On November 4th, I had the opportunity to share another part of my story.
Since starting my blog, I have been given the opportunity to share large parts of my parenting journey. The trials. The triumphs. The good and the bad. As you probably, know, I censor myself. I choose what to share, because I also don’t want to perpetuate negativity, or bad vibes. That’s just not who I am.
However, I will share challenging parts of my life if I believe it will help another person. Even if that person is only ONE person, then as a blogger and a human being, then I know I have done my part in this world when sharing. It is through the sharing that we get to learn from one another, that we realize we are not alone, and that we can take a somewhat negative situation and turn it into a positive one.
In May of 2014, my family had our first run in with Dengue.
Nino was sick for almost a week.
In my house, when the kids (or even the adults) have a fever for more than 3 days, I take them to the village clinic for a dengue duo test. The dengue duo test can tell us whether they have dengue and it’s an active virus, or whether they have had dengue before because of the obvious presence of antibodies.
When I finally convinced Nino to go to get the test, he was in really bad shape.
I don’t know why men wait this long!
I also don’t know why men don’t like doctors. I don’t know why men think their wives don’t know any better. So as you can probably figure out, I was frustrated that he made me wait so long, because I knew we were in a bad situation.
Nino spent 6 days in the hospital. He was laid up and was not even able to attend his grandmother’s funeral. But as soon as his platelets started rising, he insisted on being released from the hospital. He had cabin fever and wanted to spend the rest of the time recuperating at home with his kids.
It was a very scary situation. Nino’s platelet count was so low the doctors were talking about blood transfusions. We are lucky that his health took a turn for the better before it got to that point.
Very lucky.
Very BLESSED.
There are a lot of precautions that I take to guard my family against Dengue. I don’t mind sharing these precautions, because I know as a mother, when I am armed with information I can make educated decisions on how to take better care of my family. And through the sharing of my experiences I hope my friends, family, and readers to be able to make better decisions on how to care for their families as well.
This is why I didn’t hesitate when I was asked to take part in the recent information campaign on Dengue.
This informative event was launched on the many experiences of the ambassadors who were chosen to share their families’ experiences with this devastating disease.
There were photo opportunities where we could take the pledge and share on social media using hashtags to bring awareness to the new vaccine that is available here in the Philippines.
There was a maze where we could visit the various stories that were chronicled to share how dengue does not discriminate, as it affects across the population in every socio economic demographic.
There was also a readiness test that participants could take which would not only test their understanding of this deadly disease but also increase the knowledge that they took home to safeguard themselves and their families in preventive care.
But because I know we are all connected through the sharing of our stories, I was most intrigued by the other ambassadors who were courageous enough to share their stories as well.
Maricel Laxa Pangilinan shared how she suffered from this now preventable disease twice.
Did you know that each time you contract dengue you run the risk of it being more severe?
Suz and Paolo shared their experience with dengue by recounting the helplessness he felt as he suffered from this debilitating disease. I identified with Suzi, because since my love was affected so terribly, I knew first hand how she probably grappled with fact that there was nothing she could do, but be there for him, and of course pray for his full and speedy recovery.
Through the sharing of everyone’s stories, the games, the informative video snippets, I learned (and reinforced) a few basics by the time the program was over, one thing I know for sure, is that we have to be vigilant in protecting our families against this preventable disease.
Want to know more about how you can be a #WallAgainstDengue?
Visit:
https://www.facebook.com/WallAgainstDenguePH/
