From Fear to Fighter - Brandi Lewis

In 2019, I gave a TEDx talk on relationships with chronically ill patients, titled “What your sick friends and family really need most from you.” Using the correlation of food, I provided what…

There was a brief period when my parents and I counted how many times I was poked with a needle and how many medications I took each day. On my way to appointments…

When you are diagnosed with a chronic illness, no one hands you a manual telling you how you’ll feel. There is no explanation about the emotional journey you will embark upon. In…

When I heard the words “you’ve been diagnosed with aplastic anemia and paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria” (PNH), my body quickly began working. My mind, however, stayed in a state of confusion. The…

It’s so easy to sit scared and frustrated when diagnosed with illnesses like mine, aplastic anemia and paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH). Together they brought back and heightened my sense of fear.

One night as I was lying in a hospital bed, across the hall was another patient whose young son was running through the hallways. For some reason, the doors to both of our rooms…

As fatigue took hold of my body, I’d lie in bed and think how lazy I was for not getting up to start the day. Early in my health battle, I had trouble being…

Note: This column describes the author’s own experiences with anti-thymocyte globulin and Soliris. Not everyone will have the same response to treatment. Consult your doctor before starting or stopping a therapy. When you were…

I never knew what being a caregiver meant until I unexpectedly had to have them in my own life. To use a metaphor of a video game to describe it, imagine that you…

When I was diagnosed with aplastic anemia and paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH), one of my main questions was, how do we cure my blood disorders? In the beginning, I thought I…