Lea Anne O’Brien
My name is Lea Anne O’Brien. I am a mother of 5 children, four of whom are teenagers. I work from home as a full-time medical writer and as if that isn’t enough, I am also the mother of a child that has recently been diagnosed with IgA Nephropathy. We went to our pediatrician for an annual sports physical for school and had no idea that anything was out of the ordinary. Even when they found blood in her urine, we were not worried. My normal reaction is to think of the worst, but after a quick review of the internet, I assumed it was nothing. We were referred to a pediatric nephrologist for evaluation. Unfortunately, on my daughter’s 13th birthday, we were given the news that she has chronic kidney disease. My daughter has always been very healthy and the news came as a shock to all of us. We were so stunned, we did not know what questions to ask or even understand what it all meant at the time. As a medical writer I have written about renal and cardiovascular disease for many years, but having it touch my family personally is quite different. All of the information I know seems irrelevant. The only thing I want to know is what does this mean for my daughter. A question that can only be answered with time. We have come a long way since that day in accepting the diagnosis and “living” with kidney disease. As a parent, there are no rule books to raising kids, but I have always found that we all benefit from sharing experiences. I appreciate hearing from other parents who are also dealing with chronic kidney disease. Hopefully, others may appreciate my story.
