This morning, I took my 16-year-old son, Caeleb, to physical therapy at Carrie Tingley Hospital in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He continues to experience recurring pains from past internal bleeding episodes in his right knee and ankle. The goal is to find the source of the pain and a…

After an entire year of getting little exercise, I’ve finally decided to work out again. I’d gone several months without much physical activity, so I’m starting with jump rope fitness for body conditioning. So far, everything’s good. I’ve had to rearrange my schedule quite a bit and take more time…

I met my husband on the golf course. Now, one of my greatest joys is watching my daughter learn to play at that very same course. It is where I feel most at home. The course is not a relaxing set of fairways we see on Sunday afternoon broadcasts with…

There is a moment in every person’s journey when they realize that their story is messy, complicated, and imperfect — and it holds more power than they ever imagined. Living with a bleeding disorder often means navigating a world that doesn’t fully understand what we face. We can feel isolated…

I am a staunch advocate of equality. From a very young age, I was taught that all people are valuable, regardless of their race, ethnicity, social status, gender, or health status. I was brought up to believe that human beings have certain immutable and inviolable rights. Eventually, I learned…

XaTek announced that it has raised $9.1 million to advance the development of ClotChip — a portable test designed to rapidly analyze, using  a single drop of blood, the ability of a person’s blood to clot. The capital was raised in a series A financing round, which marks a company’s first significant…

Sixteen years from symptoms to diagnosis. This statistic is quoted incessantly among women with bleeding disorders, describing the treacherous diagnostic journey we often endure. But what many don’t realize is that this figure came from one study of 75 women diagnosed with von Willebrand disease (VWD) who were registered…

I recently scheduled a consultation with a psychiatrist after years of trying to manage my mental health without professional help. Since I was a teenager, I’ve dealt with chronic mental health issues that manifested in bothersome ways. In the past, I had difficulty sleeping, disordered eating, and fluctuating moods. I…

In my experience, raising two children with a chronic illness includes the usual worries that parents and other primary caregivers often face. It also creates issues that directly address medical needs and concerns related to treatment. For instance, not every family deals with spontaneous bleeding into the joints. For…

Many young people enter adulthood with dreams and goals in mind. The burning desire to attain these goals drives them to carry on through hardships and challenges. But for people with chronic illness, achieving goals can be harder, as they may face more obstacles related to their condition. It may…