Jeffrey Estrella and Rheumatic Heart Disease Philippines: A Love Story
This profile is part of the Global ARCH Storytelling Series to celebrate our members, their personal stories, and the work they do to help others.
My wife, Roselle DG Estrella, is a 43-year-old hard-working woman. She has been working since she was 16 years old helping with farm work.
When Roselle was a girl growing up on their family’s vegetable farm she was already suffering from the sickness, which made her tire quickly and have shortness of breath. Because she was young, she thought that feeling was normal until she had a fever with a rash. They lacked money so instead of taking her to a doctor they took her to a folk healer. She was ok after a few days and was able to go back to school. After elementary school she went to college but just for one semester and then was hired at a garment factory. A few years passed before she was diagnosed with heart disease by the company’s doctor, and it was getting worse. She was prescribed some drugs, and the doctor said that she might not have children. The company made her sign a waiver that they would not be held responsible for what happens to her while working.
We live Bulacan, Philippines, far from the government hospitals that are close to the Philippine heart center. There are public hospitals, but there is a lack of equipment. The usual work here is sewing clothes and farming and gardening.
In 2003, my wife and I met through texting. She told me that she had a heart disease, but she hadn’t been given any details. When we got married the following year, she was already carrying a baby. At her first check-up with the OBGYN, there was an irregular heartbeat and a hum, so she had a laboratory 2D echo, and was diagnosed with rheumatic heart disease (RHD) and she began antibiotic treatment. It was like our world collapsed, but the doctor said she shouldn’t be too tired, and so she continued working as a sewer. I took over the housework and took care of her after work. It’s a big challenge for me because I see my wife suffering from her illness, so I’m doing my responsibility as her husband.
We had regular check-ups with her doctor and in October 2004 she gave birth by caesarean section, to put less strain on her heart. Fortunately, our baby is healthy and so was my wife. Several years passed without any symptoms until 2010, when she was diagnosed with tuberculosis, and then her RHD symptoms reappeared and got worse. She continued to be treated for tuberculosis and RHD and after 6 months she recovered from tuberculosis. In 2017, I started Rheumatic Heart Disease Philippines so that I could share our path and spread the knowledge of RHD.
In 2018, the doctor referred us to the outpatient department of the Philippine Heart Center, and my wife continues to take medicine. In 2020, when the 2D echo was repeated, the heart disease had improved. In October 2021, her two valves were replaced with mechanical valves. Before she couldn’t sleep but now she can sleep and she’s not short of breath. Even when she walks far, she has a happy heart. Everything is ok now. I have a lot of knowledge about RHD.❤️
My wife continues to take medicine and has regular check-ups and avoids foods that can interact with the medicine. We have learned that if you feel something strange or sick, deal with it right away so that you can be proactive and get the right medicine. Understand that we have heart warriors to help support you. What people with RHD go through is no joke. Sometimes I worry about if she will wake up tomorrow, will I still be with her, will she still have a smile? It’s hard to live in fear, in hardship, and in pain, and every day you see the condition of your warrior. There are times when we cry because that is really the only way to cope. But we are ready to go through this for the person we love, so don’t give up. I would like more awareness of RHD in our community, have access to no-cost medicine, a local laboratory, and a free checkups with a local cardiologist. We will fight until the end.
