Columns

Last in a series. Read part one.  In my previous column, I discussed how I plan for international trips with eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA), a type of ANCA-associated vasculitis (AAV). Planning an international trip takes forethought and an awareness of potential pitfalls. Once you arrive at…

Piglet in the Winnie the Pooh series has a famous line: “It is hard to be brave when you’re only a Very Small Animal.” When I was diagnosed in April 2007 with eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA), formerly known as Churg-Strauss syndrome, it wasn’t…

We all know the children’s book by Dr. Seuss called “Oh, the Places You’ll Go!” After 17 years with ANCA vasculitis, I could write one titled “Oh, the Doctors You’ll See!” Before my journey with ANCA vasculitis, I had two doctors — my primary care physician (PCP)…

First in a two-part series. Before I was diagnosed with eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA), a type of ANCA-associated vasculitis, I had lived overseas, in France, Sweden, and the U.K. I’d also spent several weeks in Haiti doing research and providing training in schools following that country’s devastating…

I seriously did not have time for this. I did not have time to get sick. Not now. Those were my thoughts when I finally received a diagnosis of eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis, or EGPA, during the busy holiday season in late 2015. I had my kids’ holiday…

As a child, I always used to check out travel and cooking books from my local library. I’d daydream about foreign places and exotic foods and couldn’t wait to see the world. Some might say I had my head in the clouds. Soon after graduating from college, I married and…

Depression is a challenging illness to manage. When I have a depressive spell, it feels like I’m stuck in a cold, gray fog with no way out. No matter what I do, I can’t see past the gloom. For the past two weeks, I’ve been lost in it. Dealing…

I’ve had eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA), a type of ANCA vasculitis, for 17 years. After my diagnosis, I had to change my life and reinvent myself. At the same time, I was grieving my life before EGPA and educating myself about my new normal.

Do you remember when you were in school and a field trip was planned? I remember the excitement these trips would bring. The destination wasn’t important. The special lunch, the new clothes, and the thrill of the unknown excited me. My lunch was full of things I normally wouldn’t eat…

I remember the early days of my vasculitis diagnosis, when high dosages of steroids and chemotherapy robbed me of joy. My physical self was suffering to the extent that my mind and spirit broke with it. For several months, I woke up in the morning and had to sit…