The Importance Of Cystic Fibrosis

Cystic Fibrosis is a disease that is life threatening. It is a genetic disease that causes persistent lung infections and progressively limits the ability to breathe. People with CF have a defective gene that causes thick, build up of mucus in the lungs, pancreas, and other organs. The mucus will clog the airways and trap bacteria in the lungs, which causes infections, extensive lung damage, and leads to respiratory failure. The mucus in the pancreas prevents the release of digestive enzymes that allow the body to break down food and absorb nutrients that are vital for surviving. This disease is very near and dear to my heart. A close family friend has two children who have cystic fibrosis. All throughout high school, I would babysit for them …show more content…
This class focuses on parenting children with disabilities. When you have a child with CF, there are many different things that will cause you to change the way that you might parent your child. Sure, as a parent it might seem that they need to be treated differently since they have a disease that is life threatening. If a parent is educated about the disease and how they can help them, then that will make parenting the child easier. Just like having any other child with disabilities the parents are affected. Parents of children with disabilities are going to breakdown, want others support, and be grateful for what they have. Sometimes to get through the rough patches it takes breaking down and having a good cry. When having a breakdown, it is important to have a good support system. It helps to be able to talk to other parents who are experiencing the same thing so that you know that these things are not only happening to you. Being grateful for all of the medicines, treatments, and therapies that have been discovered. If it were not for these things, then the children would not be able to live the lives that they are living right now. They would not be able to have a normal childhood, and possibly not live as …show more content…
I knew some of the symptoms and some of the treatments that Cystic Fibrosis patients experienced. After researching the foundation, I learned that there are many different symptoms. Some of the symptoms are: very salty-tasting skin, persistent coughing, at times with phlegm, frequent lung infections including pneumonia or bronchitis, wheezing or shortness of breath, poor growth or weight gain in spite of a good appetite, frequently greasy, bulky stool or difficulty with bowel movements, and male infertility. Another thing that I previously knew about CF was that it was genetic. I did not know that in order to get CF that both of the parents had to be a carrier. Also, previously I knew that nearly half of the CF population is over 18 years old. Today CF patient’s life span has been steadily on the rise. In the 1960’s, CF patient’s median age for survival was about 10 years, and today there have been so many advances in the medical research that CF patients are living into their late