Meet Brianne....Our Latest "Feel Better Campaign" Recipient

"I plan for the future, live for today and cherish every moment I have with those that I love, because you never know what tomorrow will bring" ~ Brianne

This is Brianne.  She is a 20 year old college student who was diagnosed at birth with cystic fibrosis.  We are extremely happy to announce that Brianne is our latest recipient of our "Feel Better Campaign".  You can read more about our "Feel Better Campaign" on our recently updated website here:  FEEL BETTER CAMPAIGN

We are very excited about this campaign because we both have seen how much a nice, beautiful, dignified, designer hospital gown can help in the treatment and healing of a person dealing with a difficult diagnosis.  We have had so many women wear our gowns and express such gratitude for how our hospital gowns made a difference in their hospital stays, radiation treatments and rehabilitations.  We feel truly blessed because while each of these women thank us for designing our hospital gowns, we thank them for teaching us so many life lessons!! 

When we read stories of women dealing with tough diagnoses, we immediately want to give each of these women one of our hospital gowns.  The "Feel Better Campaign" is a small way in which we can give back to some of these women and we encourage you to read about our campaign and give back as well!!  We plan to give at least three gowns per year to a deserving person.  You can help us by nominating someone that you feel would benefit from one of our hospital gowns and may not be able to afford to purchase one themselves.  Our nomination form can be found here: NOMINATIONS

We would like to share more about our latest recipient Brianne.  Brianne recently wrote to us about how much she loved our designer hospital gowns.  She has had to spend plenty of days in the hospital and always dreads wearing the oversized, dingy, standard hospital gowns.  She loved that our hospital gowns were chic and provide dignity by covering the back side completely.  She also loved the fact that our gowns come in many sizes, including extra-small!!  Brianne chose our "Susan" gown and we think she looks fabulous in it.

Brianne is a very family oriented girl and recognized that we shared this value with her when she saw that we named our company and all of our hospital gowns after family members who we loved and were important in our lives.  Brianne is now living at home due to an increase in the number of lung infections she has had and decrease in her lung function. Her immediate and extended family are a huge support to her and to her brother and sister who are also living with cystic fibrosis.

Brianne graduated with honors from high school and completed two years of college away from home before having to move back home due to more medical problems related to her cystic fibrosis.  She is a go getter, however, as she still attends junior college near home, gardens in the backyard when she can with her mom, and enjoys going to jazz concerts with her dad.  She tries to live the most normal life that she can but her normal is very different from that of  the average person. 

Brianne spends four hours a day doing breathing treatments and chest percussion. She also takes 15 pills a day, needs to eat 4,000 calories a day to maintain her weight, and attempts at least 20 minutes of exercise a day to strengthen her lungs. When she is sick, she adds another hour to those treatments and 4-5 more pills a day!!!

With all those pills and treatments, Brianne remains so very positive which is what we love so much about her.  She recently told us the following statement, which really inspired us and made us realize that she is a perfect candidate for our "Feel Better Campaign":

"I have learned over the years that a positive attitude and outlook on life goes a LONG way.  Why waste my time being upset over the things I personally have no control over.  Sure, I have bad days where I really hate Cystic Fibrosis, but most days I am able to smile and find the beauty and good in my life. One thing I've learned about Cystic Fibrosis is that you never know what will happen. So I plan for the future, live for today, and cherish every moment I have with those that I love, because you never know what tomorrow will bring."

An Inspiring Teenage Girl Battling A Rare Respiratory Disorder

"Life is like a cup of hot chocolate, sometimes you get burned but it always tastes good."

~Emily Hanna

When you read the quote from 18 year old Emily Hanna, you imagine she might be referring to the "ins and outs" of an average teenager in America. Average is far from the life that Emily shares with the world on her blog, "Up for Air". Emily, a not so typical senior high school student, was born with a rare disorder called Congenital Central Hypoventilation Syndrome. She is only 1 of about 800 people in the world dealing with this condition. It is a very complicated problem that has stumped many of her own doctors over the years. She, unfortunately, has been in and out of hospitals her entire life but she has not let this stop her from being as normal as possible and doing things that many with her disease won't even try.

Normal people breath without even thinking about it. This is called autonomic control of breathing. Our body knows when to breath more or less depending on what is going on inside our body. With Emily's condition, the autonomic control of breathing does not exist. This can be most dangerous while people with this condition sleep as they can actually stop breathing. In severe cases this can also happen while awake.

The amazing thing about Emily is that she has not let her condition limit her activities. In fact, she is a great athlete. She is a Nevada State Champion in track and she plays on a traveling soccer team.

Emily credits one of her pediatric pulmonologists, Dr. Karen Hardy of Children's Hospital Oakland, for helping her through many of her trials. If you talk to Emily, she will tell you that Dr. Hardy has saved her life on numerous occasions. In addition to saving Emily's life, Dr. Karen Hardy works tirelessly to improve the lives of thousands of children who suffer from various respiratory diseases. She specializes in the management and treatment of cystic fibrosis. She often provides pro bono care to some of these patients and has found ways to find funding to pay for others as she serves a large underprivileged community. In talking about Dr. Hardy, Emily says, "You just don't find doctors like her anymore; she is a silent champion for the sick, the poor and the homeless."

Dr. Karen Hardy

Paying for services for children's families that can't afford health care themselves has become more difficult with our recent economic situation. Why does this all matter to Emily?? It matters because Emily has chosen to do something to help Dr. Karen Hardy. She has committed to helping make people aware of an endowment fund that will support Dr. Hardy's fellowship program. She is not just making people aware either but has set a goal for herself to help raise one million dollars for this fund. We thought we would, in turn, help her by letting all of you know about this great endowment fund in hopes that you might want to donate too! To find out more information about this, please visit Emily's website at the link below:

http://web.me.com/staceyhanna/Site/Welcome.html

A family friend of Emily's bought two Annie & Isabel Hospital gowns for Emily and here is what she had to say about having her own hospital gowns:

"I can't remember a time when my year didn't include a hospital stay. Sometimes I only have to stay for a couple of days and other times for a week. The doctors and nurses are wonderful to me and always try to make me feel a little bit normal during my visits. One of the worst things about the hospital are the horrible hospital gowns that I have to wear sometimes. They never cover enough, they are usually old and somewhat see through. Our friend, Carrie Johnson, got me two Annie & Isabel gowns before a planned surgery and I wore them everyday.

I love my Annie & Isabel hospital gowns. I have been in the hospital three times this year alone and because of all the tubes it has been difficult to wear regular P.J.'s. My Annie & Isabel gowns don't look like regular hospital gowns because of the cute fabric but they function really well with IV's and different tubes and they tie so well that I feel covered when walking around. They wear so comfortable that they gave me a little piece of home while trying to recover. One of my favorite things about your gowns is the fabric. There are several different patterns to choose from and each of my gowns have a lady bug on the sleeve. My favorite color is the pink with black polka dots. I would recommend these gowns to anyone but especially teenagers because they are comfortable and cute!"

Emily...your story has really touched us. We hope your Annie & Isabel gowns will stay tucked away in your closet, but when you do have to visit the hospital..we are so happy you are tackling those admissions with style and comfort and of course your amazing attitude in life. Try not to burn your mouth too many times on the "hot chocolate" of life! Your story is sure to inspire many as it certainly has inspired us!!