One amazing senior at Seward High School is Linnea Hribernick. She was born prematurely, and has had to deal with Pulmonary hypertension her whole life. It has affected her in many ways, and keeps her from doing some of the things she would like to do, but she never lets that get her down.

Pulmonary hypertension is a type of high blood pressure that affects the arteries in lungs, and the right side of the heart. Basically, it causes small veins in the lungs to become blocked, making the heart work harder to pump blood, which eventually causes the heart to weaken, and potentially fail. It cannot be cured; however, certain medicines, and breathing pure oxygen, can help reduce the symptoms.

Linnea has many more responsibilities and things to worry about than most of us. Such as making sure she takes her medication everyday, and using her oxygen tank. She also has to be careful about where she travels because if she goes to an elevation that’s too high, it can make breathing much more difficult, or even nearly impossible. If she overexerts herself in things like sports or P.E., it could cause her to pass out from lack of oxygen, so she also has to curb her natural competitiveness to ensure she doesn’t injure herself.

In addition to these concerns, she has doctors’ visits every three to six months, with school work on top of that. These things can make keeping up with school difficult, but she always tries her best, no matter what, and manages to keep a good attitude through it all.

Linnea’s motto is, “Live your life to the fullest, and don’t take it for granted because you never know when it could be your last day.” Because of this, she is very excited that she’s able to participate in cheer this year, finally be a part of a team, and be an inspiration to Seward High.