^{Guest article written by Alix Dassler, nurse practitioner at Odessa Brown Children’s Clinic at Seattle Children’s Hospital.}

As a nurse practitioner for kids with sickle cell disease, my favorite thing about my job is building long-term relationships. It’s fulfilling to walk into a room with a family I’ve worked with for years and see where they are now and how things are going. One of the ways I build that relationship is talking with them about Make-A-Wish. It’s a tool for connection, because most of the conversations I have with them center around blood tests and appointments.

It’s a gift to be able to say, "I know the journey has been hard, but you qualify for a really special experience with Make-A-Wish." They light up and the conversation lifts them into a space of imagination and dreaming, instead of one constantly steeped in their health challenges. Kids with critical illnesses don’t get a normal childhood. Medications have hard side effects. Pain can come out of nowhere, at any time. Sickle cell disease is hard. It takes away from the joyful, carefree life a kid should have.

It’s important that they receive a wish. It allows them to feel like a kid again. Having a wish allows the child to deconstruct their identity as a sick kid and see themselves as free as they connect with their childlike creativity. A wish impacts a child’s mental health. Positivity makes a difference in how kids engage with their medications, with their life, and with how they see the future. I’m grateful to offer them a wish as a part of their journey. Thank you, Make-A-Wish, for giving me the opportunity to give the kids and families I serve the opportunity to dream again!