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“If not for the job, I’d have never known that I was this sick.”
32-year-old Venkateswara Rao thought his life was just fine. He had a job to look forward to, and build his life in a better way. But all that came to an abrupt stop when he went for the medical checkup that’s mandatory for a job with the Indian Railways. The test reports showed his blood pressure to be exceptionally high. This prompted him to do more tests to find out the reason for his high BP. Upon running the tests, the doctors told him that both his kidneys had failed.
He wasn’t even aware that he was sick
Venkat never had a single symptom of kidney failure, not even a minor fever. So, he found it hard to believe in the diagnosis. Within a couple of days after returning home, he feet and face started swelling up. Again he went to the doctors to find out what was wrong. They told him that he needed to go on dialysis immediately. His life had changed for the worse.
“I’m 32. At this age, I should be the one taking care of my parents, not the other way round. It breaks my heart to see my mother struggle to care for both me and my father. I feel worthless, I can’t wait to come out of this situation.”
Venkat is the only educated guy in his family. He pursued his masters out of his desire to study more. He wanted to find a well-paid government job that will help him take care of his ageing parents. After rigorous preparation, he cracked a job in the Indian Railways. As the protocol of the organisation demands, he underwent all the prescribed tests, only to discovered that both his kidneys have failed. His illness has put way more than his health and wellbeing at stake. All his plans to provide a better life to his parents also got shattered.
His relatives said no to donating him a kidney
“My relatives think donating a kidney will seriously harm them. They’re uneducated, so they don’t understand. What can we do?”
Then came the problem of finding a donor. His parents are too old, thus they started looking for a match amongst their relatives. Sadly for Venkat, none of his relatives came forth to help, since they’re worried about what might happen to them if they donate a kidney. Owing to their lack of education, explaining them about how organ donation works is a next to impossible feat. Therefore he registered with the Jeevandan initiative for cadaver donors. The search for a donor is still on. Now the biggest problem that is stopping him from getting cured is the lack of money.
He belongs from a small village in the Khammam district of Telangana. Earlier he used to attend his dialysis sessions at Khammam, but the extensive 8 hours of travelling back and forth started taking a toll on his health. He started getting weaker and falling even sicker. So Venkat and his parents moved to Hyderabad for his treatment.
Venkat’s father Ramu is very old and can’t work anymore. His mother has been the only financial mainstay in their household, while Venkat looked after his sick and old father, and studied for his exams on the side. With his treatment going on and them living in the city, their finances have taken a big hit. Their income is zero and they have taken loans from money lenders to cover their medical as well as living expenses. They have also had to mortgage their house and borrow money from their friends and relatives, but even that money has almost run out.
How you can help
Venkat will succumb to kidney failure if he doesn’t get the treatment soon. But in order to make this happened, Venkat and his family desperately need your help. Your contribution towards his treatment will go a long way in providing a healthy and fulfilled life to him and his family.
32-year-old Venkateswara Rao thought his life was just fine. He had a job to look forward to, and build his life in a better way. But all that came to an abrupt stop when he went for the medical checkup that’s mandatory for a job with the Indian Railways. The test reports showed his blood pressure to be exceptionally high. This prompted him to do more tests to find out the reason for his high BP. Upon running the tests, the doctors told him that both his kidneys had failed.
He wasn’t even aware that he was sick
Venkat never had a single symptom of kidney failure, not even a minor fever. So, he found it hard to believe in the diagnosis. Within a couple of days after returning home, he feet and face started swelling up. Again he went to the doctors to find out what was wrong. They told him that he needed to go on dialysis immediately. His life had changed for the worse.
“I’m 32. At this age, I should be the one taking care of my parents, not the other way round. It breaks my heart to see my mother struggle to care for both me and my father. I feel worthless, I can’t wait to come out of this situation.”
Venkat is the only educated guy in his family. He pursued his masters out of his desire to study more. He wanted to find a well-paid government job that will help him take care of his ageing parents. After rigorous preparation, he cracked a job in the Indian Railways. As the protocol of the organisation demands, he underwent all the prescribed tests, only to discovered that both his kidneys have failed. His illness has put way more than his health and wellbeing at stake. All his plans to provide a better life to his parents also got shattered.
His relatives said no to donating him a kidney
“My relatives think donating a kidney will seriously harm them. They’re uneducated, so they don’t understand. What can we do?”
Then came the problem of finding a donor. His parents are too old, thus they started looking for a match amongst their relatives. Sadly for Venkat, none of his relatives came forth to help, since they’re worried about what might happen to them if they donate a kidney. Owing to their lack of education, explaining them about how organ donation works is a next to impossible feat. Therefore he registered with the Jeevandan initiative for cadaver donors. The search for a donor is still on. Now the biggest problem that is stopping him from getting cured is the lack of money.
He belongs from a small village in the Khammam district of Telangana. Earlier he used to attend his dialysis sessions at Khammam, but the extensive 8 hours of travelling back and forth started taking a toll on his health. He started getting weaker and falling even sicker. So Venkat and his parents moved to Hyderabad for his treatment.
Venkat’s father Ramu is very old and can’t work anymore. His mother has been the only financial mainstay in their household, while Venkat looked after his sick and old father, and studied for his exams on the side. With his treatment going on and them living in the city, their finances have taken a big hit. Their income is zero and they have taken loans from money lenders to cover their medical as well as living expenses. They have also had to mortgage their house and borrow money from their friends and relatives, but even that money has almost run out.
How you can help
Venkat will succumb to kidney failure if he doesn’t get the treatment soon. But in order to make this happened, Venkat and his family desperately need your help. Your contribution towards his treatment will go a long way in providing a healthy and fulfilled life to him and his family.
