Yes. Hello again, blog. I thought I was back on track the last time I posted in February, but apparently, not. Life happened.
We had several losses this year. 3 from my side of the family and 2 from my husband’s side. Parang peste daw ng tao sabi ng asawa ko.
Last May, our grandmother (our mother’s mother) passed away after enjoying 94 years on earth. All of us siblings went home on different schedules to our mother’s place for the wake and burial.
A week after our grandmother’s burial, we found out our eldest sister was very sick. The plan was just to have her checked. But we haven’t even sat down for 2 minutes and the doctor immediately advised us to have her confined. It was a difficult time for us, and most especially for my sister. We were all shocked when the doctor told us it could be Leukemia. How did that happen? Why? Why her?
During her first confinement, she needed to undergo blood transfusion because all blood-related statistics are low. One was even zero. What the heck. We needed 7 bags of O+. Her daughter who she has the same blood type was still overseas, and was only scheduled to come home July or August. The rest of us siblings are mostly B+.
Those 7 bags were hard to produce and find. There is scarcity of blood. For real. We were able to get 1 bag from the hospital and then from Red Cross Baguio but Red Cross Baguio did not have enough. My cousins and siblings went as far as Red Cross La Union and Pangasinan. I even asked them to be ready to go to as far as Tarlac and Pampanga if needed. We had no contacts. We just took the chance. Luckily, we got one bag each from both La Union and Pangasinan. La Union did not want to give us at first, but they took pity because my cousins traveled all the way from Baguio. We got an endorsement from Red Cross La Trinidad for 1 bag in Pangasinan that’s why we were able to get one there.
The following days, we would go around all the hospitals in Baguio to check if they have extras. Of course, everything is reserved for their patients. Twice a day, one of us would visit Red Cross Baguio and La Trinidad in the hopes that they will give in haha. We got lucky because one weekend, there was a blood donation campaign by Red Cross Baguio.
The doctor advised my sister to undergo bone marrow aspiration because after completing the 7 bags of blood and other medications, her statistics have only improved a little. We encouraged my sister to do it. We brought the specimen at National Kidney and Transplant Institute.
When the results came back, it was confirmed. Acute Myeloid Leukemia. AML. She had to undergo chemotherapy if she wanted to. We encouraged her to take the chance. And so she did. It breaks the heart seeing her in pain and all the side effects of chemo. She started losing hair right after her first cycle. We were optimistic though. Unfortunately, she lost the battle exactly 4 moths from her first hospitalization. The culprit? Sepsis. Infection. Due to low immune system, she had infection. Her AML journey: May 16 – September 16, 2019. We lost her 2 months before her 52nd birthday.
Backstory: both my nieces (my sister’s daughters) got pregnant at early ages. Both have no partners. My sister became a grandma when she was not even 50 years old. At the time those happened, I was a bit sad because they were too young to be single mothers. I got my answer as to why those happened. My sister helped took care of her grand kids. They were her joy. And now, I’m glad that she was able to experience being a grandma. I am more at peace now.
Six days after our sister died, another cousin died. Our father and this cousin’s father are brothers.
A week after this cousin died, husband’s nephew died.
But wait, there’s more. Not even 2 weeks since the nephew died, his uncle died.
Hay life. So unpredictable. Rest in peace na lang sa inyo and please be our angels.
So there. We spent our first year of marriage dealing with health issues and deaths hehe.
And no, we are not yet pregnant. But I’m fine with it. If I were pregnant while all of these were happening, I know I would not be in my best mood. I would be mostly stressed and that will not be healthy for me and the baby and for hubby too hehe. So, trusting the Lord’s perfect timing on the pregnancy department. Besides, I am still a palamunin hehehe. Haven’t gotten to applying for jobs because of all the hanash the past months. So, Lord, job na lang po muna then baby keri na hehe.
I missed blogging so hopefully, I am truly back this time. Hehe.
But for now, I need to check my FarmVille hahaha!
Sorry to hear this, sis. I think nakita ko sa FB yung about sa death ng sister mo and was able to extend my condolences through a comment. Parang plague, ano, sunud-sunod talaga. I can only imagine the stress and the pain. Cyberhuuuuugs!
Re: baby naman, I hope and pray you get pregnant soon! 🙂
Thank you sis. So far, wala naman nang sumunod. Marami pang kung anong issues pero keri na. Tuloy lang ang buhay. Cyberhugs back! And yes, baby na talaga ang wish ko. Putting it out in the universe but still trusting the Lord’s perfect timing.
I found your blog through Life in Manila.
The story of your sister really caught my eye because I also had bone-marrow failure (pre-Leukemia). I went through similar treatment as she did including a bone-marrow transplant. Luckily, I survived. I’m so sorry you lost her, but I keep praying and hoping that those people we lose become our guardian angels.
I am half-Igorot/half-Ilokano. I studied for a semester at UP Baguio then we moved to the US. Baguio remains to be my favorite city.
Hi Ms. Kayni. I remember reading your posts about your health concerns too. I’m glad that you surpassed all that. Thank you for your condolences. We are all trying to move on now, especially her children. It’s tough sometimes but we all get by.
Do you still visit PH? Hope to meet you in Baguio. I am back in Baguio now, after almost 2 decades of adventure in Manila :).
I haven’t been to Baguio since 2009. I’m hoping I will be able to come for a visit in the next couple of years. It’s hard to schedule trips to the Philippines because of the long flight. My body is still not where it used to be. Let’s keep-in-touch. Hopefully, we’ll get to meet in the future.