All I Want for Christmas Is to Feel Normal
In elementary school, the holiday season was always a time of illness. With cold and flu season being driven, in large part, by Thanksgiving travels and family gatherings, it was inevitable that kids…
Advocacy and Abnormality
— Kristin Entler
Kristin Entler was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at 6 months old, and first came out as LGBT+ several years after her diabetes diagnosis at 12 years old. She currently serves as poetry editor for NELLE, as access coordinator for Open Mouth Literary Center, and lives with her service-dog, Azzie, whose name is short for the Greek god of medicine. Entler can be found on most social media platforms @findmycure. She hopes her column “Advocacy and Abnormality” is a space for inclusion and solidarity for anyone living in a body that is often seen or treated as different.
Featured Post
The constant risk-benefit analysis that accompanies life with CF
I was lucky to grow up with a lake in my backyard. On quiet mornings, the water would lap a steady drumbeat against the seawall. Yet despite being raised next to a body of…
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Here’s My Idea for Better Consumer Access to Prescription Drugs
Imagine this: As an established patient with lifelong illnesses, you walk into any pharmacy, slide an access pass, and walk out with your prescription drug refills in less than five minutes. It didn’t require…
My Return to In-person Events Was a Success
Last week, I went to my first indoor, in-person event since January 2020. Honestly, I’d spent a majority of the time since the COVID-19 pandemic began thinking that my days of attending indoor…
The First Time I Understood the Importance of Solidarity
“I want to get a Popsicle from the ice cream truck!” M’s nutmeg eyes lit up when I asked her what she wanted to do. She was my best friend at the time, and…
A Disappointment Reminds Me of the Systemic Gaps in Healthcare
“Want to go for a ride in the car?” I ask my Australian shepherd and poodle mix, Azzie. It’s been a few months since I last trimmed his fur, so it’s grown out to…
No, the COVID-19 Pandemic Isn’t Over Yet
On the most recent episode of CBS News’ “60 Minutes,” President Joe Biden declared the pandemic over. I wish I could be writing with champagne in hand and firecrackers crackling at a…
How Changes in Routine Can Make Treatment Compliance More Difficult
Every day for countless years now, my routine has been the same. I take a handful of meds with breakfast and dinner, the cocktail of which ebbs and flows, and digestive enzymes with…
What Living With Cystic Fibrosis and Being a Bat Have in Common
“A bat!” my mom announces to my dad and me. I look up at where she’s pointing to see, yes, a winged mammal swooping and diving and cutting back with deadly precision. I’m glad…
Having Cystic Fibrosis Taught Me How to Communicate Boundaries
It’s 2012 and I’m in my second year of community college. My hair is down to my shoulders and I carry a bottle of hand sanitizer attached to my backpack, which gets used by…
I Want to Feel Comfortable Going to the Clinic Again
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, I’ve never met my current pulmonary care provider in person, and I keep putting off my face-to-face appointment. I moved from Alabama to Arkansas for graduate school in…
When Life Forces You to Pause, It’s Best Not to Argue
If I’m being completely honest — and when I started this column, that was one of my initial promises and intentions — I’ve been struggling lately. But complete honesty doesn’t automatically equal complete…
Turning Problems Into Solutions Requires Energy
A few weeks ago, I started writing about the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) director’s ableist comment, in which she claimed that masks are the “scarlet letter” of the pandemic.
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