Columns

How my healing process has helped me redefine hope

H.O.P.E.: Hold on, pain ends. This acronym came across my phone screen as I was scrolling through social media last month. Despite my physical pain and emotional discomfort, I laughed and thought to myself, “Whoever came up with this acronym has clearly never dealt with chronic pain. Pain doesn’t…

Life lessons from the dying: How to embrace love and purpose

“To the well-organized mind, death is but the next great adventure.”― J.K. Rowling, in “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone“ Working as a hospice nurse before my diagnosis of pulmonary hypertension (PH), I was at the bedside of many people in their final days and hours. It…

Navigating the struggle of food insecurity with a rare disease

I recently joined a rare disease advocacy meeting on Zoom, where the subject of the rising cost of living and the difficulty of affording groceries and prescriptions and medical care sparked a lively discussion. During the call, eight people said they rely on food assistance from their state or county,…

How hosting Thanksgiving dinner is similar to managing PH

Have you ever considered the surprising similarities between managing pulmonary hypertension (PH) and hosting Thanksgiving dinner? Like hosts who plan and prepare an elaborate holiday feast for their guests, PH patients must plan and coordinate the many aspects of their care. Both require a constant juggling act. Preparing Thanksgiving…

Tough conversations about PAH can become defining moments

With age and time, some life events have become diminished, while others I can recall with perfect clarity. Many of my memories from the days after my husband, Tim, was diagnosed with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) will always remain vivid in my mind and serve as defining moments for…