I will never forget the moment my twin sister accidentally ate a peanut in our kitchen. One second everything was normal, the next she was struggling to breathe. I remember the fear as my mom injected her with an EpiPen while we waited for the ambulance. That moment is burned into my memory, and it explains a lot about my life. My name is Luke Confino, and I am a high school junior at Delaware County Christian School. I was diagnosed with moderate persistent asthma at birth, a severe peanut and tree nut allergy at age two, and severe ADHD at age seven. These conditions have been constant hurdles in my everyday life, affecting how I learn, how I compete, and how I plan for the future. My most life threatening condition is my peanut and tree nut allergy, which my sister and I both share. Growing up, I lived with the fear that one careless bite could cause anaphylaxis. That fear was not without reason. Both my sister and I have had serious reactions from accidental exposure, and watching her go into shock made the danger real. Because of experiences like that, we started oral immunotherapy to build protection against our allergens. We have been committed to this treatment for three years, and it is something we will continue long term. It takes discipline and patience, because progress is slow and you have to stay consistent even when it is stressful. Asthma has been just as challenging, especially as a competitive cross country and track athlete. In races, flare ups have tightened my breathing and slowed my times despite my hard work in training daily. It also got into my head, because every run came with the fear of an asthma flare. During my tenth grade outdoor season, symptoms became severe enough that I needed multiple courses of oral steroids, and eventually I started Xolair for severe persistent asthma that was not responding to standard treatment. Track and field matters a lot to me, and for a while it felt like asthma was threatening to take away my ability to run. Despite that, I kept going. Even while battling a severe flare related to mycoplasma, I qualified for the PIAA Track and Field State Championship in Pennsylvania. Today, with aggressive management including Xolair, Symbicort, and albuterol, I am competing again during my junior year. Asthma is still something I deal with, but I have learned how to manage it and not let it control my goals. These conditions have also affected me in the classroom. Last year I missed more than 20 days of school because of asthma, which meant constant catching up. ADHD makes long classes and tests difficult when I have to focus for extended time. I use medication and strategies to stay organized and locked in when it matters most. Even with missed days and ADHD challenges, I have maintained a 4.0 GPA throughout high school. Living with asthma, severe allergies, and ADHD has shaped me, but it has also given me direction. After my own struggles and after seeing my sister nearly lose her life, I want to become a pediatric allergist. I want to help kids and families the way my doctors have helped me, not just by treating symptoms, but by giving them confidence and a real plan. I have started exploring medical programs, including Liberty University, and I have internships with my allergists at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. My goal is to turn what I have lived through into a career where I can help other children conquer their giants.