Valley Stream native fighting kidney disease

When Daniella Shiloah, 25, was diagnosed with kidney disease last October, she didn’t know what to expect. She said she used to get bad migraines, have high blood pressure, and doctors detected too much protein in her urine. She was planning to get married in a year, but the diagnosis left her feeling unsure of what route her life might take.

“After I found out, I was miserable,” Shiloah said. “I thought my life was pretty much over.”

Shiloah, who grew up in North Woodmere, said she was diagnosed with secondary kidney disease — a less aggressive form —and will probably be on medication for the rest of her life. Shiloah said that after she was diagnosed, she felt alone and didn’t know where to turn, until she found Inspire.com. It is a Web site forum dedicated to connecting people with similar diseases, with the slogan, “Together we’re better.” She met others who struggled with the same disease. “It’s like a little family on there,” Shiloah said. “So instead of being miserable, I realized I wanted to help people.”

Inspire.com is where Shiloah found a fundraiser walk for kidney disease in Holtsville on June 13, for which she is currently accepting donations. She explained that her disease affects her everyday, whether it’s watching her daily diet or having to travel three hours from her home in Rhode Island every week to meet with doctors in Manhattan. She is currently on a gluten-free diet, and she can’t eat dairy or wheat products. She also has to watch her daily salt intake and limit herself to 60 grams of protein a day.

Now that she has learned about her disease and how to live with it, her life has been much more enjoyable. “It used to be depressing,” she said. “I didn’t know where I’d be in a few years. It made me see how precious life is and how you can’t take things for granted.”

Shiloah and her fiancee, Eldad, hope to move back to New York soon, but in the meantime, Shiloah keeps herself busy with kickboxing classes and exercising. “I push myself,” she said. “I want to continue being strong.”

When she was first diagnosed, Shiloah said she felt like her life was being taken from her. She found her own strength by helping people who feel like she once did, and making them believe that they, too, can fight kidney disease. “Don’t panic,” Shiloah said as advice to people recently diagnosed with her disease. “Keep your emotions positive and positive things will happen. [The disease] changed me. It made me stronger.”

Shiloah said she understands that those diagnosed with kidney disease may feel down sometimes, but that’s OK. “Everyone has bad days, but you have to move on,” she noted. “You’re allowed one bad day per month.”