About Me






My name is Erica, I am 26 years old and from Eastern Kentucky. 
I married my high school sweetheart Ryan in 2006. We have been through thick and thin but always managed to come through it stronger.


We have two handsome and rotten little boys, Taylor who is 7 and Luke is 4. They fight and argue all the time but they are best friends. Taylor is our heart warrior, he was born with a hole in his heart. His Congenital Heart Defect is known as ASD. June 25th, 2011 he had open heart surgery to patch the hole at Kosair Children's Hospital in Louisville, KY. He still goes for yearly Cardiology visits, but thanks to God and wonderful surgeons he is now heart healthy. Luke is full of life and energy, never a dull moment around him. 


 I started this blog as an outlet for myself, a way to deal with grief and just everyday life in general. I am NEW to this all so I am really trying to figure it all out, bare with me.Since I was a child I have known about Huntington’s Disease because my paternal Grandmother was put into the nursing home with it when I was 2. She had five children, one of them being my Dad. Each child of a person with HD has a 50/50 chance of inheriting the fatal gene. All of her children including my Dad tested positive for HD. In 2006 Dad was put into the Nursing Home because he required professional 24-hr care.
                              
                         Dad Before HD
          Dad With HD
I did choose to be tested in 2009, because I felt like I worried about the “WHAT IF’S” all the time. I did test positive my CAG repeat is 45. I made the choice not to tell my Dad. By this time he was in late stages of the disease and I didn't want to see any more pain on his face, or give him more to worry about. I was pre-symptomatic at the time I got tested.


March 15, 2010 my world was turned upside down when my Mother was murdered. I had to be strong through it all because I was four months pregnant at the time. 




Then only seven months later on October 17th, Dad took his last breath after losing his battle with Huntington’s. I know each individual deals with grief in there own way. I feel as if it didn't really sink in until the last couple years. Now I find it is hard to distinguish the difference between normal depression and grief with losing both of my parents in such a short time, or is it the Huntington’s Disease.
Please bare with me on my journey with support and prayers. If you have any questions or would just like to talk, add me to Facebook, Twitter, or Email: ejewell07@hotmail.com

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