Campaign started on 11.12.2022

Name: Dima

First name: Catherine

Age: 12 years

Required amount: €200,000

Diagnosis: Brain tumor

The treatment will be performed at Klinik Avaria in Germany

Catherine's story

Today time seems to stand still. The big, smiling eyes barely become instinctually infuriated, moistened by the leaking tears of deep pain. Dry lips seem crumpled over time, as if they can no longer find the strength to utter. His face, once adorned by a labyrinth of endearing braids, is bare, crossed by drones and tubes, wallpapered with patches, frozen as if in a time capsule. It's like waiting for a warm ray of sunshine to bathe her cheeks, restoring her glow.

We sit on a bed edge and unfold in our minds the most beautiful years of our lives with Catherine.

We overcome memories for fear that we will not have time to create others ...

We remember the first babbling, the first hug, the first tooth, the walking around the house and rummaging through the drawers, the emotions from the kindergarten celebrations, the first day of school, the wasabi-tasting sushi, all the moments spent together and, especially, the philosophical discussions about life, about the universe and about everyone's mission on Earth.

We often told ourselves that her mind is like a sea into which rivers of ideas flow. Catherine was always preoccupied with beauty and good, and not a day passed when we did not sing, did not dance, did not enjoy each other.

BLACK WEDNESDAYS

Until a Wednesday afternoon (02.11.2022) when, accusing intense headaches, I set off on the chase to a medical clinic. After several primary investigations, common for a pre-adolescent child of 12 years, the doctor concluded that there was nothing serious in a headache, but he nevertheless recommended, in order to calm us down, also to perform a CT scan in the next period, if the headache persists.

The ordeal, however, was yet to begin. I did not even leave the clinic premises, that Catherine's pains reached paroxysmal levels. We suddenly changed the route and headed to a pediatric hospital (Copi Clinical Hospitali "Victor Gomoiu"), where I had received the information that there is a night guard, as well as the fact that we could perform a cranial CT scan.

The evening foretold a long, tumultuous, uncaring night. We spent 3 hours in agony at the children's clinical hospital, asking what was happening to Catherine, waiting for a diagnosis, disturbed by every hour that was running out and in which a concrete solution for Catherine's suffering was postponed.

However, a hurried CT scan would clarify the seriousness of the situation and determine the doctors to urgently transport Ecaterina to the "Bagdasar Arseni" Emergency Clinical Hospital. The news puzzled us: the CT scan had revealed the existence of a tumor located in the brainstem, that is, in the middle of the brain. The tumor generated blockade of the liquid horses leading to a secondary hydrocephalus.

Basically, Catherine's brain was flooded into the liquid, which was no longer drained due to the position of the tumor, the brain was no longer oxygenated in this way, and the excess of cerebrospinal fluid created a terrible pressure on the brain, since the skull, being a bone structure, is not flexible. Thus, the entire nervous system of the little girl was short-circuited, and the brain functions affected.

Already Catherine's life was hanging from a short thread of thread, and the only thought I had was desperately directed to God: "Lord, do not forsake us! God, salve it!".

At 22.30 we arrive at the Emergency Hospital. Catherine was in cardio-respiratory arrest. That was the first moment I felt like we were going off like a flame in a sandstorm. Sand that blurred everything around, without time letting you unravel and not forgetting to breathe. To breathe life and hope that all is not lost.

After 9 minutes of resuscitation maneuvers according to the protocol and airway prosthesis, Catherine resumed her cardiac activity. Following the most important intervention in maintaining Catherine's life, the installation of drainage to remove the fluid accumulated in the cranial cavity.

Less than 40 minutes later, Catherine's body was once again pierced by the thrill of death, with a second cardiac arrest. Cardiac activity resumed only after 10 minutes in which the resuscitation maneuvers were performed. Catherine remained in a coma, all vital functions being supported by the apparatus. The only good news in this battle between life and death was that the doctors had managed to mount the drainage so that the excess cerebrospinal fluididian accumulated in the brain can be evacuated.

YOUR WILL BE DONE!

A long night followed, after a black Wednesday... the longest and coldest night of our lives. Time had no meaning, I didn't know how to measure fear, nor if... hopefully.

We announced our friends, we told them with tears about the trouble that had befallen us and from that moment on a wave of love, faith and hope embraced us. We trusted that whatever happened, from that moment on, Catherine would be fine.

Her particularly serious condition excited not only the hospital team and our group of close friends, but the whole of Romania. In just 24 hours, people from all over the world mobilized in the only endeavor that could bring back the breath of life in Catherine's body: PRAYER.

Romania was united in a single mission: praying fervently to God for Catherine. Our Romanians from all over the world, prayers from all the holy monasteries and places, regardless of nationality, all were with us in a chain of love and compassion.

Starting from the second day, the Divine Liturgy was celebrated every day, Holy Masses and vigil services for Catherine. Simple people everywhere have formed a chain of incessant prayer reading the Psalter and Akathist dedicated to our Lord Jesus Christ, the Mother of God, the Holy Martyr Catherine and the Holy Doctors Without Silversmiths and Healers, the Holy Protectors of our family. Catherine was shared every day and each song brought a delicate emotion to the oppressive atmosphere of the salon.

I felt all your love and hard work to give us confidence, hope and strength and THANK YOU!

Great Saints came to visit Catherine in the intensive care room, through the Holy Relics or Chrisms brought with the blessing of His Beatitude Patriarch Daniel: Saint Nectarios, Saint Demetrius the Fountain of Myrrh, The Holy Martyr Catherine, Saint Demetrius the New, Saint Gerasim of Kefalonia, Saint John James of Neamt, etc.

All these Saints interceded for Catherine and contradicted the estimates of the doctors, who had not given her more than two to three days of life, helping Catherine to stabilize, making possible the surgery of 15.11.2022 for the excision of the tumor.

If a few days ago, Catherine had suffered a pulmonary edema, a single lobe of the lungs (out of the five) being functional, until the day of the surgery, as if by magic, the lungs had regained their vigor, which allowed the preparation of the operation.

Armed with faith and patience, because this kind of operation is very complex, with many risks and lasting (estimated at 6-8 hours), we sat down in prayer, putting our hope in God, which would inspire the medical team to make the best decisions for Catherine's life.

And one more miracle occurs, after about four hours in the operating room, the intervention is successfully completed, the neuro-surgeon extracts the cyst from the brainstem, without further damage to Catherine's health. We breathe somewhat a sigh of relief that it is not a malignant tumor and we give glory to God for keeping us from further complications.

We thank all those who donated blood so that this operation can be carried out in safe conditions, the risk of hemorrhage being very high.

Once the cause that caused all this suffering of Catherine was eliminated, hope blossomed in our hearts, shy at first, then more and more ambitious, receiving power from you, those who carried us in your thoughts and hearts throughout this period of hard trial.

THE FLOWER OF HOPE

We expected, of course, Catherine to wake up from a coma in order to be able to assess her condition neurologically and begin recovery.

The agony, however, would not end. Since the time of the surgery (15.11.2022) and until now Catherine has not woken up. It is in a state of unconsciousness, with small signs of brain activity, breathes spontaneously (after having been given a tracheostoma and has been decoupled from the ventilator) and it is only in the presence of us, the parents, that it gives vague signs of perception, for example, by increasing the pulse and paddles of the limbs.

This whole period was a critical one, on the border between life and death, but after going through three climactic moments: two cardiac arrests and a brain intervention, you inevitably hope that all this effort was not in vain and that, soon, Catherine will return among us.

But what else do we have to do? It is soon a month since the excision of the tumor and Catherine did not wake up. We sent her medical documentation to several clinics abroad and, after evaluating the case, I understood the necessity and urgency of transferring Catherine to one of these clinics.

Every day in this state of unconsciousness means for Catherine the failure of some chances to recover or even to life itself.

We watch her lie for more than 6 weeks, collapsed in a hospital bed, devoid of all her vigor and overflowing energy, without being able to share her pain with us, without being able to help her more. This helplessness now hurts more than all the terrible news received, like an avalanche of trials to shake our faith.

In this troubled state of expectation, in which many of the clinics addressed have either sent us their refusal or indicated us a longer term from which they could take over such a case, we receive the best news: a renowned clinic in Germany at Klinik Avaria, specialized in pediatric neurological recovery, can receive Catherine immediately.

The clinic makes an estimate of the minimum costs and asks for an advance of 90,000 euros, indicating that, depending on the results of the assessment of Catherine's health condition in Germany, the initial cost of treatment can amount to over 200,000 euros.

TOGETHER FOR CATHERINE

At the moment the only chance for Catherine is the treatment and recovery that the clinic in Germany can provide. The amount requested is very high for the possibilities of any ordinary person, but câ;when you face death and manage to face it and ask for a respite for your daughter, because it's too early ... you owe it to yourself to do everything humanly possible to use this one circumstance that can change the destiny of this wonderful child.

Thus, at the initiative of wonderful people, we started the campaign "Together for Catherine" meant to mediate the raising of the necessary funds for catherine's recovery treatment at the clinic in Germany.

Regardless of your personal financial condition, I know that if you read catherine's story to the end, you were impressed by our child's struggle for life, by our struggle of grieving and powerless parents, whom we hardly and to a very small extent managed to put into words. Thank you for your care and for all the beautiful thoughts ascended to Heaven.

If you will be able to support our campaign with any amount, give a spark of life to our child, who in turn, if God will allow, will return all the benefits received to the community that supported her and restored her childhood.

Trust that the amount given to Catherine will have an efficient use, and in order to reward your effort, please send us a memorial of your loved ones by e-mail impreunapentruecaterina@gmail.com . We will also pray for you and your loved ones, because from today we are a big, inimitable family, united by Catherine in doing GOOD!

For donations:

Entity name: Association "SAVE A HEART"

Tax registration code: 31015982

RON account:  RO05BTRL00701205W82870XX

EUR account: RO28BTRLEURCRT00W8287001

USD account: RO68BTRLUSDCRT00W8287001

SWIFT code: BTRLRO22

BIC code: BTRL

Banca Transilvania Botoşani

Please specify in the bank transfer, at the payment details, the name ecaterina Dima