Lara, 33, resides in Vermont (for now) as a wild, adventure enthusiast who holds a master’s degree in mental health counseling. She writes about living out loud and develops educational programs to restore hope to those in need. Thanks to her double-lung transplant in 2017 due to cystic fibrosis, you can now find Lara traveling on the regular, exploring the glorious outdoors, and belly laughing with her loves. She’s passionate about connecting with like-minded people, so join her at www.laragovendo.com and on social media (“Lungs4Lovey”) while she flies by the seat of her (no) pants.Knowing my life expectancy due to cystic fibrosis (CF) used to play tricks on my mind. Who am I kidding? It still does sometimes. For the first several years of my life, CF was known as a childhood disease because many people didn’t live into adulthood. With…
The pain scale has never made sense to me. It’s probably because I can’t remember a time when I haven’t been in pain. For all the different types I’ve experienced, none are evident in my appearance or demeanor. This adds to the complexities of my life with chronic pain. Throughout…
Grief doesn’t respect timing or social etiquette. It typically hits me at the worst times, when it’s inconvenient to have sweat trickling from my eyes. As I reflect on the complex changes that happened during my serious sick days before my double-lung transplant, and now five years later,…
As I prepare to celebrate five years with my new lungs, I’m experiencing a wide range of emotions. My double-lung transplant has allowed me to do so many things I never dreamed I’d be able to do, which brings excitement, gratitude, and hope for the future. My five-year…
When I started evaluation for my double-lung transplant in spring 2015, I didn’t have any friends in the cystic fibrosis community. As I took the brave step to join Facebook groups to make connections and learn more about transplant, my eyes were opened to a whole new world. There…
I spent the majority of my life trying to hide my disability, so celebrating Disability Pride Month is a bit ironic for me. Who knew that my journey with cystic fibrosis (CF) and my four years since my double-lung transplant would be something I’d want to revel in,…
I used to think my medical trauma was normal. Doesn’t everyone with chronic illness go through traumatic experiences and not talk about them? When therapists helped me understand that I don’t need to have fought in a war to have post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), my perspective changed. It turns out…
Living with chronic illness is often a lonely road. Born with cystic fibrosis (CF), I’ve often struggled with isolation, feeling alone, and living a different lifestyle from most people. Before joining my disease community, I thought I was the only one. Thankfully, I’ve developed skills for coping with…
Mental health struggles often co-occur with chronic illnesses. This was true for me while living with cystic fibrosis, and still is, four years after my double-lung transplant. I’ve struggled with anxiety and depression my whole life, and in recent years, I’ve dealt with post-traumatic stress. Awareness is helpful,…
My mom has always said that “in adversity there is blessing.” For Cystic Fibrosis Awareness Month I wanted to share the golden nuggets of wisdom I’ve been blessed to learn while living with cystic fibrosis (CF). Even though it’s been four years since I had a double-lung…
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