Sara's Story: A Child Living with Cystic Fibrosis

If you've been following my series on Cystic Fibrosis (CF), then you already know who Sara is. She is the little girl that my aunt adopted when Sara was 4-years-old. A year earlier, Sara had been diagnosed with CF. This is her story.

Sara was born on May 1, 2000, to teenage parents. The father was no longer around and the young mother decided to give her up for adoption. Sara spent the first 2 years of her life in a loving foster home until her father was finally located and relinquished his parental rights so Sara could be adopted.

When Sara turned 3, she was placed with her new family while the adoption was pending. A month before the adoption was final, Sara was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis. For reasons of their own, the adoptive parents decided to return Sara to the State. Now she was all alone again and considered a "hard to place" adoption because of her medical problems.

My aunt's children were all grown when she decided to try to adopt an older child which would also be considered "hard to place". When she was told about 4 year old Sara, she decided to meet her. It was love at first sight! Sara was so cute and loving and bright and had a smile that lit up the whole room!! My aunt had found her new daughter.

A lot of people tried to discourage her from adopting a CF child, but she was determined. After much research, she knew enough facts about CF that she felt that she would be able to care for Sara. She knew all the risks involved and she knew that Sara may not live long. After many hours of counseling, my aunt was finally approved to take Sara home.

Sara soon won the hearts of everyone in and around the family. She soon became known as our "extended family adoption" because everyone wanted to be a part of her life. Sara was such a warm and loving child. She always had hugs and smiles for everyone she met. She very seldom cried or complained even on her worst days.

Sara suffered with many common symptoms from CF which included lung and digestive problems. The thick mucus would build up in her lungs which made it hard to breathe and sometimes led to pneumonia. Her pancreas could not break down the fat that her body needed so she was always underweight. With her special diet, it seemed that Sara was always eating, but not growing.

Most of Sara's life was spent in the hospital. There were many times when we didn't think Sara would make it, but she was a fighter. She had a strong will to live. She hated to see anyone cry and often would tell someone, "Don't cry, God has enough Angels right now".

I hope by sharing Sara's story, more people will get to know her and fall in love with her. Maybe they will realize what a CF child's life is like and find ways to help the many children with this disease. At this time, there is no cure for CF, only treatments that may prolong their life and make every day living a little easier.