Are you 1?

Can you tell someone has Alpha by just looking at them??? The answer is no! For a few years before my dad went on supplemental oxygen no one could tell that he was affected by Alpha-1. Many of the people around us could not understand why my family was so concerned and what was really going on. Most thought it was a simple fix little did they know it is not as simple as it sounds. I remember when my father first began using supplemental oxygen, the first time my friends saw it was at my 16th birthday party. I remember some of them coming up to me and saying, "what happened to your dad is he OK?" It was like everything I had been talking about for the last two years and how concerned I was finally hit them, no things were not okay, my life was more complicated then it once had been but it was time to make another adjustment and find a new 'normal'. People on the outside of the situation had no idea what was going on until there were visible signs, its amazing how undercover this disease can be. Look at my family for example, we went years without knowing it, so spread the word you never know who could be affected and isn't getting the treatment and help they need.