By Kiyana Rome
LifeAtStart.com reporter
Nephrotic syndrome is a kidney disorder that causes the body to excrete too much protein in the urine. This is a very rare disorder. This usually affects kids at a very young age, but it can happen at any moment. There is no cause or cure for it, and it can happen to anyone. Yes, this happened to me.
It was Christmas of 2006, I was seven years old. I woke up, jumped on my mom’s bed to wake her up, and ran downstairs. We opened our gifts together and it was time for me to meet up with my dad because he came to town for Christmas. My mom told me to get in the tub, so I took my clothing off and I noticed that my pelvic area was very puffy. I started to get scared, so I called my mom into the bathroom. I just started crying really hard.
After I washed up, we got ready to go to St. Anne’s Hospital. My mom was calling our family, including my dad’s side, telling them what happened. They checked me in and they were trying to see what was wrong with me. The nurse told us that they had to give me an IV. She didn’t know how to find my vein at all. I was crying even harder because of the sharp pains, plus her stabbing a needle in my arm. Not cool. So, they finally found someone who knows how to do it and then the doctor told us that I had nephrotic syndrome. The doctor also told us that St. Anne’s doesn’t have a pediatric or nephrology floor, so the ambulance took me to St. Vincent’s.
We went to St. Vincent’s and the doctor that takes care of patients who have nephrotic syndrome was so rude. My dad lives in Columbus, so he began calling around for hospitals that specialize in treating people with nephrotic syndrome. He found one in Columbus called Nationwide Children’s Hospital, and I started going there for my appointments.
I had this condition for almost a decade, and I finally grew out of it last year. I was so happy. I no longer have to go through all that pain in my body, the weight gain, the bullying, because all of that is behind me. It was a rough nine years, but I got through it and now I’m stronger than ever.
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/nephrotic-syndrome/symptoms-causes/syc-20375608