College Student Medical Help Fund

My name is Polina Bykova. I was born with a genetic disease called Cystic Fibrosis. This disease is an over production of mucus in the body mostly pertaining to the lungs. To treat it, I am diligent to treatments 2 to 3 times a day, sometimes 4 if I am sick. I live my life like any other twenty year old would. I like to hike with my best friends, read books, and binge watch my favorite shows but having CF means that I am forced to wake up an extra hour before my usual alarm so I can fit in a quick dose of treatment to get started with my day and finish my days off with another dose of treatments so that I am able to sleep peacefully through the night as well as fitting it in anywhere in between. Coughing is a natural part of my day that I have become pretty numb to however I still get stares every so often. Last November (2018) I developed a terrible case of pneumonia. It was only the second time in my life that I have been close to death - the first being right before my diagnosis at 6 months old. I was not able to breathe on my own so the doctors intubated me and I was put in the ICU for 5 days. From there, I stayed a total of two weeks in the hospital fighting to regain my strength with physical therapy and intensive treatments and medicines. Since then, I have worked hard to make sure my lung function stays high and I maintain healthy lungs as best as I can even though I’m living with only one functioning lung. I attend Cleveland State University where I plan on getting my Bachelor's in PreMed so that I can continue my career in medical school to hopefully one day become a trauma surgeon. Between balancing school and my health,  its difficult for me to work so that I can pay off my student loans or any other bills I may have. Anything will help me out tremendously and when the day comes for a cure, I’ll be able to rejoice in all my blessings.