KUALA LUMPUR: Jaslynn Tay received the shocking news that she had Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) in 2015, when she was in the first trimester of her pregnancy six years ago.
Tay and husband Gordon Ling were devastated to receive the diagnosis, putting the couple in a quandary whether to continue with the pregnancy or not.
"It was a stressful time for us because of the pregnancy and the kidney diagnosis. We were told to decide to either keep the baby or go through an abortion.
"This was not something that an expecting couple should be experiencing," said Ling.
The couple were adamant that they wanted to keep the baby despite the disheartening news.
"We decided to go ahead with dialysis and keep the baby at the same time.
"It was a risky decision. I felt helpless watching my wife preparing for hemodialysis while being pregnant," he said during a virtual session to mark the 2021 World Kidney Day celebration organised by the Health Ministry.
Tay had to undergo hemodialysis three times a week throughout her pregnancy and she was later placed in the high dependency ward during the later stages of her pregnancy.
After an emotional journey of battling CKD, Ling and his wife welcomed their baby girl, Caitlyn Darianne Ling in 2016.
"The doctors performed a Caesarean section due to my wife's high blood pressure and she delivered a healthy but premature baby at 34 weeks, weighing 1.758kg.
"Our daughter was very tiny. But amazingly, she did not need any feeding or breathing tubes. She came out very strong."
Looking back, Ling remarked that if they had given up six years ago, they would not have been able to see their daughter's face.
"When I think back and if my wife and I had given up hope then, we would have never seen our daughter growing up big and healthy. We shouldn't give up. If we give up, everything is already over," he said.
Ling said his daughter is now five years old and doing well.
After the pregnancy, Ling decided to donate one of his kidneys to his wife.
"I wanted to give her a better life and a chance to care for our daughter, and for our daughter to have a healthy mother.
"I did my overall checkup for the renal transplant work in November 2018.
"The good news was that we matched for the transplant. It was already quite a miracle, my left kidney was a 98 per cent match, and the right was 99 per cent," he said.
The couple underwent a seven-hour transplant in 2019 which was a success.
Ling took four days to recover and was told to take care of himself by eating healthily and exercising regularly.
"After a few months, my wife did her first biopsy and the result showed no rejection at all. As for me, my kidney is working very well.
"I had the chance to give her a better life, and I would do it again. If I don't, who else? If I didn't do it in 2019, then when?
"As we grow older, higher risks will appear. What I want to share with everyone here is that it is very important for us as caretakers not to give up because our loved ones depend on us the most. If we give up, they have no one to depend on," he said.
Ling said being the caretaker requires strength not only to take care of their loved ones but also to show moral support.
"My wife always reminds me to smile and be thankful.
"I realised that if I keep showing a face full of anxiety or was always stressed, she would feel worse.
"As a caretaker, we should try our best to be strong and supportive."