MY DAUGHTER'S MEDICAL MIRACLE
Last year, my daughter graduated from college. She recently started her first full-time job and is apartment hunting with her best friend.
These milestones, bittersweet for most parents, feel monumental to me. As my daughter steps into her future, our family of three stands on the precipice of a life we didn’t dare contemplate before now.
Until recently, I still believed I would outlive her.
My daughter was almost 2 when we learned she had cystic fibrosis, a progressive genetic disease that affects breathing, digestion and other functions while slowly destroying the lungs. She had been dropping weight for months, her once plump arms reduced to sticks, her belly distended. A sweat test detected CF, which a blood test confirmed.
“The good news is the life expectancy for someone with CF is almost 31 years,” her pediatrician said.
My husband and I sat in stunned silence. I was 31 at the time...read more
