This isn't easy to talk about

Basic reproductive healthcare should be protected at the federal level.

Dear readers, this post comes with a heavy sigh,

I wish I wasn’t called to talk about this. I wish this wasn’t an issue in the first place.

My heart broke reading about Amber Nicole Thurman. Her death was entirely preventable.

A six year old is now without a mother because she was denied routine reproductive care because in Georgia it’s criminalized.

This haunts me.

A D&C procedure is very common. I’ve had two medically necessary D&C procedures. Without them, I ran the risk of Amber’s fate- deadly sepsis.

And after July’s birth, I had severe sepsis. It was an extremely dire experience.

My D&C procedures were important steps in my reproductive care. Women don’t often talk about it. But I want folks to know, it’s so wildly commonplace.

I don’t get very political here but being a woman and mother with an expensive rare disease makes me long for a country that understands healthcare needs protection at the federal level.

My family depends on the Affordable Care Act. In Trump’s first term, he tried to repeal it but thanks to John McCain he was thwarted. At the very least, Trump has no healthcare plan but says he would end current subsidies that make the ACA more affordable.

It’s wildly clear this is a person who doesn’t care about our health. And this is in addition to his dangerous character flaws and inability to accept the rule of law or valid election results.

Women in particular, are suffering and dying in states that are led by these agendas.

Pregnancy is a major life-changing medical event. No one should be forced into this. My story could be a case study in what can go wrong. I’ll never be the same and it disrupted my life in so many ways.

And heart-wrenchingly, I don’t think I would have survived my ordeal if the state had forced me to have a baby.

We need to protect women, body and soul.

In a month, we can help protect our healthcare and women with our vote.

Did you miss it?

Welcome to my disease. What is atypical Hemolytic Uremic Syndrome (aHUS) or Complement-Mediated Thrombotic Microangiopathy (CM-TMA)?

I started writing this when I was on dialysis. It’s intended to be both memoir and a practical tool to help folks who might be going through something similar or those caregivers and family supporting someone with a challenging diagnosis. NOTE: This is not intended to replace actual medical guidance. Please consult your doctors on your individual challenges and situations. Please talk to your clinicians before adjusting any of your care protocols. Also names have been changed for most of my medical staff.

Thank you to CC Couchois, Roy Lenn, and Dr. Richard Burwick for your founding level donation.