A Touch of Scarlett, our journey with a rare bleeding disorder

To say my life has changed drastically since Scarlett and I were diagnosed with a rare Platelet Storage Pool Disorder, is an understatement. My parenting has turned into nothing I could've ever imagined and we are faced with new obstacles every day. There is a plethora of character traits that I have taken on, that help to keep my little bleeder safe. And I'm being forced to adapt new ones with every milestone she meets.  So call me paranoid , overprotective, preoccupied, unjustified, relentless, or just a crazy mom..... but this is who I've become. Some things I'm not proud of, some things I am. . But all, are a part me. . . I put my hand in front of my kids every time they go down the stairs. I have bandaids, instant ice packs and napkins EVERYWHERE I go. I have our emergency information taped to the inside of the dashboard in our cars. Scarlett isn't really encouraged to wear shorts and skirts because I don't want people to see all the bruises o...

Yesterday Northern California was hit with one of the biggest storms we've had in over a decade. While other people were running around gathering flashlights, candles and batteries. . . I was checking Scarlett's emergency bag and going over all the different scenarios that could happen, if I sent my daughter to school, on the brinks of a natural disaster. It didn't take me long to decided that she wouldn't be going to school and I couldn't risk flash floods or down power lines being a reason I couldn't get to her, in case of an emergency. Days like this I'm reminded of Scarlett's bleeding disorder more than usual. My daughter and I have the rare bleeding disorder-Platelet Storage Pool Disorder, which leaves us constantly trying to get out of harms way and questioning the "what if's" all the time. I'm ALWAYS  worried, being a working Mom, that I'm not going to be able to get to Scarlett if she's having a bad bleed. Being a Ca...