Taking Flight -Inspirational Stories of Lung Transplantation

Lungs for Life has had a long standing relationship with Joanne Schum. When she first compiled "Taking Flight" we were thrilled for her and we received first grabs at the new copies before they hit the store. From that point forward we have always kept this book in stock and available to the cystic fibrosis and lung transplant communities. It is a valuable resource for those considering or going through lung transplantation. Learn more about the book below.

Taking Flight -Inspirational Stories of Lung Transplantation
This book is the gathering of 255 stories from around the world of those who have had a lung or heart/lung transplant. The recipients share their amazing stories. Also included are stories from caretakers and loved ones and how lung transplant changed the lives of their loved ones, and how wonderful it is to witness the new life that has taken place.

The fascinating and miraculous stories of all these individuals are just a small number of those who have received a lung transplant and now have the joy of living and breathing and being with their loved ones for many more years. Inspirational, moving and a true miracle for all these folks.

Compiled by Joanne Schum (Cystic Fibrosis Bi-Lateral Lung Recipient, September 12, 1997). Authored by Lung Recipients Around the World.

Released: July 6, 2006 | ISBN-10: 1553696840
Purchase Taking Flight: Inspirational Stories of Lung Transplantation through Amazon.

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The Most Popular Transplant Awareness Bracelet

Crystal Allure Beaded Jewelry Designs has been designing and selling beautiful beaded transplant awareness bracelets and cystic fibrosis awareness bracelets since the company first started. A portion of the proceeds of each bracelet sale benefits the Lungs for Life Breathe Blog.

Organ Transplant Awareness Ribbon Bracelet (B105)

Although green represents many awareness diseases, this bracelet was designed as a symbol for Organ Donation awareness and the Gift of Life through Transplantation. When someone receives a set of transplanted lungs, it has been said the new lungs look like a butterfly opening its' wings, when they take their first breath of new life.

Emerald Swarovski Crystals and white Swarovski Pearls accent sterling silver awareness ribbon beads. This handmade beaded bracelet is finished with a sterling silver lobster clasp, butterfly charm and our signature jewelry tag. Measures 7-1/2".

This bracelet has been featured in the following media: -Shooting Stars Mag Blog

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The Butterfly: A Symbol of Lung Transplant

I love butterflies and how appropriate the butterfly has also become the symbol of lung transplant. If you have cystic fibrosis, at some point your doctor will discuss with you the need for a lung transplant. It is my hope the following story behind the symbol of newly transplanted lungs will provide you with hope and inspiration as you begin your transplant journey.

The Butterfly: Life has wings...or rather life should have wings. When Cystic Fibrosis damages the lungs with scarring from past infections, and antibiotics no longer give the relief they once did, and the quality of life is stalled, or the length of life is shortened when you are told, "you have only a couple of years left", you want those wings back to fly. Lung Transplantation is the option to get those wings once again and live your life dreams.

For those who are fortunate enough to witness the actual lung transplantation surgery, they will describe it as a moving experience that is emotional and awe inspiring. When the old lungs are removed, appearing much like raw liver, and the new lungs are taken from the cooler they have been transported in, the light pink, white new lungs are in such contrast to the old. But the more breath taking experience is to see the new lungs take life when they are connected. It is described as "like beautiful butterfly wings, opening for the very first time, they expand and you can see the beauty in life and in good lungs".




Like butterfly wings opening for the first time, so is the size and shape of the new lungs...a comparison that has great meaning to those with Cystic Fibrosis who get the gift of new lungs and a chance to live their dreams.

As you consider and journey through transplant, read inspiring stories of transplant survivors. Taking Flight -Inspirational Stories of Lung Transplantation is available through Amazon.

Interested in submitting your personal transplant journey for consideration on our website or blog? I'd love to hear from you! Just contact us for details.

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In Memory of David Messmer

Today, I came to work intent on a celebratory post of someone's transplant anniversary and ironically, I learned a dear friend, colleague and Lungs for Life supporter had passed away.

David Messmer, aged 51, died August 1st at Duke University Hospital. For those of you who knew Dave, he had cystic fibrosis and received a double lung transplant many years ago. Recently, he went to Duke for a lung re-transplant, yet a few short weeks later he developed pneumonia.

David will be missed dearly. Please take a moment today and remember Dave.

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New Lung Transplant Support Forum

My good friend Joanne Schum (which many of you know already) has recently started a lung transplant support forum with a new host. A double lung transplant survivor herself, she offers a plethora of information and support connections for those affected by cystic fibrosis (CF) and transplant (TX). Here is what she emailed me:

Lung Transplant Support For Patients

Here is the website address:
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/LungTransplantSupportForPatients/
Here is the chat site:
http://xat.com/LungTransplantSupportforPatients

The group E-Mail is:
LungTransplantSupportForPatients@yahoogroups.com

I am hoping many people with various lung illness, and their friends and family will check it out and do some emailing. Presently it does not have a chat room, but I am researching this. We will talk illness and LUNG TRANSPLANT, both pre transplant and post transplant issues.

Just a bit of history on me. I am 45 years old, live in upstate New York. I had a double lung transplant, due to CF or Cystic Fibrosis. The transplant was September 12, 1997. I also compiled a book: Taking Flight- Inspirational Stories of Lung Transplantation in 2002. My transplant was performed at University of North Carolina Hospitals - Chapel Hill - Dr. Thomas Egan was my surgeon.

Please don't hesitate to email me: twoluckylungs [at] juno [dot]com -or -luckylungsforjo [at] aol [dot] com.

If you have questions about the site, ideas for the site, if you know a good chat room site, questions on transplant.

Thanks for your patience - this was a long time in the making, after the MSN Group closed. MSN shut down all groups they had.

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Fall 2009 Current Fundraiser Online

UPDATE (6/16/2014) -This fundraiser is no longer available for the Lungs for Life Breathe Blog.

The Fall 2009 Current Fundraiser products are now available online. When you shop the secure online store and select the Lungs for Life Foundation as your charity of choice (at checkout), LFL receives up to 50% of your purchase!

It's quick, simple and you can shop from the comfort of your home for holiday gifts, decor, wrapping paper and so much more!

Personally, I love the giftwrap selection and this year, not only will I be ordering some more, I plan to order the dishwasher magnet (clean/dirty). In my house, if you are not the one who loads and unloads the dishwasher, you never know if they are clean or still dirty. This little helper solves my problem and donates 50% of my purchase to Lungs for Life! The purchase that gives back!

Happy shopping and thank you in advance for supporting the Lungs for Life Foundation.

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Subscribe to BREATHE the easy way!!

Managing the Lungs for Life Breathe Blog hasn't been easy thusfar and I am going to try this once again. Because of the "non-friendliness" of Wordpress and my familiarity already with Blogger, I've decided to move the Breathe Blog over to my Blogger account. To get us started I wanted to remind you of the ease of staying informed simply by selecting an RSS format comfortable for you.

The easiest way to stay informed on Lungs for Life is to subscribe via our nifty RSS tool. So what is this RSS? It is an acronym for “Really Simple Syndication” and allows you to receive the headlines of the most current stories/news of your favorite websites (in this case, it would be for LFL).

Right over there in the right hand column you have the option to subscribe via email or feed. What’s the difference?

If you subscribe via email, all you do is enter the email address you wish (don't forget to confirm your subscription) and each time a post is made on the Lungs for Life BREATHE Blog, you will get an email about it. If you subscribe via feed, you have a variety of feeds to choose from. Many of you might already have My Yahoo or Google, simply select your choice of reader and you’ll start receiving the headlines of the Breathe Blog posts.

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