It is the week before Thanksgiving, and I have so many thoughts and emotions. It was this week in 2016 that my life completely changed. It was Thursday, Nov. 17, 2016. I had two days left of work before I had a week off for Thanksgiving break. I was tired, and my body was swollen.…

Most people don’t have to worry about infections when they have dental work done. I, on the other hand, have had to be pre-medicated with antibiotics before any dental procedure, including regular dental cleanings. Because of my congenital heart disease, I am at a higher risk of having bacteria enter my bloodstream and causing an…

“Several of you are using your sick days faster than you’re earning them. Mrs. So and So didn’t take any sick days during her cancer treatment, and that’s the kind of teacher we expect here. So, if you’re one of the teachers who have used all your sick days already or use them as soon…

In 2006, my sister Kim and her family moved to Utah after she gave birth to my niece Trinity. I was in my mid-20s and had been diagnosed with Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension that year, so I was still adjusting to the diagnosis and wrapping my head around all the changes happening in my life. My…

An arterial blood draw is done to measure the levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide in your blood. I’m sure I’ve had arterial blood draws in the past, but I must’ve been unconscious during them or maybe they did it through a catheter, because I don’t remember any of them. So, when I had to…

Some people sleep walk. Some people sleep talk. I talk and see things that are not there. Mostly spiders. Lots and lots of black spiders of all sizes. Sleeping peacefully one second, the next I open my eyes and see a huge black spider hanging from the bedroom ceiling, floating quickly down its invisible thread,…

You’re too young to be sick. You don’t look sick to me. You barely walked and you’re out of breath. Maybe you need to exercise or lose some weight. You’re too young to be handicapped. I don’t see anything wrong with you. You don’t need to park in a handicap spot. Stop being lazy. Use…

When I was first listed in July, data on OPTN showed there were 38 people in the United States waiting for a heart/lung transplant. Today, that number has changed to 33 people. What happened to the five people? Did they receive transplants? Did they remove themselves from the waiting list? Did they die while waiting?…

Test

It started when I was a teenager. I would be sitting or standing, not really doing anything, when I would feel my heart start to beat really fast. Sometimes it would be super fast and super hard, as though it were going to pound through my chest. It would last seconds. By the time I…