What is Hereditary Angioedema?

Hereditary Angioedema is a set of immune system disorders (types I, II, and III), which cause swelling. The disease can be potentially fatal if the swelling affects the airway, heart, or lungs.

Please help raise awareness for this rare genetic disease, and hopefully someday there will be a cure.

HAE Awareness Day is May 16th.

We all need a few prayers at least once in our lives.

Prayers can be about anything and anyone, so long as it is appropriate. This is a good place to ask for prayers for natural disaster victims, payers for loved ones, or prayers for your health.

I shall go first.

I was diagnosed with an endocrine disorder back in May of 2011. This endocrine disorder if not treated can lead to infertility, cancer, and or diabetes. Not treating it is not an option. Unfortunately, ever since I was a child, I have had an issue with swelling and idiopathic stomach pain. In November of 2011 the swelling became critical. I have nearly died nine times due to it, just since the end of November. It turns out treating the endocrine disorder has made the swelling worse, which meant I finally seemed treatment for it (couldn't ignore it anymore with my throat swelling shut) . This month, January of 2012, I was diagnosed with hereditary angioedema type III. The idiopathic stomach pains were my internal organs swelling. It is a swelling disorder caused by not having enough of a chemical in the blood which causes the buildup of another. My doctor is getting me into a treatment program but the attacks have begun to number 1-2 a week, almost always resulting in an emergency room visit, sometimes with admittance go the hospital.

These attacks are scary. I have almost been intubated and had that failed they would have performed a trachyitomy. I am lucky to have the rarity of benadryl easing the attacks. It doesn't for most people. It is a rare disease, affecting between 1:50,000 and 1:150,000. Of those sufferers, 85% have type 1, 15% have type II, and less than 1% have type III.

Please keep me in your prayers... and please pray I get a computer up and running so I may write again, as writing will help me sort my thoughts and come to terms with the disease.

Thank you.

Also, find out if your employer has a matching contributions program.

http://www.cootersplace.com/the-great-nashville-flood.asp - Cooter's Place

May 16th - Music City Keep On Playin' benefit held at the Ryman Auditorium

http://www.nashvillerising.org/ -Nashville Rising concert, June 22nd. Tickets are sold out except for VIP packages. The site has online donation available.

http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20367725,00.html - the historic Ryman Auditorium wood circle section of the Opry stage survived being underwater. =)

CNN is now reporting that there's a fear that the oil may even go around the Florida Keys and head up the Atlantic along the east coast. Let's hope that doesn't happen. This thing is already a big enough catastrophy.

On May 1th 2009 I received this voicemail:

On May 16th 2009 Andrew's dream came true:

Thanks to everyone who helped make Andrew's dream come true: