Cliona’s Foundation received this piece from a family that we have been able to help, their story shows not only how emotionally difficult it is to find out that your child is ill but also the financial costs that are involved. Thank you so much to this family for sharing their story with us.
“When I first found out that my son was not only seriously ill but that we may have to travel abroad for his treatment it was such a shock. My son was 6 when I first found out he had problems with both his liver, spleen and also had bleeding problems. A blockage stopping blood flow into the liver had also caused life threatening veins to grow in his stomach and oesophagus. High ammonia levels meant he was starting the process to getting encephalopathy (brain disease)
To go from having a child who was full of life and mischief to one that now had this condition that required regular trips to both our local hospital and Crumlin and then the hospital in London was very overwhelming. While all this was going on, I found I had to cut back on work so besides travel costs up and down to Crumlin, I struggled to keep up with the everyday bills at home like, electricity, car tax, heating, rent etc. Things that don’t become a priority when your child is sick.
Clionas foundation helped me at a time when I really just didn’t know how I would manage. They took so much of the pressure off financially and were such wonderful people to deal with also.
Please please help to keep this fantastic charity going by raising awareness and also if you can to donate just €2 by texting CLIONA to 50300.”
