Throwback: PH Patient, Kirsten Larson, Vlogs from Orlando in 2012

Hear it best from a Conference veteran. In this 2012 video blog, PH patient, Kirsten Larson, talks about how Conference has evolved each time through the seven times she’s been. She even met new PHriends and talked with them into the wee hours of the next morning!

"Each year it [Conference] gets better and better because we keep growing more and more and Conference has more than doubled since I started coming..." – Kirsten Larson

Throwback: PHA Roving Reporter Takes on 2012 Conference

Food. Fun. Friends. That sums up the exciting Patient and Family Meet-and-Greet from our 2012 Conference. PHA Roving Reporter, Nicole Northrop, took to our 2012 Conference Blog to describe the scene filled with tons to do and see!

Walking into the Crystal Ballroom at the Renaissance Orlando at SeaWorld®, one would see many booths, delicious food, eager people, and fun activities. These aspects are what made the Patient and Family Meet-and-Greet at PHA’s 10th International Conference so enjoyable. The many people crowded into the ballroom were sporting a paper carnation. Each carnation was a different color to represent the many regions in which these people live. Every person, patient, caregiver and medical professional alike, seemed to be enjoying Conference. The ballroom was filled with happy chattering with people they had met.

Read Nicole's full blog post from our 2012 Conference

Throwback: Newly-Diagnosed Patient Attends 2008 Conference

Almost six years ago, we interviewed a newly diagnosed PH patient at our 2008 International PH Conference. In our video interview, this patient shares her experience of how she found PHA, the support she received to attend Conference and some highlights from her time in Houston.

“I was really confused about my illness, and would really love to know about it and meet other people who have the same illness. I met a lot of them on the internet but wanted to meet them face- to face… I met some really GREAT people.”

Throwback: Merle Reeseman’s Road Trip to 2006 Conference

Traveling all the way from Grove City, Pennsylvania, to Minneapolis, Minnesota, Merle Reeseman blogged about her 12-hour road trip to our 2006 International PH Conference!  She explains how she prepared for such a journey while living with PH and being on oxygen. With her husband in the driver seat and extra supplies in the trunk, the Reeseman’s hit I-80 in search of a cure.

Bright and early Wednesday morning June 21, 2006, we’re ready to go but let’s go back to Tuesday. The car was loaded to the point that we didn’t have enough room for the condenser. It was a choice of that or my clothes and you know which one won out. I had asked my oxygen supplier for a transportable liquid oxygen tank so I could fill my Helios Marathon and not have to worry about a refill or changing tanks every couple of hours while at the conference or on the way to the conference. The liquid oxygen portable took up half of the back seat and when they put in the condenser that took up the other half of the back seat. I still had to pack a wheelchair and suitcases; the wheelchair took up most of the trunk space. Then bags of medicine (I’m on Flolan); coolers for the ice packs; it all had to fit in the car. Well, the condenser lost out. If I wanted a change of clothing, something had to stay. I’m so glad they brought everything over on Tuesday and we had enough time to reorganize and regroup. Thank you HCS. We calculated how much oxygen I would use for a two day round trip including sleep time and each day at the conference and ordered a condenser from Minneapolis for the evenings/sleeping. It would be close but it should work. Extra tanks of oxygen were put in the car – just in case. Have you ever noticed how we PHer’s live a “just in case” life?

Read more from Merle's journey

Throwback: Ken Schmidt's Road to Conference 2006

At our 2006 International PH Conference and Scientific Sessions in Houston, attendee and PH caregiver, Ken Schmidt, gave a recap of his involvement with PHA's Conferences since his wife's diagnosis in 1998. Our 2008 Conference was themed Roadmap to a Cure, so Ken told his story using road analogies. How fun is that?

Ken's wife, Joanne (left), participates
in the PHA Fashion Show at Conference

My road trip began in 1998 when my wife of only 5 years was diagnosed with PPH. Joanne’s brother had been diagnosed 3 years earlier with this awful disease and so Joanne was motivated to find as much information as she could about PH.

In 2000, Joanne was like a mid-sized sedan traveling the PH interstate, while I was just like a small U-haul trailer. Joanne found the PH map and headed out to Chicago, while I tagged along hoping to find useful items to carry back to Long Island. Joanne unhitched me at the male only caregivers session, which was co-led by Jerry Paton. Jerry was like a confident 18 wheel big rig. He had been traveling the PH interstate and offered us honesty, compassion, and hope. He told us there would be potholes, speed bumps, and slippery conditions ahead, but he also saw brand new roads being paved, that someday we would be traveling along.

Read more of Ken's story

Throwback Thursday: Sandra & Carol at Our 2008 Conference

Check back every Thursday from now until our 2014 Conference in June as we “throw back” to past Conferences!

In this video from PHA’s 2008 International PH Conference in Houston, Texas, we caught up with patients Sandra Eckland and Carol Levy who were enjoying their time at Conference. Hear directly from these two women about sessions they attended, friends they met and more!

“I’ve met a lot of people, and I’ve particularly enjoyed being able to put faces to the names of the people that I chat with or see post on the message board…” – Carol Levy