PH Awareness Month - Post #17

I'd like to talk more about support groups. While I felt like I had found gold at the end of the rainbow when I first got the PHA website many years ago, since I had never talked to anyone living with PH like I had all my life, starting an actual support group in my area made me feel like I had hit the Lottery. I admit that I was very nervous about starting the group at first. I used to teach preschool, and I could talk to those kids very easily! But talking in front of adults??? NO WAY!!! But a couple weeks after I was asked about starting a group, I finally decided to go for it! It was a new purpose in my life, something I could do to help others living with this drasted disease.

My first meeting was in October 2005. I had a handful of people, but I kept reminding myself that a support group was a meeting of 2 or more people. I made the meeting a general one, explained my life story with PH, and why I wanted to start the group. Everyone shared, everyone had questions for each other, and boy did that 2.5 hours fly by quick!! It was a success, and I was so relieved!!

I have had probably 10 meetings now in the past 3 years. It's hard to get people together in Buffalo when the snow is flying in winter, and it's freezing. If I don't want to go out there in the cold because I know how much it affects me, then I sure don't expect fellow PHers to drag themselves out for a meeting in the middle of winter either! But the meetings I have had slowly start to bring out more PHers. The last meeting I had in October brought together 20 people, 8 of them PHers. We may still not be a large group, but we sure do enjoy each other's company, and learn a lot! And the best part about it? I get to socialize with real live people who are just like me with this illness. I also get thanked by each one of them for providing them a way to share their feelings and concerns. It's definitely a great feeling, to know that I'm not only helping myself, I'm helping others living and coping with PH!

To find a PH support group near you, please go here.

Comments

Nancy said…
Wyoming's group does not have winter meetings because of the cold and the possibility of bad or closed roads. We are going to try to have some conference call meetings this winter. I hope that is successful.
10:31 AM
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