Hallie's Journey For Breath.

See the latest update title:

 BIG UPDATE! 

Hi. I'm KC and I'm helping my friend Hallie raise funds to help with a lung transplant. Hallie was recently diagnosed with a very rare and fatal disease called Ideopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis.

There is no cure and only a lung transplant will keep her alive past 3-5 years. There's lots to do to get there. There is medication that she is starting that may slow down the fibrosis while she waits but it is very, very expensive. Either Ofev or Esbriet.

Ideopathic means they don't know what causes this. Since Hallie has been a gardener and garden designer for many years , it's likely that working with plants and animals and breathing in the fine particulates of composted materials has created this.

The good news is that she is otherwise extremely healthy! Her sweet heart is strong and beating and all other organs are in tip top shape. Also, she's only 61 and so has an excellent chance of accepting and surviving a transplant and living many more healthy years beyond that.

Luckily, she lives in Spain which has some of the best healthcare and doctors in the world. She is getting good care and has oxygen concentrators to help. She doesn't yet need 24hr oxygen. She's staying as active as possible to keep herself strong and breathing on her own as much as possible.

But there is lots to do and the costs are more than they can handle. Here's what Hallie wrote me recently:

"I'm scared. I'm the strong one. The one everyone calls for help. Now I'm in Spain and after 10 days in ICU in early July I'm currently "being diagnosed" with IPF.

The cat scan shows fibrosis started about 4-5 years ago. I have a decent and good pneumologist. No one speaks English. My Spanish is excellent but fear and anxiety make it more difficult. Ugh. Doc wants me to give him until the end of the year for full and complete diagnosis and medication to help slow it down. I have every symptom. Crap. I'm only 61. Oxygen for home and a pack for walking have just been delivered. DLCO save other breathing tests came back terrible. I'm not taking steroids because the side effects are so so bad, and they don't help this disease. So only done ibuprofen and turmeric for inflammation and s dig to help loosen mucus until I start the anti-fibrotic, which is crazy expensive. I'm glad I found a support group. I keep reading medical journal material and ick. My husband. Lord, I'm worried about his ability to cope or help me. But so far he's just the champ. So much love. I'm grateful I can still travel a bit and get out and about. Lucky I can get in some gardening before I'm stuck on oxygen.

Thanks for letting me vent. I'm scared."

So, there it is. This strong, vibrant, kind, loving wonderful woman and friend needs help and doesn't know how or who to ask. She's on lists for medical trials and because of COVID, there are many new ideas and possibilities in research since the virus is affecting the lungs of so many others.

But Hallie needs her friends and family more than ever before. She's kept me laughing and created beauty in my yards and gardens for so long. Please help me keep her breathing and laughing and loving!