St. Mary OKs Atchafalaya Construction
July 15, 2008
Rickie J. Harris
July 17, 2008
Swimming helps keep Emilie Melancon alive.
Not in an “I feel invigorated” sort of way. It’s more literal.
Watching her propel through the water, no one would guess each gulp of air can be a laborious task.
“Swimming builds up those muscles that she’ll need when she gets sick,” said her mother Laura Melancon.
What makes 12-year-old Emilie sick is cystic fibrosis, a heritable disease that makes breathing difficult and leads to chronic lung infections.
Cystic fibrosis causes production of abnormally thick and sticky mucus, which obstructs the lungs and pancreas.
Despite needing twice daily breathing treatments, taking 10 or more pills a day and having been hospitalized three times last school year, Emilie continues to excel at the sport.
“It’s fun being in the water,” she said.
She competed for her summer league swim team, the Bayou Black Tarpons, in six events at the South Central Swim Association Championships on Saturday in Larose.
“Emilie woke up at 4:30 [a.m.]. She had breathing treatments to do before we made it over here for 6:45,” Laura said.
Emilie was part of two girls’ 11-12 team relay wins in the 200-meter freestyle and 200-meter medley). She also won three individual events – 50-meter freestyle, 50-meter backstroke and 100-meter individual medley – and placed second in the 50-meter butterfly.
She received the girls 11-12 age group gold medal for earning 109 points for her team. Her outstanding performance helped lead the Tarpons to its first-ever SCSA championship.
“I did good,” she said matter-of-factly.
Emilie was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at age one. She inherited the altered gene that causes the disease from both of her parents, Houma residents Danny and Laura. The Melancons also have a 16-year-old daughter, Lauren, who does not have the disease.
According to the American Lung Association, cystic fibrosis is the second most common life shortening, childhood onset inherited disorder in the United States. Approximately 30,000 Americans have the disease.
The biggest challenge for kids with cystic fibrosis is preventing chronic infections, which causes loss of lung function and mass.
Emilie’s daily routines are centered on keeping her well.
“She’s on the seven percent saline that has to go into a nebulizer – a little machine the aerolizes it and then she breathes it in,” Laura said. “She does that every morning and every night. Then she does Pulmozyme once a day. What that does is decrease the thickness of her secretions so she doesn’t cough as much. She also has this therapy vest that looks like a life preserver. She puts it on and it hooks on to a machine and it just shakes her for about 30 minutes to get rid of the extra fluid and phlegm that she has in her lungs. It takes her about an hour to do all her treatments in the morning and then an hour in the evening.”
On top of all that, Emilie uses Xopenex and Advair inhalers when needed, and every other month she takes TOBI antibiotic.
“I don’t like to do them (treatments),” she said bluntly.
The Melancons got Emilie into swimming as a way to strengthen her lungs and help get rid built up phlegm and congestion.
She began with swimming lessons at age 7. She swam for the Bayou Knights for one summer before switching to Bayou Black swim team. By age 8, she got hooked and decided to join the Bayou Barracudas year-round swim team.
“When she joined the elite year-round team she couldn’t even swim across the pool,” Laura said. “So she’s seen great improvement since then.”
At times, Emilie has had to struggle in the pool to see that improvement.
At both of the long course state meets this year she had to stop and restart her race in the 100-meter butterfly.
“She stopped in her lane and she finished after she coughed,” Laura explained.
Emilie also has an insufficient pancreas because of cystic fibrosis.
The thick mucus obstructs the pancreatic ducts and prevents enzymes that help digest food from reaching the intestines.
Because of this she has issues with weight gain. She has to take pills with all her meals and eat that much more to keep her weight up.
“She has swim practice from 6 to 9 in the morning. I make sure she gets 500 calories in before she even get into the pool,” Laura said. “When she comes home she eats a huge breakfast – pancakes, sausage, tons of syrup. Then she’ll eat lunch, a snack, supper, snack. So it’s as much calories and protein as we can get into her system. She also does some supplemental shakes and some other things on the side to increase her calorie intake.”
Amazingly, Emilie has found just as much success in the classroom as the pool. The science whiz is an honor roll student at St. Francis de Sales Cathedral School, where she will be a seventh grader next month.
In the short haul, she will compete at the Long Course State Championships in Sulphur, beginning Thursday.
She will swim in the 50-meter and 100-meter butterfly and breaststroke, and two relays.
Emilie Melancon competes this week at the Long Course State Championships in Sulphur. She will swim in the 50-meter and 100-meter butterfly and breaststroke and two relays. * Photo by KEYON JEFF
