On Bended Knees, Childhood Nephrotic Syndrome


I know that a lot of folks pray real hard when things are going wrong in their lives, but not so much when their everdays are running smoothly…I’m the opposite. I have been blessed so deeply by God, and further blessed with the gift to recognize all that He’s given me, and it’s during the very smooth everydays that I find myself talking to Him the most. It’s when the hardships come along that I struggle with keeping that dialogue open between my Father and I. I think it’s because I have difficulty asking for help…although I know that He wants to help me.

Our three year old, D’Angelo, has been diagnosed with Childhood Nephrotic Syndrome, which is a set of symptoms that point to kidney problems, specifically Minimal Change Disease or MCD, which is most commonly associated with Nephrotic Syndrome (the most common form of an uncommon occurence, since kidney disease in children occurs in less that one percent of kids). Healthy kidneys clean the blood by filtering out excess water, salt, and waste products from food. They also keep protein in the blood, which helps the blood soak up water from the tissues. Kidneys with damaged filters leak protein into the urine and, as a result, not enough protein is left in the blood to soak up the water – which in turn moves from the blood into the tissues and causes swelling.

So, that’s it in a nutshell…the cause is unknown (just like his Kawasaki Disease), it’s not connected to his Kawasaki Disease (which is what we originally thought), it’s not curable (but is treatable)…oh yeah, and my heart hurts. The treatment is a steroid called Prednisone, accompanied by Tagamet to keep the Prednisone from making him sick. There are side effects, the least of which are us having panic attacks at the thought of all the side effects! Swelling of his face…because the swelling caused by the disease just wasn’t quite enough, increased irritability…check, hyperactivity…check, and sleeplessness…check. I don’t even want to get into the long-term side effects, freaks me out. He began what will be months of his prednisone treatments day before yesterday and I can already recognize some of those immediate side effects.

In short, this blog entry is both my explanation of my lack of blog activity…as well as my request that you help me out with this little prayer dilemna I have. If you all could just keep our precious D’Lo in your prayers…I will certainly be humbling myself before God as I beg Him for my child’s healing. I will be doing my best to keep up to date entries on his progress, and I appreciate each and every knee bended on my son’s behalf. Love ya’ll.

About thisnest

The Sparrows are happily married, and the parents of five children. Donna and her husband Antonio are college sweethearts who also raised his seven siblings, many with special needs, for nearly two decades. Along the way they have navigated the ups and downs of being a blended, black, white, and brown family. Donna celebrates each day of blessings and embraces her family’s “interraciality” through poetry, anecdotes, and glimpses into her beautifully chaotic life on her blog at www.ThisNest.com
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11 Responses to On Bended Knees, Childhood Nephrotic Syndrome

  1. D’Lo and your family are in my prayers. My older brother had one of his kidneys removed when he was little. He’s 51 now and still doing well.

  2. Brooke says:

    Precious D’Lo and you family are in my thoughts and prayers

  3. I’ve been thinking about your little D’Lo since I first read about what was going on. Although I do not comment sometimes, I am reading when you post something.
    You’ve got plenty of prayers coming from me. Lots of love to you and your family and especially your son!

  4. Jessica Mazone says:

    You and your family are in my prayers. I admire your strength and conviction, Donna.

  5. Laila Lacy says:

    As you remain strong, your child will be strengthened. Remember that “this, too, shall pass”.

  6. Donna, I’m sorry…it took me a while to comment on this post. It just breaks my heart to hear what you’re going through. My little nephew has kidney disease and recently underwent testing for Kawasaki disease, so I understand your fears. My nephew has also been given the same meds and has dealt with numerous symptoms, but children as they are, are incredibly resilient. The symptoms will likely lessen a bit over time as his body adjusts and you develop new strategies for coping with all this. I just want you to know that our prayers are with you and that the Lord knows your thoughts and worries. I know it’s hard, but try not to depend on yourself to fix things and just let go and let God. We’re with you hermana. <3

  7. thisnest says:

    Thank you, Everyone, for your thoughts and prayers. We appreciate your love 🙂

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