Teresa Schumacher

A few years ago, I became a cystic Fibrosis (CF) ambassador by sharing my story at 2 walks. I will again be walking this year in hopes of finding a cure and I hope you'll walk with me! But if you can't, I hope you'll join me in my fight against CF!!!

Here's my story: On day 2 of life I underwent a bowel resection surgery and a month later a surgery. After a long and difficult 4 months of life I was diagnosed with CF. I had a few hospitalizations when I was young and missed out on a few things. In middle and high school, I started getting pneumonia yearly. I would do chest physiotherapy (an airway clearance technique) sometimes 5 times a day!! That meant doing my last one somewhere around 11pm or 12 am only to wake at 5 am to do another before I walked to middle school. I was hospitalized again in the 9th grade for a round of IV antibiotics. I received IV antibiotics each year after. In 1993 Pulmozyme was introduced. It cuts up DNA to make the mucus thinner. This drug would help me tremendously. Just before I headed off to Towson Unv., The Vest which is an airway clearance device was introduced- this was life changing!
After the introduction of The Vest I stopped getting such severe lung infections which meant NO MORE IV's-for a while! I continued to have multiple flare ups per year, which still caused scarring to my lungs, but they were able to be treated by oral antibiotics. A few  summers ago I caught my child's cold- the rhinoviruses. It caused my lung function to drop from 89% to 65% and landed me in the hospital (my first time in 26 years) with a PICC line. This is a testament to the power of fundraising, research, and the CF Foundation. If it weren't for your generous support and the support of so many others I wouldn't be here today and doing as well as I am. The CF Foundation won't stop until there's a cure and neither will I!

This year, I'll turn 46! I am so lucky to be alive and so grateful to have a beautiful family of my own. Thanks to the support of people like you and the tireless work of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation I am on a new drug called Trikafta. It corrects one of my faulty jeans. Because of this I have not been as sick. I have only had 5 rounds of antibiotics total since starting it in January 2020. I could not be blessed with this amazing drug without donations and support!! Unfortunately, not everyone else is so lucky. While I shared how well I'm doing taking care of myself is no easy task!

When I'm not sick I take 21 pills per day or nearly 30 when I'm sick. I used to spend over an hour doing airway clearance and 2 neubulizer treatments, which I have to clean afterwards. Every other month after airway clearance and nebs I inhale a powder antibiotic. But because of Trikafta I now do sinus rinses twice a day and take pills and insulin shots (two types, one of them I take with each meal).  My quality of life has improved thanks to research drug development all of which wording be possible with you generous donations. 

I've endured 46 years of doctor visits, several specialists all 1.5 hrs away, breathing tests, chest x-rays, CT Scans, Dexa scans, blood draws, nasal scopes, colonoscopies, GI clean outs, IV's, surgeries, and hospitalizations.

There's been a lot of news about the wonderful advancements being made and amazing new drugs, with even more drug being developed. But, until these types of medications work for all those with CF, this disease is still taking its toll.

Cystic Fibrosis is constant. When you have Cystic Fibrosis there are no treatment breaks. When I go on vacation there's CF right there with me. There is no remission...there is NO CURE It's fighting day after day week after week month after month. It's exhausting. We need more answers, we need better options, and to get either of those, WE NEED YOUR HELP.

On May 4, 2024 I will again be leading "Teresa's Trailblazers" at the Hagerstown, Maryland Great Strides Walk in an effort to raise the necessary funds to sponsor vital research that will save lives. It will be a day of fun, exercise, good food and great company.

I would love for you to join ME in support of this very important cause.

There are several ways you can help:

1) Walk with me and be a part of our fundraising walk team. Just click the "Join My Team" button on the right.

2) If you are unable to take part in the walk, we would be honored if you would sponsor Teresa's Trailblazers. Any amount will help us reach our goal. To make a safe and secure, online donation, just click the "Donate to Me" at the top of this page. If you'd prefer, you may send checks, payable to "Cystic Fibrosis Foundation" to my home address: 2403 Castlegreen Dr, Greencastle PA 17225.

3) Start a Teresa's Trailblazers team at your local Great Strides walk. If I can start 2 more teams then Teresa's Trailblazers will be a national team!! Contact me for more information!

Any contribution you make is 100% tax deductible and the CF Foundation will use almost 91 cents of every dollar raised to find and fund A CURE.

Since the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation gets no direct Federal funding it is imperative that we get support from private individuals like you. While I don't like asking for donations I have no other choice. I keep doing it year after year until there are more answers and better options until CF is a life-long disease instead of a life-shortening one. Please help us fund the cure so I and others like me can continue to be healthy and lead the lives we want. I can't do this alone we can't do this alone.

Thank you for your support!

Love,

Teresa

A Year of CF:

1. 17 different medications

2. 1823 nebulizers

3. 375 hours of vest treatments

4. 7,300 pills swallowed

5. 1,460 injections of insulin

6. about a 1,000 finger sticks

7. 730 sinus rinses

8. 8,765 hours fighting CF

https://www.kizoa.com/Video-Editor/d395056774k8256925o2l1/Teresas_Fight_2023