Brianne Cullen, 17, called her mom in a panic saying she couldn’t breathe — and it led to a terrifying diagnosis.
Christie Martin got a frantic call from her daughter, Brianne Cullen, who said she was having trouble breathing and couldn’t catch her breath.
Christie rushed her 17-year-old daughter straight to the nearest emergency room. Once there, Brianne was given oxygen, X-rays, and medication before doctors confirmed she had bronchiolitis obliterans — a condition more commonly known as ‘popcorn lung’.
At the time, Christie had no idea that Brianne had secretly started vaping when she was just 14 years old.
Remembering the day everything went wrong, Christie, from Henderson, Nevada, US, said: “[Brianne] went to cheer sick, she had a cough and a sore throat. She was lifting up these kids, tumbling, it’s all very straining.”
“I couldn’t understand her, she kept saying ‘I can’t breathe’, it was the scariest thing.”
Christie later said she truly believes that Brianne’s love of cheerleading ended up saving her life.
“The doctor came in and said, we need to have a very serious conversation,” she added, describing the hospital visit that changed everything.
“I didn’t expect the news she gave me, that it was popcorn lungs that’s permanent and children are dying from it. […] We still don’t know if there will be long term effects.”
Christie explained: “We don’t know the status of her lungs now, I was an absolute mess at the ER that night.”
“They told me she should be able to make a full recovery because we caught it so early, but it can also cause problems like cancer in the future. I thought I failed as a mother.”
“It took a deadly diagnosis for her to stop,” Christie added, reflecting on how serious the situation had become.
Now, she is determined to warn other parents and help stop kids from easily getting hold of vapes and e-cigarettes.
“This is meant to be a cautionary tale to not let your kids vape no matter what. I hope to God they ban them, it’s worse than smoking.”