Elena is a 33-year-old woman who lives with her husband and six children in Guatemala’s rural highlands. While she works from home and cares for her family, her husband works in the countryside as an agricultural day laborer.
Elena is pregnant and has recently been diagnosed with preeclampsia, a high-risk pregnancy complication characterized by extremely elevated blood pressure. Without proper care, preeclampsia can cause headaches, swelling of the legs, seizures, and even death of the mother or the fetus.
Upon noticing that her blood pressure was perilously high, Elena rushed to the nearest hospital. Our medical partner, Wuqu’ Kawoq, is requesting $543 to fund Elena’s hospital care during her pregnancy. Nursing staff will regularly visit Elena to prepare her for a hospital delivery versus an at-home birth, and they will additionally administer laboratory exams, fetal ultrasounds, and medications to control Elena’s blood pressure and any additional symptoms. With this, Elena will be strongly supported throughout her pregnancy and will not have to worry as much for her or her baby’s life.
“Thank you so much, and may God bless you. I feel calm because you are helping me,” says Elena.