Carson's Journey with PH+

    Carson Smith was diagnosed with Pulmonary Hypertension (PH) and Pulmonary Veno-Occlusive Disease (PVOD ) her freshman year of high school and has not let the disease slow her down. She is currently enrolled in a Masters of Public Health degree program.  Upon graduating this will be her second Master’s degree.

   

    Since we last heard from Carson in her “PHA Journey’s” article, she has faced a number of great achievements, difficulties, and eye-opening experiences, all allowing her to grow as an individual.

   

    In 2009, Carson graduated from Washington University with a degree in Anthropology. She worked for a year and used this time to adjust to her limits. During this time she was faced with the stress of having her files transferred from a children’s, to adult hospital, and meeting with new doctors who were not aware of her medical history.  Being a natural born athlete however, physical activity helped her cope. Soon, Carson was alerted that she was no longer considered sick enough to remain on the lung transplant list. The news left her with bittersweet feelings. While there was a breath of relief to know she was healthy enough to be kept off of the list, it also left her with a lack of security. Carson had already experienced the process of being added to the transplant list. With this background she knew that if one day she did need a transplant, she would have to go through the strenuous process of getting back on the list, and waiting for a donor.

  

  In August of 2010, Carson enrolled in Morehead State University in Kentucky where she pursued a Master’s degree in Public Administration.  By December of 2010, she found herself being rushed to an emergency room and later airlifted to a hospital in St. Louis. Doctors had discovered an accumulation of fluid in Carson’s lungs, leaving her sedated for 6 days and in the hospital for a total of ten. Carson had always considered herself lucky because she did not experience a lot of the things other PH patients did. She was never reliant on oxygen, and was always able to take oral medication. Upon being discharged from the hospital, Carson realized once again that while she was not on oxygen, and was able to continue in certain physical activity, she still suffered from a severely dangerous disease. Even with this setback, she graduated in 2012 and enrolled in a Master’s in Public Health program in August of 2012.

   While faced with the complications of living with a chronic disease, Carson has sustained a positive attitude, and has learned to appreciate the little things in life. She has maintained an attitude of resilience, and believes it is a trait that all PH patients should adopt. She states “it is so much better to try and have to quit, than to not try at all. You have to continue to fight, and use your support network.” For doctors, Carson believes you should “allow patients to test things.”