Amanda Rudd June 2008
An 18-year-old high school senior, Amanda Rudd is involved in all the typical teenage activities of sports, school, and hanging out with friends, enjoying a full and happy life despite her chronic condition of cystic fibrosis (CF). Amanda, or Mandie as she is known to her friends and family, has never used CF as an excuse for not doing something that she wanted, and she doesn't believe that the condition is a roadblock in her life.
Balancing a Busy Schedule
Born and raised in Utah, Mandie lives a busy and active life along with her parents and two sisters 15-year-old Natalie, who also has CF, and 10-year-old Nicole. Each weekday, Mandie wakes up at 5:20 a.m. to complete a long and intense round of therapies, including wearing a vibrating vest to help loosen mucus from her chest, inhaling antibiotics and other medications, a routine that she repeats each night. To pass the time while she is doing her treatments, Mandie puts on her make-up, watches television, reads a book or works on school work in the morning or evening. She jokes that she can get quite a lot of things done while she is using her nebulizer. She and her sister Natalie often do their treatments together to help pass the time. Every three months, Mandie wakes up extra early at 4:50 a.m. in order to complete her quarterly course of additional antibiotics. Throughout the day, Mandie also takes enzymes with meals and snacks and carries an inhaler with her.
Besides her medical routine, Mandie participates in several sports and exercises on a daily basis to keep healthy and strong. She plays libero and back middle positions on her high school volleyball team, second guard on the basketball team and is a sprinter, hurdler and relay runner on her track team.
Diagnosed at birth, Mandie has long since learned to take care of herself and is comfortable with all aspects of her health maintenance. She feels that it is important to be open about her condition. Her teachers, friends at school and her coaches all know that she has cystic fibrosis, and they are all by her side, giving her strength.
Living Each Day to the Fullest
"Mandie is an amazing young woman who has learned to focus on all the positive aspects of her life, whether it is her academic achievement or her accomplishments in sports and community service," said Somer Love, panel member of Heroes of Hope Living with CF. "She lives each day to the fullest."
Mandie is a firm believer in giving back to the community and has spread her infectious positive attitude throughout her community and beyond. Mandie and her family have participated in the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation's Great Strides®, a national run/walk that raises money for CF research. Participating in Great Strides is very significant to Mandie personally because she feels that she is helping promote CF research and therefore helping both her sister and herself. Mandie has also volunteered for Limbs of Hope, an organization which donates prosthetics to individuals in need in third world countries. A Wish Ambassador for Make a Wish Foundation, Mandie helps make wishes come true for children with life-threatening illnesses and was also a wish recipient herself. When Mandie was a young child, she was granted her wish to go to Thailand and ride elephants with her family, a trip that is incredibly memorable for them all.
Mandie's wish now, which she is very close to fulfilling upon her high school graduation, is to go to college and work in the field of dentistry. In the fall, she will be attending Utah Valley University. Getting into the college of her choice is her proudest accomplishment. Mandie's advice to other teenagers with CF who want to go to college and pursue their interests is to be consistent and on track with their medical routines and to embrace CF as something that you just have to deal with. She describes CF as always running by her side, pushing her to train harder in sports and in pursuing her goals.
