Does it get any easier?

Those of you who have been following my story know that being compliant with breathing treatments has been a huge struggle for me. Breathing treatments were a source of bitterness and frustration beginning in high school that has continued through my young adulthood. When I got the opportunity to go off to college and gain my independence, I chose to use that freedom to skip out on most of my breathing treatments. If you haven't read about the consequences of those decisions, you can do so here.

After the wake-up call that was the lung transplant scare, I decided that it was time to turn my life and my health care around. I had every intention to do so, but I still struggled with staying compliant with my treatments. My lung function has fluctuated since that 59% in 2010. I have made the goal to be 100% compliant multiple times now, and I wish I could say they were extremely successful. The problem is that I stick to it for a little while, and I always fizzle after awhile.

I vowed that 2014 would be different, and so far, it has been! My new year's resolution was to be 100% compliant this year. It has now officially been my longest stretch of compliance since high school! I'm on day 118, and I am so proud of myself. Going back to the title of this post, it really does get easier. I have gotten into the habit of doing my treatments. I even throw in extra treatments when I'm not feeling well which is a huge deal when it comes to me. There was a time when I would have never even considered doing an extra treatment voluntarily!

Even though it is getting easier to stick to my treatment compliance, I still dream of the day when those of us fighting cystic fibrosis don't have to deal with breathing treatments and other medications daily. Help me make that dream a reality and add tomorrows for cystic fibrosis patients! Just click on the link, and make a contribution. I cannot stress enough that there is no amount that is too small! Every little bit adds up! Please help!

I have a lot of work to do before I reach my goal of $8,000. I can only do it if you help! Thank you all for your continued love and support!

My New Role

Today was our Great Strides 101 meeting where we just met and talked about fundraising ideas to get ready for the walk. I love hearing how other people in Knoxville are working so hard to help fund a cure for their children. Also, during the meeting, I had some really deep thoughts about what my role in the CF community is now that I am a 26 year old adult living with cystic fibrosis.

I have already realized how important it is for me to stay compliant for not only myself, but for my husband. I owe it to him to stick around as long as I can and to stay the healthiest I can, and I owe it to myself to make my quality of life as good as possible. I don't want to be sick all the time and not be able to enjoy my life. With all of that being said, I have another role that I never really thought about. At the meeting, were parents of kids who are much younger than me and are battling cystic fibrosis. I owe it to those kids to set a good example. I have been telling my story so that others might see but also for myself. It's been a great way to get my feelings out in writing, but I think it is so important for kids living with CF to see my story so that they won't make the same mistakes I made. I wasted so much of my life by pretending I didn't have this horrible, challenging disease, and if I can keep just one person from doing that same thing, then I have done my job.

It sounds like I'm putting a lot of pressure on myself, but I think that keeping those kids in mind, will make it easier for me to keep up with my breathing treatments and will help drive all of my other health decisions that I make. I'm 26 years old now, and it is past time for me to step it up and help others in the CF community. I know I am up for the challenge! :)

My other role is to raise money and awareness for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. So, if you haven't already made a contribution to my Great Strides team, please consider doing so. There is no such thing as too little, because every little bit adds up. There is so much hope for my future, but the hope is even greater for the future of all the children who are fighting cystic fibrosis. There is a very real chance that they won't have to go through some of the things I have gone through, and that is a beautiful thing! Please make that hope a reality for all of us fighting CF! It's so very easy to do. Just click on the link below and click "Donate to me."

Thank you all for your continued love and support! I appreciate it more than you could possibly know!

http://cffh.convio.net/goto/kaylaskrusaders

30,000

Wow! My blog has now been viewed over 30,000 times! What??? I'm honored that you all feel that what I have to say is interesting enough to read. I started writing this blog as a way to let my feelings about living with cystic fibrosis out in the open instead of holding it in. I also was looking for a way to connect with others dealing with the same things I am and a way to share my daily life with CF with my family and friends. I never knew that others would take the time to see what I have going on in my life. :)

In case anyone is keeping track, I am now on day 68 of being 100% compliant (victorious)! I have to say that I am pretty proud of myself for sticking with my breathing treatments even with work being completely crazy lately. There have been days that I have woken up way later than intended forcing me to go to work with my hair still wet, but I still got my morning breathing treatments in.

In Great Strides news, I have now raised $520, and my team is up to $745! I still have a long ways to go to meet my goal of $8,000, so please consider helping me out. Any amount is greatly appreciated! All you have to do is click on the picture below.

Exciting Times

There are so many exciting things going on right now, so I felt the need to share with you all. :)

First of all, Eldon and I are in the process of buying our first home, and we couldn't be more excited about it! The house is absolutely beautiful, and we can't wait to be able to move in. It has been a terrifying and thrilling experience. It feels like such an adult thing to do when I still have troubles believing I am actually an adult even though I'm 26 years old. I am definitely ready for this next, huge step in my life.

Next, I found out today that my blog was named one of the Top 35 cystic fibrosis blogs! I am so grateful that people even read my blog let alone recognize it as a top blog to read about CF. If you would like to check out some of the other great blogs out there about living with cystic fibrosis, just click here. There are some wonderful blogs listed in the top 35! I am an avid reader of most of them. :)

In other news, I am once again the chairperson for the Knoxville Great Strides walk, and we have been really working hard to get things lined up and planned for the big day! I'm so excited about what the walk will look like this year! There are some great things already planned, and I'm sure our committee is going to come up with more amazing ideas. 

Speaking of Great Strides, I have now raised $120! But I have so much more to go in order to reach my goal of $8,000. If you are interested in making a donation, just click on the picture below, and click "donate to me." It's incredibly easy to do, and there is no such thing as too little! Every little bit of money adds up, and it helps fund research to find a cure for cystic fibrosis. 

Finally, I am once again selling Kayla's Krusaders t-shirts to help my fundraising. They are $20 each, but the more shirts I order, the cheaper they actually are. Any money that is left over after ordering the shirts will go straight to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. If you would like a shirt, let me know

March!

Somehow it is already March! I have no clue how that happened! Time is flying by, and the Great Strides walk is quickly approaching. The walk is May 10 this year, and I have set a hefty goal of $8,000 for my team. I definitely think we can make it to that total, but we have a ton of work to do.

For those of you who may not be familiar with Great Strides, it is an annual fund raiser for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. CFF is one of the most important tools in funding a cure for cystic fibrosis. The foundation is the one behind the controller drug, Kalydeco. This medicine is a game changer for some of those living with cystic fibrosis. It has opened doors for the rest of us as well with new clinical trials going on that, if successful, would benefit about 90% of us with the disease! (This includes me!)

Please consider making a donation to help us reach a cure. Help us add tomorrows for not only me but for the 30,000 Americans and 70,000 people worldwide living with this disease. Already, there have been leaps and bounds made in the life expectancy for cystic fibrosis patients, but it would be even better if our life expectancy was no different than anyone else.

Don't worry about your donation being too small! There is no such thing! Every little bit of money makes a huge difference, because it all adds up. If you would like to make a contribution, just click on the link below and follow the instructions. It's very easy, and it's all tax deductible! :)

Trip to Vandy

Last Wednesday was my clinic appointment. As most of you all know, I have been working very hard to keep up with my treatments. My resolution for this year was to be 100% compliant (or as one of my friends says, 100% victorious) in 2014. So far, so good! I'm now up to day 54! I've also been doing some weight lifting to gain some muscle mass so that I can have some weight that is more difficult to lose.

My hard work is paying off so far. I gained 3.6 pounds, and my lung function was exactly the same as it was 3 months ago! That might not sound so great, but I'm counting it as a huge victory after last year. As many of you know, last December, I came down with the flu, and it was really awful. I lost about 10 pounds, and my lung function dropped about 14%. The fact that I have maintained my lung function through this winter is a wonderful thing! Now that I have made it through the most difficult time to stay healthy, I can concentrate on trying to improve my lung function. Long story short, I'm thrilled with my results from Wednesday, and I am hopeful for what's to come the rest of this year.

In other news, my husband and I are in the process of buying our first house! We are so excited and nervous about the whole process, but it has been a long time coming. We are ready to have our own place that we can put work into and make perfect for us. I also had my third evaluation of the year a couple of weeks ago! That means I only have one more to go. I can't believe how quickly this year has gone!

Finally, it's that time of year again... The Great Strides walk is quickly approaching, so be on the lookout for my fundraising to start in the very near future. I've got a lot of work to do, and we have some hefty goals for the walk.

Happy Sunday! I hope you all have a wonderful week!

Back to School

Well, after two weeks of winter break followed by three snow/cold weather days, I am finally going back to work tomorrow. I don't really know how I feel about it, because I do love my job and have missed my kids. At the same time, I have really gotten used to being around the house all the time and actually having time to get household chores finished. It's been a nice relaxing break that I have thoroughly enjoyed! Throughout the break, I kept thinking back to how sick I was this time last year and how that really ruined everything I tried to do. I felt so weak and tired from the beginning of December through the end of January. I'm so thankful for being healthy this year. I just hope it continues.

Speaking of staying healthy, I'm doing everything in my power to do so. It's January 8th today, and I have been compliant all 8 days of 2014! I know it seems small, but you start somewhere. I'm on the right track. The break has been bad for my gym routine, but that will be back on track now that I'm going back to work and back to the real world.

So here's to the 2nd semester of my 2nd year of teaching! I hope it goes smoothly. :)