Remembering Mom's Courage and Love

For 32 years I was blessed with a mother whose love and strength knew no limits. In late 2023 she started experiencing severe back pain and that is where her difficult and painful health journey started. A few scans and few months later a CT confirmed she had a tumor on her spine that caused a fracture and it was the cause of her pain.

January 31st 2024 is the day she first got admitted at Houston Methodist Hospital. A few days, multiple scans, and a biopsy later it was confirmed that the tumor was cancer that had spread from her breast. The day we got that diagnosis is the day that changed our lives forever. She did all the treatments. The radiation, the chemo medication, the immunotherapy, the spinal fusion to fix the fracture, the inpatient rehab, and the home health to try to regain the strength in her legs back. All of this while constantly being readmitted into the hospital a total of 8 times throughout 2024.

My mother was a widow since 2008 and as her only child I spent all of 2024 by her side. I spent 3 1/2 months not sleeping at home while she went between her initial hospitalization in January 31st, her first inpatient rehab stay, her second hospitalization for her surgery, and her second inpatient rehab stay. She wasn’t home until May 10th.

Throughout the rest of the year I continued to take care of her at home when she wasn’t readmitted for different reasons but mainly her pain continuing to escalate as time went on.

I spent the whole year being there for her at the hospital every single day she was there which meant I was unable to work all year because there wasn’t anyone else that would be able to be there with her or take care of her at home.

On December 21st, 2024 she was called home to be with God. I am so incredibly thankful that she is no longer suffering or experiencing pain. I am thankful that she is at peace and is reunited with my dad and my grandparents. I am so thankful that I was there at every single step of the way and that I got to say my goodbyes. I will always admire her for her strength. Her love, strength, and selflessness knew no bounds and she truly left me in awe this year. When she first got sick her main concern wasn’t her health or her pain it was me and what would happen with me if she was gone. The strength she showed throughout 2024 through all of her treatments, surgery, physical therapy, and occupational therapy is something that I will always admire.

The funds collected will be used for her memorial service with details to follow. She was very specific in wanting a Catholic mass as part of her service.