Columns

I never really dreamed about my future until after my double-lung transplant in 2017. My friends who are also transplant recipients inspire me to dream bigger as we navigate this new world together. Although it’s been over four years, dreaming can still feel risky. But the more time that passes,…

Second in a series. Read part one.  In my previous column, I described the lead-up to my diabetes diagnosis. Let’s resume where we left off: in an isolated room at CarolinaEast Medical Center’s emergency department (ED) in New Bern, North Carolina. Upon my admission for an extremely high blood…

Growing up, my older sister and I were tasked with calling relatives when our younger sister was hospitalized due to a cystic fibrosis exacerbation. We relayed the news while my mother hurried around, packing bags and getting ready for the inpatient stay. I assume it was helpful — one less…

First in a two-part series. Turns out a spoonful of sugar did not help the medicine go down. Instead, it aggravated my steroid-induced diabetes. Allow me to provide a little background. Based on issues I had throughout childhood, such as food sensitivities and digestive issues, my pediatric team suspected…

I’ll confess an omission. I waited two months before telling the publishing company I worked for that I’d been struck deaf. The thought of losing my journalism career paralyzed me. I assumed my disability disqualified me from my dream career. How can a deaf person conduct interviews? I had…

I often wonder if my parents realize how much I appreciate them. Last week, they showed up for yet another medical procedure. Those who call me a “hero” overlook my parents, who are always by my side. My parents are my caregivers. They live five hours away, but will…

I recently got together with a group of friends, and in the middle of our conversation, one confided that she was excited to start therapy soon. Everyone joined in the excitement and congratulated her. Those also in counseling, which turned out to be most of the group, discussed their thoughts…

Every time I tune into the local or national news, I see another story claiming that everyone will either get or be exposed to COVID-19. And over the holiday break, I learned that five friends — who all had been taking precautions seriously — have contracted…

At the start of each new year, I try not to have regrets from the previous year, especially as related to my cystic fibrosis. “Forget about that handful of medication you missed,” I’ll tell myself. Or, “So what if you didn’t stick to your diet!” Then, I’ll watch an old…

In a previous column, I explained that I was diagnosed with mycobacterium abscessus — one of the deadliest infections for cystic fibrosis (CF) patients — in my junior year of college, and how that was one of the many times that my chronic illness affected my education. I was…