First, A Little About Me

My name is Andrea, and I'm brand new to this whole blogging thing so bear with me here! I'm starting this blog to share my medical story and hopefull inspire and help others with chronic illness.

I just turned 25 on May 16th. I have a kidney disease called Focal Segmental Glumerisclerosis (FSGS for short). However, the beginning of my story is a bit complicated. When I was 2 years old, my mom went to put my shoes on and noticed my feet were very swollen. At the time she thought it was an allergic reaction. She took me to the doctor to see what it may be. They ended up doing a urine test, and saw my kidneys were leaking too much protein in my urine. Spilling protein in your urine basically removes all the protein from the rest of your body. It depletes your energy, makes your bones brittle and causes severe fluid retention (AKA Edema). My doctor then told my mom "You need to take her to the ER immediately, and so she did. I was later diagnosed with a disease called Nephrotic Syndrome. I was the first case in Bushkill Pennsylvania in 15 years, and no one knew how to treat it. My kidneys just kept spilling protein and I would get so swollen with fluid that I could hardly see. My eyes would swell shut, and when it got really bad, my legs would split open and would leak fluid.

That's the beginning of my chronic illness story. Aside from the medical aspect of my life, I have an amazing group of friends who are more like family, and I have a wonderful immediate family that I love dearly. I am engaged to a wonderful man, who loves me despite all of my medical issues, and puts up with my mood swings. My support system is very large, and I am extremely blessed for that. I live in a very small town in Pennsylvania, and I grew up in the Poconos. Im hoping my blog telling my story and sharing my trials and triumphs will help other people. I want to try and document everything I possibly can.

There is a lot more to my story, and I'll get to it all eventually. Today I just wanted to introduce myself for a little. I'm a very open person, so if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask!

Thanks for reading! Keep coming back to see more!