I live with both idiopathic pulmonary hypertension (PH) and scleroderma, and earlier this month, I was taught a lesson in how quickly things can unravel when you’re with people who are well-versed in one condition while you’re dealing with symptoms of the other. I traveled to Washington, D.C., to…
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Tomorrow, a surgery is taking place, but for once, I won’t be the person counting back from 10 as they’re put to sleep. Instead, it’s my mother who will be undergoing a minor procedure. Fortunately, it’s low risk, but we’ve still had a lot to consider regarding her recovery, which…
Living with a rare disease like pulmonary hypertension (PH) brings sudden, overwhelming changes. If you or a loved one recently received a diagnosis, you likely know the intense emotional weight that follows. Fear, stress, and anxiety frequently accompany the physical symptoms in those early days. Because May…
Recent news from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics confirmed what many of us have likely felt while grocery shopping — prices are going up. The Consumer Price Index rose 3.8% year-over-year in April, and is higher than the 3.3% measurement in March. As inflation continues to climb,…
I was recently in a pediatrician’s office when I noticed a sticker for Camp Bon Coeur, or “Camp Good Heart.” The camp is in my home state of Louisiana and serves children with heart conditions. It made me think about children with pulmonary hypertension (PH) who can benefit from…
When I was 12, an infection related to my central line landed me in the hospital. I was being treated at a large teaching center and clearly remember waking up one day to find more than 10 people in the room staring at me and discussing my case. This was…
You wake up exhausted. A long night of chest pains and other pulmonary hypertension (PH) symptoms meant you barely got any sleep. Work and daily tasks take monumental effort, or they just don’t happen at all. By the afternoon, frustration sets in. You feel behind and worry about what…
Audiences are flocking to movie theaters this spring to see “Project Hail Mary.” Readers, myself included, gobbled up Taylor Jenkins Reid’s latest novel, “Atmosphere” — a tale of astronauts in love. People were glued to their televisions as NASA launched the Artemis II mission into space. Traveling to…
Growing up with a rare, chronic illness can draw a lot of attention. Specifically, it can raise a lot of questions, especially from other kids. I can’t remember an age when I wasn’t required to explain my health situation to others, particularly my peers. Early on, absences from school would…
Three months after giving birth to my second son in 2023, my life changed in a way I never could have imagined. I am a mom of three boys. Being a “boy mom” has always been the center of my world — busy days, loud laughter, endless energy, and the…
Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a serious and life-threatening disease. There was a time when the hardest part was simply staying alive, getting through each day, and not knowing what came next. But as my health has improved, the challenges have changed. The hardest part for me now isn’t survival.
Driving to a doctor’s appointment recently, I pulled up to a red light, where a bumper sticker on a nearby car caught my eye. Framed by purple hearts, it read: “A high pain level day is also a low stupidity, low tolerance day.” As someone managing chronic pain due…
