It's the first Thursday in November and yet for more than 7 years blogging, I've never written a Thankful Thursday post. It's so fitting this month especially with Thanksgiving just 4 weeks away.
This morning as I was scrolling Facebook on a group I belong, I saw a photo of a little girl who was clearly no older than my daughter (21 months) and my nephew (19 months). She was sick with pneumonia. Her mother took a photo of her, along with her vent monitor readings.
You see, my sister and I belong to this FB group called CCHS which stands for Central Congenital Hyperventilation Syndrome. In English, this is a genetic mutation disorder, in-born in about 1,000 children in the world. When they go to sleep, sometimes they stop breathing. Their brain lack the desire to breathe. So, when and if you play "Hold your breadth in the water with these people".... They will most likely win, because it's natural for the rest of us, when short of breadth to gasp for air.
In order to make sure they breathe and keep their brains oxiginated, these children (and even into adulthood) are kept on ventilators. Depending on how severe or young, whether they are sick or well, the machine may breathe for them.
This little girl lives in Peru, South America - a 3rd world country. The doctors there don't know much about the disorder and according to the mother, the doctors really don't care about her daughter's condition. The insurance companies really don't care about her medical needs.
To be vented, these children have a trach that runs into their breathing tube. As I learned from my sister, trach care is highly important. Otherwise, the child can be sick more often.
My sister change out her son's trach once a week and use a new one every time. She changes it out more often when he's not well. (You can get bacterial infection from trach!)
Poor little Allison's last trach change was 4 months ago. Her trach size is for adults (too big for her little throat) and now that she's sick, she's pulling it out often because she's irritable. The trach was re-used from other patients.
I just cried after reading poor little Allison's situation.
The group wants to send trachs to Peru and we found out, in order for Allison's mother to be able to receive it from the post office, she too has to pay another "fee" to get it released. Lord, please have mercy and keep Allison well!
My nephew is doing well. There were major setbacks in his growth and health as he was growing up but just a few months ago, the physicians gave him a clean bill of health and that he's on par with everyone his age.
If you look at his photo with my daughter, he outweighs her although he is younger.
When my nephew was a brand new infant, my father and I talked about how lucky we are to live in America, to be able to have such high advancement in medical technology. My family and I hailed from Malaysia. The CCHS condition could have been undiagnosed when he was born. We would have taken Laynson home and just find out one day, he never woke up. And we may never know why.
So, especially today, I'm thankful yet again that I get to come to America, live in America and be a productive citizen of the United States of America. Sure, there are things I don't agree with politics, bla bla bla but one thing I know for sure, it sure beats living in a 3rd world.
But Malaysia too has come a long ways from when I left it back in 1997. I'm grateful for my roots but I'm thankful to be here.
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Content & Photography Copyright © 2013 by Loreena Yeo (3:16 team REALTY)
AR Nov 2013 Contest: Thankful Thursday - Thankful to be here...
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