Childhood Leukemia- A Life Changing Moment
It was 1989. I was 7 years old, going on 8 that year…
I was a happy child, always playing and having fun with my 5-year-old sister Sarah. That day, Mum and dad were painting the kitchen and I was laying
on the lounge under a blanket even though the day was hot. Mum was concerned. She was worried because for the past week I had just been laying there and I wasn’t my usual self.
Just after lunch, they decided to take me to our local doctor. He did a few tests and discovered I had Urinary Tract infection but he was concerned because my symptoms weren’t normal of UT and he wanted to run further tests. After taking full bloods he sent us home.
Two days later he called mum and dad and asked to come back to the doctors office immediately. He sat mum and dad down and told them he suspected that I had childhood leukemia and wanted to send me to the local hospital to confirm it.
My mum broke down and I had no idea what Leukemia was, or what it meant.
We drove to Blacktown hospital in NSW where doctors tried 7 times in each arm to find a vein. I was kicking and screaming at all these people hurting me and frustrated, my parents got angry and asked to be sent elsewhere where the staff knew what they were doing. By now I was very fatigued and couldn’t stop sleeping.
They put me in an ambulance and we went to Camperdown Children’s Hospital in Sydney. First go, they found a vein, put me on a drip and gave me my very first bone marrow. A few hours later, it was confirmed. I had Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia and would have to be admitted to the hospital to start chemotherapy immediately. My parents saw councilors so they would understand the entire process and so began the worst 2 and half years of my life.
Everyday I would have to undergo daily blood tests, bone marrows twice a week and lumber punctures (needle between the spine vertebrae) once a week.
If my temperature rose, I would be placed in a bathtub full of ice. I would scream when I heard the bloods trolley coming down the hallway and would scream and kick at nurses as they held me down for my daily blood tests. I developed a severe case of phobia against needles.
My hair had been past my bottom before I got leukemia but once I started chemotherapy I began to lose my hair and it had to be chopped off. My hair thinned to near baldness but thankfully I never lost all of it. I was devastated though.
After 6 months, I tried to go back to school. The school was really good and gave a puppet show to my entire year and other years to show them I really wasn’t any different just very sick.
My friends were great but I constantly found myself at the nurses office feeling ill and ended up leaving school for a year after 123 half days.
I lost all my basic skills in mathematics and couldn’t do half the things I used to be able to.
My sister began to feel left out. My parents were constantly at the hospital with me and she was being left with my grandparents and other family members all the time.
In 1990 I developed Chicken Pox and because my immune system was too weak to fight any other diseases, colds and such, I had to be placed in isolation where only my parents could enter the room and anyone else that came to visit would have to speak to me via intercom through a glass window.
In February 1991 doctors told me I would more then likely never had children because the drugs I had been treated with, had caused me infertility. I wasn’t aware at that age, what that meant for me long term but my parents were upset and crying.
In April 1991 I was diagnosed in Remission! My family, friends and relatives were ecstatic and all I knew was that it meant no more hospital stays or daily blood tests.
For a year after I had to go weekly for blood tests, once a month for bone marrow and one every 3 months for lumber puncture.
It soon changed to every 2 years, then 3 and now finally 5 years. Every 5 years now I also have to undergo an echocardiogram due to some of the drugs I was given. It has put a strain on my heart and occasionally I have heart pains. I suffered a minor heart attack at 23 years of age in May 2005. I had to go undergo leukemia testing again but thankfully the results came back clear and I checked myself out that night.
I also suffered another minor heart attack 2 months ago, but again it wasn't serious and this time I was released with referrals to specialists for an MRI, CT scan, ECG, EKG, Blood Test and a few other things.
I am very proud to say that even though doctors had said I would never have children, I now have two very beautiful daughters. Klaudia Mary born September 7th 2002 and Natalia Lee born August 19th 2005.
I believe this has only made me a much stronger person. I know I can get through anything, after having been through this.
I have experienced bad times such as my parents divorcing in 1994, an abusive relationship in 2004 when I was almost killed by my violent ex and my ex fiance having an affair with another woman in 2006.
I am very happy to say, that I am now happy, I am healthy, I have two beautiful children.
“Live life to the fullest”. I LOVE that motto because you never know what can happen at any moment.
I would also like to say a HUGE thank you to Camp Quality (please click the link to read what they are about) because if I had never joined Camp Quality, I would never have gotten through this and a HUGE thank you to my parents, relatives, sister and friends who supported me through the entire traumatic experience.
I wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for all of your love and support!
(June 2007) (
