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Learning My New Role as a Mother of Two Growing Children With Cystic Fibrosis
The room is dark and cold. I hear the familiar hum of an airway clearance machine in the next room overcoming the thunderstorm of white noise and air conditioning. It is 3:00 a.m., and the room next door belongs to my 12-year-old son. My kids have chaotic sleep patterns. Years of medications, hospital stays, and one parent who can’t sleep mean someone is always awake. I hear the choking sound of a mucus-filled cough. My throat catches, and without even being fully awake, I stumble out of bed to peek in the next room. My son, who is wise for his 12 years, reminds me, “Mom, this is supposed to make me cough.” I’m proud that he knows how to handle his own middle-of-the-night airway challenges now, but I don’t think I will ever sleep easily after hearing that familiar wake-up cough.