Help for a new Liver
Donation protected
Sixteen years ago we fled together with my family from my lovely country Argentina. A little bit over a year later I started having few symptoms that drew concern to my parents. I lost a lot of weight, I was only 110 pounds. I will have nose bleeds all the time as well as bloody sensitive gums. By then I was only fifteen years old. I remember one day coming from school I started bleeding out of my nose so much that my whole shirt was red. We had to go as an emergency to the hospital, we were told that there was something wrong with my liver and I had to seek emergency care from a hepatology doctor. After so many unsuccessful blood tests and labs with no certain answer of my condition, I was told I had to get a Biopsy done. This procedure was so painful, the most pain I had ever felt. However, we finally had an answer. Because of my parents language barrier, I had to translate and explain my illness to them. This was new to all of us. I was diagnosed with cirrhosis of the liver through autoimmune hepatitis stage 4. That day my life changed; I heard nurses murmuring "so young for such illness".
As time went by, every year got harder. I will easily get skin infections that will be treated with no anesthesia at all, inserting sharp objects into the affected areas. They will squeeze and clean deeply with gauzes and burning them with nitrogen. I would get bruises very quickly and the medicine will cause me to be very swollen as well. I also started loosing a lot of hair, and felt very weak. I really didn't want to even get up from bed, I would be throwing up and feel nauseous all the time.
As of now, I am thirty years old but nothing has changed for the better. I have been in and out of hospitals because my immune system has been very weak. My blood cells had lowered dramatically and it won't go up, not even with antibiotics, plasma or serum. One day the doctor approached to my room and said "its time, it needs to be replaced. We need to get ready for a transplant". At that moment my heart broke and of course I was in emergency of a transplant from stage 4, I was already stage 23.
It has been 15 years of lab studies, biopsies, getting shots of every size, everywhere in my body with no anesthesia, of many test machines, of taking a bunch of pills and still getting no results. I am still with same and even worst symptoms. My head spins around the scary idea of a transplant and I get into shock. The first thing that comes to mind is the half/half chance I have to live or die. I feel beyond tired not just physically but mentally as well. But I know I can't give up, I can't stop because in the middle of all this nightmares, God gave me the best gift I ever had, my son Andrew. I cannot think of leaving him in this world without his mom. Andrew is only eleven years old and he needs me. There are days in which instead of me helping him, he will help his ill mom.
And this is why I have decided to not give up yet, I need to stay alive. I had to ask all of you to please help me. I need to collect $30,000 to get into the waiting list for a liver transplant and it will be impossible to do it by myself. I ask from the bottom of my heart to find it in your heart and should to all my friends, peers, family, everyone that reads my story to please help me. Any help will be welcomed and I know God will bless you for being part of helping me stay alive for my kid.
I will be forever thankful for yourkindness.
Thank you very much
Yesica
As time went by, every year got harder. I will easily get skin infections that will be treated with no anesthesia at all, inserting sharp objects into the affected areas. They will squeeze and clean deeply with gauzes and burning them with nitrogen. I would get bruises very quickly and the medicine will cause me to be very swollen as well. I also started loosing a lot of hair, and felt very weak. I really didn't want to even get up from bed, I would be throwing up and feel nauseous all the time.
As of now, I am thirty years old but nothing has changed for the better. I have been in and out of hospitals because my immune system has been very weak. My blood cells had lowered dramatically and it won't go up, not even with antibiotics, plasma or serum. One day the doctor approached to my room and said "its time, it needs to be replaced. We need to get ready for a transplant". At that moment my heart broke and of course I was in emergency of a transplant from stage 4, I was already stage 23.
It has been 15 years of lab studies, biopsies, getting shots of every size, everywhere in my body with no anesthesia, of many test machines, of taking a bunch of pills and still getting no results. I am still with same and even worst symptoms. My head spins around the scary idea of a transplant and I get into shock. The first thing that comes to mind is the half/half chance I have to live or die. I feel beyond tired not just physically but mentally as well. But I know I can't give up, I can't stop because in the middle of all this nightmares, God gave me the best gift I ever had, my son Andrew. I cannot think of leaving him in this world without his mom. Andrew is only eleven years old and he needs me. There are days in which instead of me helping him, he will help his ill mom.
And this is why I have decided to not give up yet, I need to stay alive. I had to ask all of you to please help me. I need to collect $30,000 to get into the waiting list for a liver transplant and it will be impossible to do it by myself. I ask from the bottom of my heart to find it in your heart and should to all my friends, peers, family, everyone that reads my story to please help me. Any help will be welcomed and I know God will bless you for being part of helping me stay alive for my kid.
I will be forever thankful for yourkindness.
Thank you very much
Yesica
Organizer
Yesica Plaza
Organizer
Newark, NJ
