the disease.
I was diagnosed late with cystic fibrosis. When I found out I had bronchiectasis on top of that, I was crushed. However, nine years later, my health is as good as it can be, and I’ve learned the value of fighting back.
I had no idea what cystic fibrosis was — or that I had it — until six months of pancreatitis led to a diagnosis.
When I went off to college it was up to me to manage my cystic fibrosis for the first time without help from my family. I felt fine after skipping my medications and decided to stop using my noisy vest because it embarrassed me, and I wanted to make friends at my new school. As a result, I stayed in the hospital for a few weeks and left with a new perspective on life.