In my previous column, I encouraged those who are celebrating Christmas to gift themselves with the feeling of peace this holiday season. However, you don’t have to be a Christian to welcome peace into your life, and everyone can practice goodwill. If you are living with pulmonary hypertension (PH),…
When I was a child, I wrote in a journal that my favorite part about Christmas was the feeling it created. It’s not just the joy of holiday lights and carols, the peace and awe of midnight Mass, the anticipation and excitement of presents, or the contentment that lingers throughout…
It is said that laughter is the best medicine. My son’s battle with pulmonary hypertension (PH) and post-transplant struggles made me a believer. However, the humor behind the laughter has often been gross, silly, a bit dark, and sometimes a little off-color. I remember the first time Cullen fell…
As Pulmonary Hypertension Awareness Month draws to a close, the complexities of this disease have been exemplified by the sharing of personal battles. Our community has cried out in memory of those who have died to raise awareness of pulmonary hypertension (PH) as a life-threatening condition. We have explained…
Parents sometimes view birthdays, milestones, and even achievements as bittersweet. Witnessing a child mature and grow brings joy, but sentimentality tends to mix with the happiness. Many a parent has wished life would slow down so that they could enjoy the childhood of their offspring just a little longer. I…
No cure exists for pulmonary hypertension (PH). People often ask, “But isn’t transplant a cure?” PH Awareness Month is an opportunity to explain the frustration that those who are battling this disease feel when faced with this question. I don’t deny that since my son’s heart and double-lung…
November is Pulmonary Hypertension Awareness Month. I remember the first November of my son’s diagnosis. My family and I were still in the process of learning about this disease. Awareness to us was explaining to friends and loved ones that my son had a life-threatening, incurable condition. Exposing this…
Happy Halloween! This week, I’m taking you on a journey to a “gross lab.” Yes, that is what it’s called. Four weeks after our son Cullen’s heart and double-lung transplant, we paid our respects to his old organs. Some might consider that morbid, but to us, it was…
Advice is like a bag of Halloween candy. You take it home, dump it out on the table, and sort through it. One pile for the good stuff, another to cherry-pick, and one for what you know you will never eat. As a mom and caregiver, I’ve had my fill…
In last week’s column, I shared how the Make-A-Wish Foundation granted my son Cullen’s prodigious wish to meet President George W. Bush in 2008. To be on the receiving end of this amazing nonprofit organization is extraordinary. The foundation creates adventures that far exceed expectations. To be on the…
In 2008, my 8-year-old son was diagnosed with pulmonary hypertension (PH). Being told that Cullen had an incurable, life-threatening illness was traumatic. It was impossible to imagine that there would be happy days following that news. That year, two wish granters from the Make-A-Wish Foundation visited Cullen at home.
My inner child awakens every fall. As the foliage starts to change into its glorious colors, I go to work decorating my home. And while sipping pumpkin spice latte, I think about what costume I will wear to this year’s party. On Halloween, you will find me on my porch,…
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