Darlene Ulmet

Welcome to my CaringBridge website. I am using it to keep family and friends updated in one place. I appreciate your support and words of hope and encouragement. Thank you for visiting.

I am an autoimmune disease survivor and I have a long history of autoimmune health issues beginning at age four with ITP and presenting throughout my life. For the past five years, I have been struggling with MCTD, fibromyalgia,and various blood related and skin disorders.

Recently I am battling “normal people” diseases and conditions. On Friday, February 12th, a large mass was discovered on my epiglottis. A biopsy surgery was ordered for Monday, February 15th and I was sent to the hospital for regular pre-admission testing. On Saturday, February 13th, I was informed that my ECG was abnormal and I would need a cardiac evaluation before they could proceed with the surgery. On Sunday, I found out that my employment was being terminated due to excessive absences for which my PCP had failed to provide necessary medical documentation in a timely enough manner to prevent termination.

My primary symptoms are throat pain, swallowing dysfunction and extreme fatigue. I am scheduled for a cardiac stress test on Wednesday. If I pass the cardiac evaluation, the biopsy surgery will be rescheduled for Monday, February 22.

My mother (age 94) is still living with me and we are taking care of each other as a dynamic duo.

Thought and prayers are very much appreciated at this time.

Darlene