What does it mean to celebrate my first year of breathing on my own?

We asked one of our Facebook followers, Lisa, what it meant to celebrate her first year of breathing on her own after a double lung transplant on June 11, 2018. 

Lisa says, “I’m loving life again. I am so grateful for the donor and the donor’s family; they will forever be in my prayers.” Reflecting back on her journey, she says, “It means the world to be able to take a deep breath.” This is her story.

“At around age 30, I was diagnosed with pulmonary fibrosis. I was on oxygen for 16 years, wondering what day would be my last day. We never think that we would have to struggle to take a breath. I’ve learned not to take life for granted anymore.

What does it mean to celebrate my first year of breathing on my own? It is hard for me to put it into words. I am truly blessed to be able to run, to ride on an airplane without having to have a special oxygen tank, and getting to know my grandbabies without wearing oxygen. What it means to walk down the street, and be able to swing your arms back and forth, to be able to jump up and down, to wake up and get dressed, and to not have to worry about having enough oxygen tanks with oxygen.

I am so grateful to be hands-free, and no matter the different challenges I may face today, it means the world to be able to take a deep breath and to just hang out with my family and my friends, and to know that God is not finished with me yet. I give God all the glory and praise to celebrate this first year breathing on my own.”

Do you have a story to share? We’d love to hear more stories like this from lung transplant recipients and their caregivers. Please send us an email to info@lungtransplantfoundation.org. You, too, can be an inspiration to others.

Support the Lung Transplant Foundation.

A lung transplant transforms lives affected by diseases such as cystic fibrosis, pulmonary fibrosis, and COPD. These diseases affect more than 15 million Americans and are the fourth leading cause of death in the United States. Rejection rates for lung transplant recipients are worse than for recipients of any other transplanted organ. We want to change that through funding research to stop all lung transplant rejections. We can’t do it alone. We invite you to help people like Lisa. Make a donation or learn more about how you can be involved.