William Ryan is an adult with cystic fibrosis and cystic fibrosis-related diabetes. William is from Bayonne, New Jersey, a small peninsula city roughly 20 minutes from New York City. Along with being a columnist, he works in local government helping senior citizens, disabled citizens, and veterans. He was diagnosed with CF in early 1993. He has a rare mutation of CF, mostly affecting his digestive system rather than his respiratory system. William and his wife, Gina, have two dogs, Otis and Ruby. He hopes you’ll enjoy reading his columns as much as Otis and Ruby do.
Sometimes I don’t know where cystic fibrosis (CF) begins and I end. I’ve lived with the ups and downs CF has brought since I was diagnosed just three months after I was born. I recently celebrated my…
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Growing up, I hated my birthday. It brought a wave of attention from everyone I knew and, more importantly, made me think about my mortality. People with cystic fibrosis (CF) are all too aware of death and the…
Talking Heads is one of my all-time favorite bands. One of their most popular songs, “Once in a Lifetime,” has a refrain in its bridge that goes, “Same as it ever was, same as it…
Over the past few weeks, I’ve attempted to focus my thoughts on an area that many of us within the disabled community know all too well: the waiting room. That room is a microcosm for healthcare in the United…
Like others with chronic illness, many of us with cystic fibrosis (CF) have met someone who has recommended something that would “cure” us of our disease. Someone once told me that some kind of tea would clear out…
All symptoms aren’t created equal. They can be visible or invisible and range from manageable to unbearable, even debilitating a person for days on end. With cystic fibrosis (CF), symptoms can last a lifetime and affect far…
It’s the coughing. It’s always going to be the coughing with cystic fibrosis (CF). It makes everyone uncomfortable, whether they admit it or not. Everyone who knows me knows I can have a pretty bad cough that can…
In my nearly 31 years of life, I’ve watched technology evolve at a rapid pace. Millennials like me have watched cellphones, video games, and computers transform from their rudimentary beginnings into the efficient tools we rely on today. As…
At least twice a week, as I’m lying in bed, I can hear the voice of Paulie Walnuts from “The Sopranos” whispering one of his famous quotes in my ear: “A man needs his seven hours. Keeps…
Last weekend, my wife and I went to Manhattan to see comedian Alex Edelman perform his one-man show “Just for Us” on Broadway. The show revolves around how he initially sneaks into a white nationalist…
During the last month, the smoke from Canadian wildfires has made its way into a significant area of the United States, drastically affecting the ability of residents to breathe, particularly those with health conditions. As someone with…
As a former stand-up comedian, I’ve heard jokes about every topic under the sun, from Tinder to kitchen appliances, to every dark and demented aspect of human life. I’ve also made jokes about my battle with cystic…
For years, it felt like Dad and I were polar opposites of each other, despite sharing the same first and last name and some of the same DNA. He’s always been an outgoing and boisterous person, ready to lead…
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