would you give me the gift of life?
Donation protected
My name is Maria, and I’m 45 years old. I was born and raised in Puerto Rico. I am currently living in Massachusetts while I am on the waiting list for a kidney transplant. I also need to repair my teeth which have suffered tremendously because of my health condition. I beg you to bear with me while I explain my situation further.
I was diagnosed with SLE (systemic lupus erythematous, 1986) after a period of incredible joint pain. SLE is a chronic disease in which the immune system goes crazy, and fights the body itself, instead of fighting off viruses, bacteria, and germs. In my specific case, it attacked and damaged my kidneys. Consequently, I went into acute kidney failure at 13 years of age and depended on hemodialysis treatment to live for 10 months. I cannot describe how being on hemodialysis feels physically and emotionally. I depended on a machine to live. I was attached to that machine 3 times a week for 4 hours each. I also had chemotherapy treatments in order to lower the activity of the immunological system to stop any flareup of lupus. After 10 months, I had recovered enough renal function to stop hemodialysis for the next 3 years. However, by the sixth year of chemotherapy treatment, my kidneys were completely damaged and went into end-stage renal disease in 1992. I again depended on hemodialysis treatments for 7 months, until a friend of the family offered to donate me one of his kidneys.
On January 27, 1993, I received a kidney transplant. It was incredibly successful, and I threw myself into life. I went to the University and received a B.A. degree in Social Work (1998), and later a Juris Doctor (2002). I approved my Bar Exam with 99% and went to work as an attorney-at-law. I forgot that an organ transplant is not a cure but a treatment, except for the medications twice a day and a hospitalization here and there for UTI, chickenpox, the flu, etc. I travelled the world and worked feverishly. I wanted to make for the “time lost” when I was in and out of the hospitals for so many years before and while the kidney transplant was viable.
Unfortunately, I ended up rejecting the transplant in November 2008, and again depended on hemodialysis to live. At first, I refused to give up my job, but I was too sick to keep working after a few months. I was battling constant migraines and bouts of petit mal and grand mal seizures, which still are a serious problem in my life. Surgeons removed the transplanted kidney in April 15, 2010, and my native kidneys in November of the same year. To make things worse, I was diagnosed with parathyroid disease in 2013, which made Calcium in my blood so low, that my body drew the Calcium in my bones. It was extremely painful, and it made my bones brittle, and caused little fractures all over. Surgeons removed 3 out of 4 parathyroid glands and half of the thyroid in April 14, 2015, and I went into hungry bone syndrome. Calcium continued to be out of control for a couple years. I broke my clavicle and suffered loss of bone in the jaw. I have also lived with chronic pain for over 8 years, depending on a high-dose Fentanyl patch.
After Hurricane Maria (2017), we went to Massachusetts to reunite with my siblings for Christmas. I got so ill, that I had to be taken to the hospital. I was hospitalized in UMASS Memorial Medical Center for 2 months with the following diagnosis: sepsis, multiple convulsions, third stage liver disease, etc. My family was obligated to rent the first apartment they found in the extremely expensive city, so they were with me as my medical proxy.
Furthermore, the loss of bone and problems with Calcium levels ended up causing the loss of a few molars, making it difficult to eat… and impossible to smile. Dentures are related to infections, leaving implants as the only possible option- which are very expensive. They are not covered by my health insurance, and it has to be done before the transplant (the procedure could leave me vulnerable for infections, so it has to be done before I am put on the medications to lower my immune system in order to prevent organ rejection).
Now, I must stay in Massachusetts to be eligible for the kidney transplant. I made the kidney transplant waiting list in February 2019, while I am being assessed for a possible liver transplant every few months. This because the anti-rejection medications I took for the transplants were toxic to the liver. Now I am in third stage liver disease.
My parents are my only caretakers, so they live with me in the small apartment. I’m currently surviving… not living. I can’t work in the meantime because of my dialysis treatment three times a week, physical therapy twice a week, and medical appointments a couple days a week. My self-image is hugely compromised, so I am disinclined to start new relationships. I can’t eat but bland food because my teeth are extremely brittle. I feel like I can’t smile or talk without guarding my ways. I have battled PTSD and depression for years.
On the other hand, I have no income except SSI, so I can’t afford to pay for the living expenses while living in the very expensive state of Massachusetts waiting for a possible transplant. Although the transplant itself is covered by my health insurance, the the dental implants are not covered. Needlessly to say, there are many incidental expenses to pay for.
I need to raise $60,000 to be able to have the procedure in my mouth, and to help cover the living expense while in the waiting transplant list, surgery and recovery. I humbly ask you for your help, so I can live a fruitful life, while being a contributing member of society.
I heartily appreciate your time and thank you for your help.
I was diagnosed with SLE (systemic lupus erythematous, 1986) after a period of incredible joint pain. SLE is a chronic disease in which the immune system goes crazy, and fights the body itself, instead of fighting off viruses, bacteria, and germs. In my specific case, it attacked and damaged my kidneys. Consequently, I went into acute kidney failure at 13 years of age and depended on hemodialysis treatment to live for 10 months. I cannot describe how being on hemodialysis feels physically and emotionally. I depended on a machine to live. I was attached to that machine 3 times a week for 4 hours each. I also had chemotherapy treatments in order to lower the activity of the immunological system to stop any flareup of lupus. After 10 months, I had recovered enough renal function to stop hemodialysis for the next 3 years. However, by the sixth year of chemotherapy treatment, my kidneys were completely damaged and went into end-stage renal disease in 1992. I again depended on hemodialysis treatments for 7 months, until a friend of the family offered to donate me one of his kidneys.
On January 27, 1993, I received a kidney transplant. It was incredibly successful, and I threw myself into life. I went to the University and received a B.A. degree in Social Work (1998), and later a Juris Doctor (2002). I approved my Bar Exam with 99% and went to work as an attorney-at-law. I forgot that an organ transplant is not a cure but a treatment, except for the medications twice a day and a hospitalization here and there for UTI, chickenpox, the flu, etc. I travelled the world and worked feverishly. I wanted to make for the “time lost” when I was in and out of the hospitals for so many years before and while the kidney transplant was viable.
Unfortunately, I ended up rejecting the transplant in November 2008, and again depended on hemodialysis to live. At first, I refused to give up my job, but I was too sick to keep working after a few months. I was battling constant migraines and bouts of petit mal and grand mal seizures, which still are a serious problem in my life. Surgeons removed the transplanted kidney in April 15, 2010, and my native kidneys in November of the same year. To make things worse, I was diagnosed with parathyroid disease in 2013, which made Calcium in my blood so low, that my body drew the Calcium in my bones. It was extremely painful, and it made my bones brittle, and caused little fractures all over. Surgeons removed 3 out of 4 parathyroid glands and half of the thyroid in April 14, 2015, and I went into hungry bone syndrome. Calcium continued to be out of control for a couple years. I broke my clavicle and suffered loss of bone in the jaw. I have also lived with chronic pain for over 8 years, depending on a high-dose Fentanyl patch.
After Hurricane Maria (2017), we went to Massachusetts to reunite with my siblings for Christmas. I got so ill, that I had to be taken to the hospital. I was hospitalized in UMASS Memorial Medical Center for 2 months with the following diagnosis: sepsis, multiple convulsions, third stage liver disease, etc. My family was obligated to rent the first apartment they found in the extremely expensive city, so they were with me as my medical proxy.
Furthermore, the loss of bone and problems with Calcium levels ended up causing the loss of a few molars, making it difficult to eat… and impossible to smile. Dentures are related to infections, leaving implants as the only possible option- which are very expensive. They are not covered by my health insurance, and it has to be done before the transplant (the procedure could leave me vulnerable for infections, so it has to be done before I am put on the medications to lower my immune system in order to prevent organ rejection).
Now, I must stay in Massachusetts to be eligible for the kidney transplant. I made the kidney transplant waiting list in February 2019, while I am being assessed for a possible liver transplant every few months. This because the anti-rejection medications I took for the transplants were toxic to the liver. Now I am in third stage liver disease.
My parents are my only caretakers, so they live with me in the small apartment. I’m currently surviving… not living. I can’t work in the meantime because of my dialysis treatment three times a week, physical therapy twice a week, and medical appointments a couple days a week. My self-image is hugely compromised, so I am disinclined to start new relationships. I can’t eat but bland food because my teeth are extremely brittle. I feel like I can’t smile or talk without guarding my ways. I have battled PTSD and depression for years.
On the other hand, I have no income except SSI, so I can’t afford to pay for the living expenses while living in the very expensive state of Massachusetts waiting for a possible transplant. Although the transplant itself is covered by my health insurance, the the dental implants are not covered. Needlessly to say, there are many incidental expenses to pay for.
I need to raise $60,000 to be able to have the procedure in my mouth, and to help cover the living expense while in the waiting transplant list, surgery and recovery. I humbly ask you for your help, so I can live a fruitful life, while being a contributing member of society.
I heartily appreciate your time and thank you for your help.
Organizer
Maria Ufret
Organizer
Worcester, MA
