Jaime Christmas is a patient advocate and columnist based in Auckland, New Zealand, with her cheeky doggie, Akira. She was a caregiver to a spouse who was afflicted with hATTR amyloidosis. Now she fights for equitable treatment and support for diagnosed patients and their caregivers. Although she now lives without the daily challenges of being a caregiver since her husband’s passing in 2022, she hopes to be still an encourager and listening ear to those presently walking the journey she knows only too well.
My late husband, Aubrey, was diagnosed with hereditary ATTR amyloidosis in 2013 and passed away on May 22, 2022. Those nine years were spent transitioning from having harmony in our marriage to navigating a relationship wrought with…
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Having a chronic illness is never easy, both for the sufferers and their caregivers. My name is Jaime Christmas, and my husband, Aubrey, started feeling unwell in late 2012. It all started with numbness in his fingertips, but…
As I write this, my husband is in the hospital due to complications of hereditary ATTR amyloidosis. Aubrey, 58, was diagnosed in 2013, and this nine-year journey has been transformative. We both have learned to adapt to an…
Every so often, my husband, Aubrey, and I go through this exercise where we evaluate our circumstances in life and decide if we should shake things up a bit. Since the pandemic‘s start, we both have been challenged,…
The day arrived when COVID-19 stepped into our home via our youngest daughter. She found out that a university classmate who’d sat next to her had been infected with omicron. Fortunately, she is in a self-contained area of our…
In 2018, Gov. Bill Haslam made Tennessee the first U.S. state to declare March as Amyloidosis Awareness Month. Since then, those diagnosed with the disease worldwide are acknowledged, recognized, and appreciated this month for the untold challenges…
Every week I write my column using my personal experience as a caregiver to a spouse diagnosed with hereditary ATTR amyloidosis. Writing demonstrates my competence to reflect on my words and actions. I can celebrate my strength…
As a columnist, I try to read and expose myself to topics that might inform my writing. Recently, I came across a phrase that piqued my interest because it closely reflected what my husband and I, as well as…
I recently accompanied my husband, Aubrey, to an appointment with a specialist at the hospital and noticed a sign taped to the wall in the waiting room. It was a word cloud graphic highlighting the practices that healthcare practitioners…
Every week I sit at my desk and ponder what I should write about. As I stare out the window that faces my street, I reflect on everything my husband, Aubrey, and I have encountered on our amyloidosis…
Lunar New Year celebrations, which began on Feb. 1, last for 15 days. As I write this on the eve of that date, I am busy cooking a selection of traditional dishes for the family to enjoy. Because we…
I recently counted the number of plants in my house and came up with 45. I’ll admit I’ve gone slightly overboard, but in my defense, my passion began two years ago. When the pandemic hit here in New Zealand,…
My alarm goes off at 5:30 every morning, and I mute it as quickly as possible to avoid waking my husband, Aubrey (if he’s even in bed, that is, as he suffers from insomnia). I go for a…
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