by: Eric Lowe

Published: LifeLines for Health, vol. 13 (Spring/Summer 2019)

Between managing my own health (including a daily ITT regimen), partially running a business, raising two small children who have recently been dually-diagnosed with bleeding disorders, cheer practice, dance practice, and being married to a spouse who also works, “overwhelmed” has become a word of persistency in my life.

Momentum (CHES’ men’s inhibitor retreat) was created to improve the quality of life for adults living with active inhibitors. As one of the creators of Momentum, I can humbly say that I benefit just as much as the average Joe. Or in this case, the average Bro. That’s what these meetings become to most of us. It’s not just a place of resources to better our lives, it’s also a brotherhood.

As Janet and I were prepping for Momentum last summer (along with the rest of the CHES team), she asked me if I was ready for this. “This” meaning acting as the lead facilitator of the program, as she (who usually takes on this responsibility for most CHES programs) would not be attending. After 10 years of doing this, I still feel the nerves of most people’s biggest fear - public speaking. But to Janet’s question, I replied, “absolutely, these are my people.” When I speak to this group, I’m not hosting guests or friends. I’m strengthening the bonds of my brothers as well as my own.

Some of these guys I’ve known for years, and some were new acquaintances for me, but we all have opened arms to each other. There are no judgements, no cliches’, no negativity, hatred, or disrespect - only brotherly love and acceptance. We feel we understand each other better than anyone else can. And although we may not see or speak with each other more than a few times a year, the connection picks right back up where it left off.

Serving my overwhelmed state was the opener to the weekend, which was both happily welcomed and received as Emily Taylor sat us all down in a circle for some mindfulness techniques and theory of pain exercises. Although I don’t recall the specific methods of the session, I do remember leaving in a calm, relaxed state.

As someone who has just surpassed their 11th anniversary of ITT, vein preservation is a big concern. Like almost everyone else in this group, I can jokingly say I could be a phlebotomist tomorrow if I wanted to. But CHES’ acclaimed Kathy Byrne, who has decades of infusion experience under her belt, had tips that even I had not known of. Just changing to a 27 gauge needle has really proven to provide more mileage out of my veins. And marking a hard-to-find vein with a fingernail impression has bumped my “sticking average” up to nearly 100%. But I’m not going to reveal all of her secrets here, as I hope to see each and every (qualifying) person who reads this article at a CHES program.

Dr. Jonathan Bernstein of Connecticut Children’s Medical Center in Hartford gave us the updates on the latest and greatest products for inhibitor folks, as well as some that we either overlooked or had forgotten. After all, some products may not be new and shiny, but that doesn’t mean doctors and researchers aren’t reinventing treatment methods around them. Personally, the variety of products and the multitude of concerns and unanswered questions surrounding them are yet another overwhelming factor in my life, so I have chosen the wait-and-see method while maintaining ITT.

To close the programs off, we hopped in the pool as Chad Brown, ex pro-am wake boarder with hemophilia A and professional coach as president/CEO of the Wingmen Foundation, gave us some lessons on low-impact, water aerobics in a playful yet beneficial manner.

I look forward to reconnecting with all of our community friends and family each year at our programs, but Momentum is really something extra special to me. As I said, “my people”.