The story of Natalie
I live with a condition called Gitelman Syndrome. It is a life-threatening genetic disorder which affects your kidneys. A key component of the kidney doesn’t function correctly. This means that your body ends up losing salts like potassium and magnesium in your urine to dangerously low levels. This can make your heart not be able to beat correctly, or cause your muscles to not work properly, as well as other critical functions of the body being affected.”
I take up to 50 tablets a day to keep me alive and those tablets can also make me feel pretty ill at times. I often feel exhausted and in chronic pain every day- life is a massive struggle. I am thankful for the support and knowledge of the team at Addenbrookes Hospital who treat and help find out more about this condition though research.
This journey of living with this rare condition and led me to create an awareness information and support website called www.gitelmansyndrome.co.uk
This helps those affected by the condition, both patients and medical staff to raise awareness and understand what it’s like living which such a rare disease.