15 Things to Consider When Living With a Port
In the fourth installment of our port series, I’ll share my personal tips, essential considerations, and a few complications to watch out for when living with a port. First: a few personal tips from me Second: port access is different depending on your location In our previous blog, I broke down feeling empowered by knowing […]
How To Access Your Implanted Port
In the third installment of our port series, I will break down the most crucial part of having a port: correctly flushing and accessing your implanted port by yourself. I believe patients should be empowered to learn how to access their ports if they are in a mental and/or physical state to do so. Special […]
What Happens After Port Surgery?
In the second part of our port series, I am breaking down a little bit of what happens after port surgery. A critical part of having a port is caring for the incision site after placement. My experience with getting a port implanted was far more painful than getting a PICC, primarily due to the […]
What is an Implanted Port? A Closer Look
Over the last ten years, I’ve had three PICCs, an implanted port, and numerous peripheral IVs for various infusion therapies. One of the critical areas that allowed for more freedom in my day-to-day life of living with vascular access was transitioning from a PICC to an implanted chest port. Like me, many patients needing long-term […]
Knowing When To Take a Step Back When Living With Chronic Illness
When I tell people I’m sick, they usually think I mean something short-term and contagious like the flu or a stomach bug. If I say I have a chronic illness, they picture conditions like IBS, a bad back, or chronic migraines. The actual reality is all this and more. Yes, and. “I’m sick” I have IBS-like […]
It’s Here: The Chronic Illness Revolution
As 2022 races out of the gate, I am feeling hopeful. For many reasons – some of which purposefully self-fabricated as I described on New Year’s – but one reason looms large in my mind: the chronic illness revolution is here. I feel like my entire life has been building to this moment. As a child, my […]
Real people sick
My chronic illness friends use the term “real people sick” to refer to illnesses that could affect anyone — regardless of health status — such as a cold, flu, or stomach bug. Often it’s in moments of realization that the illness we experience daily can be so much worse comparatively, like when the whole office […]
Sick at School
Most kids stay home from school when they feel sick. It’s comforting to not have to be around others, to let your brain unplug from the rigor of classes, and to just care for yourself — whatever that means in each moment. For those of us with chronic illnesses, we have to find a way […]
Be inspired: Life as an Athlete, Runner & Type-1 Diabetic
Photo by Erika Young Every month, we feature Friends in the Fight™ from our Mighty Well community who have stories on how they turned their sickness into strength. We hope that by reading their stories, you will be inspired to keep going and keep fighting despite the many challenges. This month, we bring you Erika […]
An Open Letter to The Doctor Who Ignored My Illness
Dear Doctor, I do not want you to feel singled out by this letter. I am actually hoping you learn something from it and one less person will have to go through the torture I went through just to receive a diagnosis. You were only one of seven doctors who told me I did not have […]
Living With Turner Syndrome
Having two very short parents my short stature wasn’t exactly a surprise. I was born at 17” long (a size now mandated by law to require additional testing) and grew up just tall enough to fly under the radar. It wasn’t until I was about six years old when my parents noticed that while my […]
My Inspiration To Become An RRT
Most people find their inspiration in a parent, an older sibling, or even someone famous. For me, it was my younger sister – a beautiful person inside and out.