Latest Posts
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Thirty Years of Wondering and Wandering in the Desert
I’ve been suffering from Mast Cell Activation Syndrome since last century, which sounds hyperbolic, but it’s true. For decades, very little was known about it, and it didn’t even receive an International Classification of Diseases code until 2022—the year I… Continue reading
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Cheers to Cholorrhea
“You got cholera!” I squealed to my friend after auditions for our college play. Thanks for reading! Subscribe for free to receive “No I don’t,” she scoffed, and then explained: Cholera is a nasty, gut-wrenching illness that most characters in… Continue reading
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Hanging On to Letting Go
How forgiveness filled me with joy before a laughable reaction. May 2026: My white blood cell count is low–again–but I know better than to think it’s leukemia, because seven years ago it was low and I ended up quarantined before… Continue reading
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The Prayer Warrior’s Passing
Ten years ago today, my mother went home to Jesus, ensconced in her family’s songs of praise. Four years ago this week, I bravely opened the boxes I’d been avoiding for six years. Inside one opaque plastic tub, tucked next… Continue reading
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It’s Your Birthday Lisa. God Blessed You This Way
For me, birthdays come with a side of flare-ups and a sprinkle of grief. This year, I realized I wasn’t just emotional—I was reliving a decade-old goodbye, one airport layover at a time. Continue reading
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It’s Your Birthday Alma
Thirty-some years ago, my mother gifted me an author’s autobiography with the inscription: “To my author-daughter.” For the last three years, I’ve been plugging away at a book that pairs my medical anecdotes with her prayerful antidotes. And this year—on… Continue reading
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My Medical Mystery Tour: A Fictionary of Chronic Illness
Muddling through a 30 year Medical Mystery Tour means learning a whole new language — full of fake words with definitions your body knows all too well. a•poth•e•scary/ə-ˈpä-thə-ˌsker-ē/ noun(of chronic illness): your nightstand turned medieval potion shop — where the… Continue reading
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Mast Cells and Bone Health: Insights from My Experience
My bone density decreased 5% in one year—the average is 0.5%-1%. My doctor was concerned, I was broken—dumbfounded. A year ago, my baseline DEXA Scan was concerning and parathyroid numbers had been high, not horrifically high, but high enough for… Continue reading
