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Learn how Rachel Kinney fits studying for a computer science major, an active social calendar and daily cystic fibrosis treatments into her life.

Our next “Living Today” video features Jordan Scott, 22, whose biggest challenge involves gaining weight. But through her love of studying nutrition, she's been able to overcome her fear of the inevitable: a feeding tube.

When I decided to study abroad in 1974, I also decided that I would not allow CF to stop me from living my life to the fullest.

My oldest son, Nathan, was 18 years old when he was finally diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. While we both had been waiting a long time to get an answer to what had been plaguing him, I'd been hoping and praying that he'd escape the CF sentence. The diagnosis, however, did not come as a surprise because exactly 35 days earlier, my younger son, Caleb, at 14 years, had already been diagnosed with CF.

Looking back at my freshman year, I realize that putting college before my CF wasn't the first thing I had all wrong. 

I had all the classic symptoms of cystic fibrosis, but neither I nor my doctors ever considered them in their totality. The symptoms were treated like separate problems -- asthma, nasal polyps, digestive problems -- until one specialist noticed a tell-tale sign that brought about my clarifying diagnosis.

Finding a Balance Between CF and High School