UVA Post Bacc Pre Med Program

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One Patient's Perspective

I had the honor of giving a talk at the UCI Summer PreMed program that I attended last summer.  Check out my speech! One Patient’s Perspective: My Journey Through the Ups and Downs of Chronic Illness and What I’ve Learned Along The Way When I say the words “chronic illness” what are some things that come to your mind?  What you probably didn’t picture is someone like me.  At first glance, I don’t look sick.  Actually, even after having a conversation with me, you probably still wouldn’t conclude that I am chronically ill. I do a very good job at hiding my illness from the world.  And maybe that is one of the reasons why society often doesn’t know how to treat those of us living with a chronic illness, because of how hard we work to hide our suffering.   There is a lot of stigma surrounding chronic and invisible illnesses, but that is just because we, the patients, often have no voice. If you couldn't already tell, I am not a typical ...
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My 1 Year POTS-Versary!!

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*Before you read this post, please go read this post POTS In The Beginning! if you want to hear my perspective right after I was diagnosed! Anyway... I hope you enjoy and learn something new!* Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) is a form of dysautonomia. Dysautonomia is another name for autonomic dysfunction . The term autonomic dysfunction means that a part of the autonomic nervous system doesn't work right. Your ANS is the part of your nervous system that controls involuntary and unconscious behaviors. Things like heart rate, digestion, temperature regulation, pupillary response, sweating, and the fight or flight response are all things controlled by your autonomic nervous system. Since I have a form of autonomic dysfunction all the functions I just listed are things that my body struggles with on a daily basis. The biggest ANS function out of whack in POTS is heart rate control. Most people are never aware of their HR expect when they are working ou...
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C.Diff...SAY WHAT?

Each setback I face always yields more clarity and perspective.  I am learning and growing as a person each and every day. I was just diagnosed with C.Diff - which is a bacterial infection in your colon. It feels as glorious as it sounds...NOT! C.Diff can occur after prolonged antibiotic use or it can be contracted from someone who has it. Kind of ironic that I was on anti-tubercular antibiotics for 9 months and never got C.Diff. Also ironic that I most definitely caught it from a clinic appointment at the hospital... THE SAME PLACE THAT I LIKELY CAUGHT TUBERCULOSIS. God the irony kills me! But anyway, s uch a horrible infection with unrelenting symptoms showed me the true importance of advocating for your health ALWAYS.   My GI issues are a large part of my POTS and my daily life - but about 3 weeks ago I started to feel really sick with new symptoms. Right away these symptoms didn’t sit well with me - this was NOT my normal. I had just finished a round of follow-up...
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