Zoe Deibel of Elk Grove was born at the UC Davis Children's Hospital.
Nearly 18 years later, she is still a regular patient there.
"I was born here, so I've continued to go here so I can follow the same nurses and doctors, since what I have is so rare," said Zoe.
Zoe's mom, Christine Deibel, said the condition is a systematic lymphatic malformation, causing swelling her in lungs.
"Cystic fibrosis is an easy way to understand it. It's not the same, but has some similarities," explained Christine.
Zoe said she lived in the NICU as a baby and now is always in the PICU.
"The nurses have become more like second family members for me," said Zoe. "Famous Zoe from the 7th floor!"
Christine was 28-years-old and was at the doctor's for a routine ultrasound when she got news. Zoe was delivered during an emergency cesarean section at 33 weeks, and at the time doctors said there was a 1-percent chance of her surviving.
"But I could feel her move move inside of me. Even as they kept telling me things were bad, I could feel her fighting," said Christine. "For me it became very simple: I'm going to trust her. If she's going to fight, I'm going to fight...[our doctor] said, 'One percent is still hope, so if you're gonna fight, I'll fight with you. We'll do this together.'"
Being born in this hospital, coming frequently for treatments and surgeries, living here for long periods of time, Zoe has created a lot of memories at UC Davis Children's Hospital. She has had a lot of firsts here.
"Probably my favorite memory: getting my dog here," said Zoe. "We've had every holiday here."
"You learned how to ride a bike in the hallways of the 7th floor," added Christine."
When ABC10 met up with the Deibels, Zoe was spending the day making another memory at the hospital: Ccooking with Executive Chef Santana Diaz. Zoe has dreams of becoming a chef one day.
"My parents don't cook that much, but my aunt did and my grandpa did," said Zoe. "I like watching the Food Network in between Nickleodeon, so on the DVR, we would have 'Rachael Ray' and 'Spongebob.'"
Zoe added she was homeschooled for a lot of her childhood, so cooking was something to do.
"I didn't have other kids," said Zoe. "[Cooking] is normally my safe spot."
When meeting Zoe, you can tell she has a beautiful spirit right away. She's strong and resilient. Ask Zoe where she gets it from and she'll tell you: Her mom. But ask Christine, and she'll tell you that those are the qualities she has gotten from Zoe.
"One of the greatest gifts when you have a child who is not healthy all the time...you make these connections with people. You have these opportunities. You get this constant reminder to be present and centered," said Christine. "It forces you to pause and have a little more joy.
In August, that little baby who only had one percent chance of surviving will turn 18-years-old. Next spring, Zoe will get her Make-A-Wish wish granted! She'll head to Italy, hopefully for a month, to take cooking classes. She'll make memories out of the country for the first time, but she'll never forget the memories she has made at the place it all started.
"We have some phenomenal nurses [and doctors]," said Christine. "[The nurses] on this floor, that's part of the tribe. They are everything in our world."
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