Lessons on Life From a Girl Who Shouldn’t Have One

I’ve learned to give myself insulin injections.

My parents and siblings know how to re-constitute IV meds.

I’ve had an IV line bleed out the night before my Algebra II final.

I’ve had skin cancer, epilepsy, cystic fibrosis, thalassemia minor, and a double lung transplant. I’ve had tuberculosis and an infection that only one other person in the world had had.

I’ve been to the ER so many times that it’s like Cheers.

I’ve had pancreatitis eight times. If you haven’t had it, be glad you haven’t had it.

I’ve had four chest tubes.


Emily DeArdo
Emily DeArdo
Emily is a 35 year old Ohio native who was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis (CF) when she was 11 years old. On July 11, 2005, she was the first person to receive a double-lung transplant at Nationwide Children's Hospital in Columbus, OH. She graduated from Capital University in 2004 with a BA in political science and English literature. For 10 years she worked for the state senate, but in 2015 she turned her attention to full-time writing. Her first ebook, Catholic 101, was published in November 2017. Find her blogging at EmilymDeArdo.com.

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