Wednesday, May 07, 2008 An Appeal for Help By Elizabeth Poyogao Pediacosset
THERE's that paired bean-shaped structures with the size of your fist in the back part of our body that are responsible for maintaining the balance of body fluids by filtering and secreting minerals from the blood and excreting them with water, as urine -- simply stated as the producers of urine.
It is one of the vital organs in the body along with the brain, heart and liver.
There are changes in the amount and appearance of your urine, you easily get tired, your body swells, your skin becomes itchy, you look sullen and gray, you feel sick in your stomach and dizzy. Worst, you feel shortness of breath.
By the signs and symptoms alone, you think twice of not caring for your kidneys and your body at all. Just because we are still young doesn't excuse us from maintaining a healthy and balanced diet.
Anyone, young and old alike, can be afflicted with kidney failure.
A week ago, a friend of mine told me about a fellow lourdesian who is suffering from kidney failure. I haven't seen her actually. Although we went to the same school way back high school, I hardly knew her.
I saw a picture of what she is now. The face is familiar but somehow she looked different from what she was years ago. Her eyes are tired and weary but I could see hope in it. Her body is frail but I could sense her spirit is strong. The will to live is there.
But when one suffers from kidney failure, there are medicines to take and weekly dialysis to undergo. Somehow, the disease is slowly taking her body and her finances too.
Out of desperation, the mother of the patient wrote a letter asking for financial assistance, hoping it could reach everyone.
The letter goes like this:
Sir/Madame:
This refers to my daughter, Mary Jean Ranalan Bacorro, 34 years of age, single and jobless. She was suffering from Kidney failure since November 2006. We have drained of money, our lot has been sold just to defray medical expenses of her twice a week hemodialysis at several hospitals here in the city. We are use to pay 5,000-6,000 pesos for every dialysis.
In this connection, may I ask for your monetary assistance for this problem, which will be use for her medication and hospital bills? I could not even afford for our daily needs.
I hope for your kind assistance regarding this matter. Thank you and God bless! Here's Mary Jean's cell phone number: 0920-5398649.
