Sickle Cell Anemia: Feeling the Pain

By Carol Dominguez

This book tells her story about herself and her experiences in parenting a child with sickle cell anemia. Her daughter, Penny, was born with sickle cell anemia and is now a thirty-four-year-old mom of one six-year-old son, Diyaari. Despite their challenges, they have lived a happy and comfortable life and will continue to do so for many more years. (Angie and Penny together forever). The author is also known as Angie, her grandmothers name.

This book is just a sneak peek into information and my experiences with sickle cell.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Dec 26, 2017
• ISBN: 9781543468373

Carol Dominguez

Carol Dominguez was born in Belize City, Belize -Central America. She moved to New York City when she was 21 years old and still currently lives there. She received her Bachelors Degree in Economics and a Masters Degree in Education. She has worked as a banker, at a publishing company and an educator. She is now enjoying her retirement years. She has a loving family - one daughter, Penny and one grandson, Diyaari.

Book preview

Copyright © 2017 by Carol Dominguez.

Library of Congress Control Number:         2017918099

ISBN:                      Hardcover                        978-1-5434-6835-9

                                Softcover                           978-1-5434-6836-6

                                eBook                                978-1-5434-6837-3

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Rev. date: 12/26/2017

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Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

Chapter 1: It Is 1983

Chapter 2: The Beginning

Chapter 3: Counseling

Chapter 4: Episode 1

Chapter 5: Puberty

Chapter 6: High School And Beyond

Chapter 7: More Hospitalization

Chapter 8

Chapter 9: After The Loss

Chapter 10: A New Joy To Penny’s Life

Chapter 11: Diyaari

Chapter 12: Sickle Cell—Who/What Am I?

Chapter 13: Stress And Sickle Cell

Chapter 14: Random Events

Chapter 15: Sickle Cell Research

Acknowledgments

Thank you to Penny, my daughter, for giving me permission to write her story, our story. Thank you, God and the universe, for my loving grandsons, Omari (my angel) and Diyaari, whom I love very dearly. Thank you to my parents and my grandmother, Eva Diamond, who was my rock and my guardian and who also contributed to Penny’s journey until her last breath.

To my best friend, Sandra, who was my support throughout my writing this book, and Father Paul, my spiritual guide. To my son-in-law, Roger; my brother; my sisters; and my nieces and nephews, whom I love very much.

Thank you to all the nurses on the sixth and seventh floor of Saint Luke’s Hospital (Mount Sinai)—you are family. Whenever she is admitted, you honor our request by giving us a bed by the window and do not complain when Penny is keeping her lights on. After all, she never got over the three times that she had a roommate that died while she was there. Thanks! Thanks to the pain management team that finally understood Penny’s knowledge about her body and treated her honorably, which lessens her days in the hospital. She, Penny, is still trying to relay that message to other doctors. Good luck, Penny.

Although this was many years ago from the pediatric staff, thanks for the nurses, especially Mary, who gave Penny her daily dose of corny jokes. Sadly though, it made us want to come back for visits.

Thanks Qat Wanders for your guidance and support.

Introduction

A baby is like the beginning of all things: wonder, hope a dream of possibilities. In a world that is cutting down its trees to build highways, losing its earth to concrete, babies are almost the only remaining link in nature, with the natural world of living things from which we spring.

—Eda J. Leshan

Chapter 1

IT IS 1983

Being pregnant is one of the most heartwarming experiences. I was on a ten-month emotional journey with beautiful images. What will he or she look like? What will our future look like? I just knew my baby would have been a girl—beautiful as ever and, most of all, perfect.

Surprise. She was a girl as I had predicted, and she was