Renée Shorter-Morgan’s life has been changed forever - Wife, mother and working woman trying to cope with lupus

Renee Shorter-Morgan was living the life – she had a loving husband, two beautiful children, and gainful employment with the ability to do what she wanted when she wanted to. This, however, was before she was diagnosed with the dreaded disease called lupus.

The 35-year-old from Burnt Ground, St Elizabeth, had been living with lupus for almost two years prior to being officially diagnosed.

“I remember experiencing some pains that got worse after my son was born, and that is when I went to the doctor and was told that I have lupus,” Shorter-Morgan said.

She shared that some of the symptoms she experienced were the butterfly rash; joint pains; loss of appetite, memory and hair; and two-toned skin. She added that she had to be hospitalised a lot and that there have been many changes in her daily life.

“My diet has changed. I try my best to avoid salt, sugar, processed foods, and baked products. I have a gluten-free lifestyle,” she said. “I try to eat as healthy as possible because it increases my energy.”

Along with eating healthier and maintaining a strict diet, Shorter-Morgan’s whole daily routine has changed as a result of her diagnosis.

“I wake up at about 5 in the morning, and I am usually very weak. It is only after taking my medications that I feel strong enough to move around and help get the children ready for school,” Shorter-Morgan shared.

She explained that exercise is also part of her daily routine before having breakfast and taking on her day as a secretary at the St Elizabeth Technical High School.

“If I skip something in my routine, there are consequences,” Shorter-Morgan said. “If one morning I wake up feeling good and I skip my medications, by 11 a.m., I have to take them because I become so weak, and I start feeling the effects very strongly.”

Shorter-Morgan shared that as a result, she cannot be out of certain medications and always ensures that she has vitamins and steroids.

In order to strike a balance with family, work and lupus, support is extremely important for Shorter-Morgan, and she stated that she gets plenty from her husband, Eldon Morgan, her family at home, and her church.

“I don’t know what I would do without my husband,” she said. “He is always there and always steps up when I cannot. I will always appreciate him for that.”

She explained how grateful she is for her co-workers as they are very understanding of her illness and the adverse effects it has on her and work life.

“At work, they are always asking if I am not hot because I am always wearing a sweater and long skirts, but that’s because I am always cold,” Morgan said.

She recalled not being able to use her hands between April and May of 2018 because of blisters.

“I couldn’t use my hands at all,” Morgan said. “Simple chores at home would make my hands hurt. During that time, I had to wear gloves to cover my hands.”

Shorter-Morgan shared how she spent a week and a half in the hospital in November of last year because of flare-ups associated with lupus. By this time, she was having trouble breathing and problems with her heart.

“I always have to be getting blood work done and constantly doing checks to ensure my organs are okay, especially my lungs and my heart. Along with these, the medications are also expensive. However, I am grateful that one of my main medications, prednisone, is covered by the National Health Fund,” Shorter-Morgan stated.

As a mother of two children, ages eight and five, she is worried that her children may have lupus and have to go through the same suffering as her.

“There are at least three other people in my family with lupus, so I am afraid that my children will have it. They have not shown any signs, and I pray that they wont,” she said.

Her fear further extends to the possibility of her leaving her children. Of all the pain Morgan has experienced, hearing her eight-year-old ask, “Mommy, are you going to die?” might be the most unbearable yet.

vanessa.james@gleanerjm.com