More Medical Woes!

In 2008, I started having fainting spells. For example, my family went to Mustang Island (near Corpus Christi, TX) for my mom’s birthday. While there I was body surfing with my little cousin. One of the times we went out, I remember starting to feel dizzy, my hands went numb, and the next thing I knew I was on the beach in my dad’s arms with the ambulance pulling up next to us. My cousin’s dad had started to make his way towards us in the ocean because he thought we were too far out. Thank God he did because as he got closer to us he said I yelled out to him “I’m not feeling well” and then went under the waves. He ran to me and pulled me up and carried me to shore. That was just one of countless times I would pass out. I spent a little over year going from doctor to doctor trying to figure out what was wrong with me. None were able to find anything.

Late May of 2009 I was still living with my parents at the time. Once night I stayed up watching a movie, once the movie ended I stood up reached over my head to turn off the ceiling fan light. As I brought down my arm I felt my world spin, and elastic band gripped my chest and I felt like I couldn’t take a deep breath. My heart was pounding in my chest, I felt like a marathon runner looks after a race. I was panting and shaking, my face legs and arms started to tingle then slowly went numb. I carefully got up and went into my parent’s room. I told my mom we needed to call another doctor in the morning because I wasn’t feeling well. When I told her my symptoms, she rushed me to the closest hospital, which at the time was SE Baptist.

On June 1, 2009 I was diagnosed with Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PH or PAH for short). I was given 3 months to live, but again I out lived my prognosis. After months of testing doctors determined it was Idiopathic, meaning there was no underling cause for my PH. What is pulmonary hypertension? It’s high blood pressure in the lungs. PH can cause right heart damage in untreated. Because my PH took so long to diagnose the right side of my heart is about 3 times larger than normal. My life has been turned upside down and inside out sing my diagnosis. Because of lack of oxygen I am often tired and have trouble walking to my front door. There is no cure for PH and it is a progressive disease (only gets worse over time). Eventually I will need a heart and double lung transplant.

Today, 6 years after my diagnosis I am taking 15pills a day and I have a permanent Hickman port in my chest that gives me intravenous medication 24/7.

Top Left: Pick line for the 2 iv antibiotics I need
Top Right: IV for fluids when I was in the hospital
Bottom: Infected Hickman port in my chest. 

 Last Wednesday, September 16, 2015 I was hospitalized because I developed an infection at my port site. Due to the deadly effects an infection can cause a PH person, I was put on intravenous antibiotics to treat the infection aggressively. On Friday, doctors decided to let me go home with a pick line (like an iv but it goes straight to through an artery and into my heart.) with the iv antibiotics. These antibiotics are very expensive and unfortunately for me cost $50.00 a day. I found out today (9/21/15) at my checkup I need these antibiotics for at least another 7 days. Thankfully a friend started a gofundme account and it has been how I paid for the 1^st 4 days ($200) but now I am struggling to get the money together to continue the antibiotics I need. The Infusion Medication Company needs the payment before they deliver the rest of my antibiotics. I will run out of the antibiotics on Tuesday, September 22, 2015 at 5:30pm. I am praying for yet another miracle.

Once this infection is gone my doctor wants to start the process for requesting the heart and lung transplant. I will not give up on hope, I will keep fighting for my life. I have never been the type to give up and I am not going to start now.

For more information on Pulmonary Hypertension please visit http://www.phassociation.org 

To help with cost of antibiotics:  https://www.gofundme.com/sarahrios 

In this short video, Dr. Vallerie McLaughlin explains the basics of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH).

What's in my future?

graphic from andjustincase.blogspot.com

What's in my future?  I don't know.

Ten years ago I was a senior in high school. It's crazy how time flies. I remember writing, what felt like a million essays about where I'd be in ten years. Back then I said I would be in the process of becoming a doctor. I wanted to be a Pediatrician. I would have gone to Incarnate Word University then into medical school. (I know I blogged about this a while back ago)

 Anyway,  now here I am ten years later and I haven't even finished getting an associates degree. I had such high hope & standards for myself. I feel like I failed in some way. Getting sick had nothing to do with not accomplishing my goals. I only got sick about three years ago. So that is no excuse; neither is being a full time youth minister because may other youth ministers I know personally are going to school as well. 

Where did I go wrong? I'm not really sure I can pin point just one derailment.

graphic from Scripture Slides by Randall Bowman

 But the great news is with this second chance at life I'm going to live my dreams. By the grace & love of God I am still alive and with His help my dreams will become a reality.  I am in the process of starting school, I am almost able to registrar for classes, all I need to do is go to group advising and then I can registrar. It's so exciting. I'm not sure what major yet. 

I was looking on line at different job opportunities with the Pulmonary Hypertension Association. I would love to work there and help others with PH. I think that would be amazing. But I am leaving it all in God's hands. I want to live the life He wants. My plans totally failed so now I'm going according to His plan for my life. 

So What's in my future? Only God knows but it will be great!!!! 

Walking in NEW LIFE!!!

It has really been a long two months since my last post. I now have the Remodulin pump (named John) and to be honest I am feeling so much better. I haven't felt this great in over two years.


 It has been overwhelming to learn everything about the pump, learning to live with an iv & pump. I needed to relearn everything from sleeping on my back (which I still don't like) to how to shower. It's not easy or pretty to look at but my life is almost back to normal. 


These past two years has been a journey of growth. I have gone from fighting for my life to trying to commit suicide then back to find God again. I realize now looking back God didn't do this to me it was just part of life. It was a stumbling block. I don't have to fall because of this and give up. I need to continue fighting and working to adjust to my new "normal". 


For me life has a new meaning. I have gone back to doing youth ministry. I teach people about my battle & victory, and living with PH. Having my pump, John, is a great conversation starter and a wonderful way to bring awareness about OH and about my faith in God. God has given me this new change in life. I'm not going to disappoint Him.


I not only have begun doing youth ministry again, but am helping with a new young adult ministry. I am also going back to college (finally!) and I am planning a Fun Walk (SA PHun Walk 4 Hope) to raise funds for PH research. This is a whole new life for me and I am going to live each day to the fullest and the best of my ability.

Pump me up!

Central line & pump

Today a nurse will be coming to my house to teach me how to use a Remodulin Pump. Remodulin is a new medication I will be on. The pump will be attached to a "central line" (an iv on my chest that goes directly to my heart) and will be giving me my meds 24/7. I will be learning to mix my own medication and inject it into the pump. I don't know much about it but I'm really scared about it. I was told by my doctor that I will not be able to ever be off this pump because my heart will not be able to function with out the medication. I am so scared but I have been trying to be brave in front of my family because I know they don't want me to get the pump yet. But if I need it why postpone the inevitable? I just want to get it over with and move on with my life, hopefully this will give me a longer life. So, the nurse will be here today and also tomorrow then I'll be admitted into the hospital (in the ICU) for the procedure to be done. I'll remain in the ICU for a few days to be monitored while my medication is adjusted.

I'm so overwhelmed with everything. I don't understand why I keep having all these things happen to me. I have been feeling better in the last month since Sept '10. Yet I'm doing worse so I need this new medication. I don't understand this, and if I don't understand how is my family going to understand. I see how they can want to wait to get the pump but if the doctor says I need it then I"m going to trust my doctor and just get it done. We shall see how it all works out soon enough. I'll update with how the classes went soon. 

IT"S A GIRL!!!

My sister is having a little girl!!!! I am so excited. Everyone said it was gonna be a boy, even I said it was a boy, but I had been praying for a girl. They told me they were naming the baby after me. I cried like a baby, pun intended! She should be born in late October and I can't wait to meet her. She is going to be so loved. I'm so excited. Every store I go to I see something that she MUST have. I will be spoiling that little princess for as long as I can.

Lunch Divas

April 14, 2011

My best friend sent me a Facebook message inviting me to check out a new pizzeria, Deco Pizzeria. She read a great review in the news paper then looked it up on Facebook and every one commented how great it was. One review where the owners were interviewed stated that there was an hour wait for diner the previous week. So we made plans to check out this pizzeria. We were really excited to try this Italian food being Italian is our favorite. When we got there it was packed. Good thing right, normally the more people the better the food.  The food was disgusting, the service was non-existent. We had such a horrible experienced we ended up not eating the food and going to get a pizza at Chicago's Pizza. On our way to Chicago's I came up with the idea to start a Facebook page called Food Divas where we would try different restaurants (some of our faves too) and write our own reviews. Telling our friends the truth... according to the Divas! While setting up our new email address Food Divas was an already used screen name so we changed it to Lunch Divas. We are going to try to make our own logo. We shall see how that goes. 

 Here is our first review of Deco Pizzeria:

Diva #1: After reading so many rave reviews both on here and thru the web, I was very excited to try out this place with a friend. Sadly, we left the establishment more than dissatisfied. For starters, the service from the staff was terrible. And then the menu options we ordered weren't worth the price. I ordered the spaghetti and meatballs with traditional tomato sauce. The meatballs I had to pay extra were so tiny, they certainly didn't merit the extra charge. And as far as flavor goes there wasn't any. All you could taste was beef. The supposed traditional sauce was so spicy it almost bordered on being a marina sauce. The supposed garlic bread that came on the side was the saddest garlic bread ever. It was more like over-buttered soft bread that just added to my cholesterol. I've never been so disappointed in a meal before. I could easily name off 5 alternative places I could receive great food for the same price I spent on attempting to eat this crap. And that's just pathetic.

Diva #2: I ordered the Angel Hair pasta with the spicy Cajun sauce with 6 shrimp (also paid extra). The spicy Cajun sauce was not spice as a matter of fact if was flavorless. I had to add salt and still didn't eat it. The Cajun sauce also had mushrooms chopped into it. I do not like mushrooms so it would be nice to know ahead of time about them in my meal. I paid $2.75 for 5 (not 6) small salad shrimps, ridiculous. The garlic bread was soggy with butter and tasted of pure garlic. Gross! The best thing I ordered was the Sprite!!!
We both ordered a slice of combo pizza. The slice was so oily, crunchy, a bit burned, and didn't taste good overall. Diva #2 said it tasted like rubber, not exactly how you want your pizza to taste.
We ended up going down Chicago's Pizza and ordered a large 2-topping pizza for $6.99. It was amazing!!!

More reviews will be posted to Facebook. Out of our bad experience a great new joint venture was born. 

Don't forget to friend us on Facebook!!!

Movie-Book Club

So my best friends and I started a movie-book club. The idea is that we read book that will be made into books and then have a dinner party & then go see the movie. The dinner party is themed around the book. Here are some parties we have had:

Movie Poster

Book Cover

The Twilight Party was a huge shindig at my best friends house. She planned the whole party. 

Movie Poster

Book Cover

For the Eat, Pray, Love party three of us picked a country from the book and made a dish from that country. I chose Italy, my fave country ever! Then the my other friend brought desert from each country. 

We had a great time but none of  us liked the book or the movie. 

Movie Poster

Book Cover

We let this one slip through the crack. We didn't have a dinner party and we didn't see the movie.

 I don't even know if the girls read the book.

Movie Poster

Book Cover

I already read the book and the girls are reading it but for this book we have 2 new members my sister, and my best friends future sister-in-law. So our movie-book club has grown to 6 members!!!