Mom, can we go to the Christmas parade?" Melissa Smoot's 16-year-old daughter, Abby, asked one afternoon last December.
Abby's fraternal twin sister, Gabrielle, and their mother stared at Abby in stunned disbelief.
"Really?" Melissa asked. "You know it will be crowded and noisy."
Abby suffered from alopecia and several other autoimmune disorders. She was also born with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), a heart condition that causes sudden and dramatic drops in blood pressure, triggering severe anxiety attacks. Crowds made Abby so anxious, often she'd swoon into unconsciousness. Except for school, Abby rarely left their Charleston, West Virginia, home.
But she was determined to go to the holiday parade. "Something just tells me I should go," Abby said shyly.
Healing hug
"Right here is good," Melissa found an isolated spot near the end of the parade route, and she and her girls sat on the curb to await the festivities.
The parade was led by a squad of local police cars, lights flashing and sirens blaring. Abby squeezed her eyes shut, but she couldn't block out the noise.
By the time the police roared past, Abby's heart was pounding, and Melissa could see her daughter's anxiety mounting, fear overwhelming her.
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