Raising Awareness to Sickle Cell Disease

RICHMOND (WRIC) - 8News is taking the lead to bring awareness about sickle cell disease. It's an inherited blood disorder that affects 4,000 people in Virginia.

Yet many of them suffer in silence because of various stigmas. 8News anchor Amie McLain explores some of them and tells us where support is available.

With all these pictures on her wall, you can tell family means a lot to Bridget Wilson -- and for her, a good support system starts at home.

When her twin boys Brendon and Bryant were born with sickle cell disease -- she became their number one advocate.

For the past 25 years, she's been right at their side through hospital visits, health scares and horrific pain.

"One of the twins told me that he felt like he wanted to die because the pain was so intense," she says. "So as a mother that breaks your heart because there's nothing you can do but try to help them cope with the pain."

Ironically, one big stigma is that sickle cell patients don't experience much pain.

"They really think when they come into the hospital and they're in a pain crisis that they are drug seekers."

For that reason, many patients receive smaller doses of the pain medicine they're prescribed or their complaints aren't taken seriously.

Wilson's son, Brendon dealt with that scenario last year when he went to the hospital after suffering a stroke.

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Raising Awareness to Sickle Cell Disease