I’ve been neglecting my blog for the past many months and decided the best way to get back in the habit of posting is to do the Cushing’s Awareness Challenge which is 30 posts in 30 days to promote Cushing’s awareness during the month of April. April 8 is Cushing’s Awareness day in honor of Harvey Cushing’s birthday. Harvey Williams Cushing, M.D. (April 8, 1869 - October 7, 1939), was an American neurosurgeon and a pioneer of brain surgery, and the first to describe Cushing's syndrome. He is often called the "father of modern neurosurgery.

     Today I won’t go into a  lot of details about Cushing’s but will say that I believe it is very under diagnosed. I see people on a regular basis that I’m sure would test positive for Cushing’s with the right endocrinologist. I think that statistics say that Cushing’s is rare enough that only about 15 people per million have the disease. I think that number is very low but then statistics can only include people who actually have a diagnosis not the walking wounded still searching for answers.

     Our family had two children and their father with Cushing’s Disease. All three had pituitary surgery and also a BLA (bilateral adrenalectomy) to rid themselves of this disease. It was a journey of several years with a few stops and starts and a lot of heartache along the way.

     I started this blog many years ago hoping that it might help others with similar symptoms figure out what was wrong with them. It also served as a diary of sorts to help me keep track of our medical journey. Now, my older posts serve as a reminder of how much our life has improved in the last couple of years. Some posts are actually painful to go back and read and will leave me in tears. But I sometimes go back and read about the worst times just so I know that today I have much to be thankful for.

     I’m probably the most thankful for finding a great website – http://www.cushie.info/index.php. The information there along with the message boards literally saved my family. MaryO, founder, is also a Cushing’s patient. She is a very humble person and I honestly think she has no idea that she is truly saving lives with the website. I definitely credit her with my family’s health. I tip my hat to her.