Updates on Anya as of February 24, 2010

This was an email sent last February 24, 2010 which we forgot to upload in the blog.

BTW, target date of garage sale was moved to April 10-11 so we have more time to prepare.  And we've tied up with a piano concert (see photos) for fundraising thru ticket sales and sponsorship packages.

Email sent February 24, 2010

Dear Family & Friends      ....    (long read below)

It has been more than a month since we first sent our first email about our daughter.  And we are thankful for the many supportive replies we received.  So many people around the world are cheering on our little Ate.  Several prayers have been passed around including the prayers below.  We printed out a few and distributed to family & friends.  We will print some more – we ran out of ink!  A few have asked for her photo so that seminarians and nuns can pray over Ate.  People we do not know said they will give us their miles for our overseas trips.  Please hold on to them, we have our first trip this July 2010 ;) A few friends have visited Anya.

The most touching so far is from an engaged couple.  They called to tell us that in lieu of give-aways for their wedding, they will give their allocated budget to Ate’s needed therapy.  They will even distribute the prayers at the wedding.  It is such a beautiful gift.  Their wedding give-away is a message of complete trust in God for they truly believe that Ate’s miracle will come true.  And in the sacrament of marriage, complete trust in God is what is needed.  And to their guests, they share a message of hope, generosity and love.  It brings me to tears every time I think about that couple.

Miracles happen everyday in Ate’s life.  She can roll to her side, her violent seizures are gone ever since she started on homeopathic remedies, her eyes don’t cross as often, she doesn’t scratch her eyes as often (which is a kind of seizure).  She won her 2 week battle over a really bad cough and cold before it got any worse.  Pneumonia is the number one cause of illness and death for the condition Ate has… so anyone who sneezes near Ate gets us really protective.  New therapies that offer a better life for Ate are presenting themselves to us.  A therapist (specializing in cranio-sacral therapy for infants) based in Hong Kong will be in Manila this April and she can do the initial evaluation of Ate then.  That saves us 1 trip!  Afterward, we would have to go to Hong Kong.  People we don’t know are praying for Ate.

A lady whom we do not know received our email and came to our house (which is so out of the way for her) to bring us a message of hope.  She told us of her battles with cancer and how the Singapore government hospital sent her home to die; how she was able to conceive a child after menopause and after a ligation; how she survived liver cancer then breast cancer; and how prayers have helped her.  She will be patching us up with a friend in Hong Kong who does stem cell treatments.

We were not able to email all family and friends about Ate.  We would like to keep all those praying for her updated through email (even if we don’t know you personally).  Also, as part of Ate’s pep squad, kindly print a copy of the prayer attached and distribute to family and friends.  We will call you her pep squad because she can hear you cheering her on.  And we pray that will literally happen! 

Another update that temporarily brought our spirits down was the test result of the auditory brainstem response which indicates that Ate has profound hearing loss on both ears.  The sound of an airplane engine is deafening to our ears but it reaches Ate as a whisper.  Despite this, we still continue to play music, make loud noises and talk to her often.  Okay sometimes we sing with our out of tune voices.  Her ears are okay, it’s the wiring to the brain that needs a lot of stimulation so it can be “awakened.”  We are literally fighting against all odds because prognosis for hearing is … well, there is nothing to say.  But we don’t care because Ate will be the exception. 

Several kinds of therapies are being considered.  Some are available here while others require trips to Hong Kong and Singapore.  We have ruled out therapies available in U.S. and Europe for now – even if they offer better ones.  But even with all the therapy in the world, only prayer and God’s love can heal Ate.  So we continue to ask for your prayers.

Among the many therapies she has to do, we are deciding on which ones to do first given the time and budget.  While we want to do some sooner, we have to postpone because of the needed finances.

Among the therapies / treatment / activities for now:

Ongoing:

1. Physical therapy at home with a therapist who does home visits 1x a week.  We’re lucky we got a time slot!  We do the exercises the rest of the week.
2. Homeopathic remedies for seizure control
3. Brain Food – organic vegetables, gluten free diet, vit B complex and Omega 3 for now.  Other vitamins and minerals after chromosomal test has been done to determine what she needs in her system.
4. Kindermusik
5. Lots of stimulation throughout the day!
   

Others we want to do but still pending because of doctor’s approval and funding

1. Hyperbaric Oxygen Treatment (available in Manila)
2. Cranio-Sacral Therapy (in Hong Kong)
3. Advanced Biomechanical Rehabilitation (in Singapore)
4. Placenta Stem Cell Treatment (in Hong Kong or Singapore)

We are planning a series of fundraising activities so we hope you do not tire of us.  It will take more than one to cover continuous therapy.  Once we start a specific therapy, we cannot stop halfway but complete the recommended frequency.  The hyperbaric oxygen therapy, for example, would require between 20 to 40 sessions over a span of 20 to 40 days.  Afterward, a rest period of a few months, an evaluation and then another 20 to 40 days of hyperbaric oxygen therapy.  So the first set of 20-40 days has to be completed.

We’re starting off with a garage sale (perhaps the 1^st among many).  If you have anything to donate, please let us know so we can arrange for pick-up.  Target date for garage sale is March 20, 2010.  It would be great too if you could help in the preparations.

Well, that’s the update for now on Ate.  Good news is her seizures are a lot milder and she doesn’t cry all the time.  And the other is we can make all the loud noises, singing in tune or out of tune and non-stop story telling to Ate because she’s the perfect audience needing all the sound stimulation ever!

Lots of Love,

 

THRU THE INTERCESSION OF

BISHOP ALVARO DEL PORTILLO

Prelate of Opus Dei

O God, most merciful Father, You granted your servant Bishop Alvaro, the grace to be an exemplary pastor in the service of the Church and a most faithful son and successor to St. Josemaria, the founder of Opus Dei. Help me to respond faithfully to the demands of my Christian vocation and teach me to turn every moment and circumstance of my life into an occasion of loving You and serving the kingdom of Jesus Christ. Deign to glorify your servant Alvaro, and through his intercession grant me the favor I ask of You...(Make your request). Amen. Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory be…

FOR ATE'S HEALING

Dear Lord we know that there is no physical sickness or condition You cannot heal.  You know all things and You can do all things.  We come before You to intercede for Your beloved daughter ATE.  With faith in Your promise that whatever we ask in prayer You will grant us if it will be good for our soul.  We beg you Lord Jesus to be with her and her parents.  Allow her condition to normalize.  Cease any malfunction in her system and cover her with Your most precious blood.  Arrest any abnormal state.  Let the grace of Your divine love flow and spread to all the parts of her body.  Comfort her and her parents at this time.  May you constantly assure them of your love.  This we pray in Your name.  Amen.