CF

In a few hours my sweet husband will wake up and we will go to my doctors appointment together and find out information that could affect the rest of our lives.  I couldn't sleep.   I tossed and turned all night thinking about my doctor and choir tour and all the work I've got to do.  Not even yesterday's yoga could drive my ToDo list from my brain.  Sitting on my love seat looking in the gloaming and watching the falling snow seemed a much better alternative to tossing in bed.

My little sister is a CF carrier.  So is her little son.  If you are white and of northern European you may be too.   In fact you have an approximate 1 in 13 chance of being a carrier.  This is pretty high making CF a very common fatal disease.  Cystic fibrosis also known as CF is a is a hereditary disease which affects the entire body, causing progressive disability and often, early death.  Both parents have to be carriers in order to have children with CF.  Because my sister is a CF carrier I have a 50% chance of also carrying the genetic mutation as do all my 6 siblings. 

I am going to get tested to day to see if I carry the CF mutation.  If I am a carrier we will have Spencer tested as well.  I  want to have children someday.  I would never abort a CF baby as many people do, but if CF is in my future I need to plan my life accordingly.  I have to think about insurance and facilities.  On the upside if I am a CF carrier I am immune to cholera.  This is why the disease has survived so many generations. 

Life is so tricky isn't it.