MOTHERHOOD and being a wife didn’t come as an easy journey for Anita Lorin-Gallardo, fondly called Anne by her friends. While she got married and had kids later than most women, the journey going there had its ups and downs and a fair share of adventure.
Anne grew up in Tacurong, Sultan Kudarat in a devout Roman Catholic family. They have been active in church activities ever since she and her twin sister Rose were still little kids. This active participation in church led Anne and Rose to have a passion for serving as nuns. But while Rose decided to be a teacher, Anne pushed through with her dream of becoming a contemplative sister here in Davao City.
"Calling gyud to para sa akoa sa una. Naka-influence pud sa akoa mga tao sa paligid. Bata pa ko, makita nako sa akong teachers, religious pa gyud among family, and active sa church," shared Anne.
Contemplative nuns are rarely seen in public and often spend most of their days inside the monastery praying and doing chores. This is in contrast to the nuns practicing active sisterhood and who we often see teaching catechism or who we see randomly in public places.
Anne was a nun for three years, including the one year she was assigned in Manila. After months and months of prayer and discernment, she finally decided that being a nun is not really her calling. Being naturally loud and a life of the crowd, Anne realized that she can still practice her faith and belief but not in being a nun.
She left in 2006 and shortly after, found a job in the airport as a lounge attendant in one of the international airlines. She was there for a year before working in a supermarket company and was assigned to Davao and General Santos City branches. She worked there for nine years before transferring to two other companies. To her friends, she seemed like a very easygoing and fun-to-be-with type of person. Put her in a crowd full of strangers and she will easily find a new friend or two. That’s why it didn’t appear that she was exactly looking for a lover. If he comes, he comes but Anne wasn’t desperately looking.
And so on July 11, 2018, when Anne was 36, she met Lowie Gallardo, 32, brother of a previous co-worker and a seafarer. They easily got together and decided to make the relationship official. Because he is a seafarer, he would spend most of his days abroad.
But the couple believes in knowing when something feels right and so only a year after seeing each other, they decided to get married at St. Jude Thaddeus Parish in Davao City. They got married on July 18, 2019.
But unknown to the newlyweds, especially to Anne, this will just be the start of her journey to motherhood that would entail physical pains, sacrifices, and sleepless nights.
When she got pregnant with her first baby, Margaux Sirius, she developed gestational diabetes which her doctor regularly monitored as well as her blood pressure which would usually go up.
“Katong eight months na si Margaux, nitaas lang kalit akong blood pressure during check-up and gi-advise ko for emergency CS ASAP. In danger na ang vital organs sa baby kay kulang na ang oxygen. Pwede pud ko ma-stroke kay akong blood pressure niabot na og 260/190. So gi-CS ko at eight months ang baby,” shared Anne who said she was able to give birth to her first baby on February 19, 2020.
“Underweight si Margaux katong nigawas siya weighing only 1.34 kilos. Gamay kaayo. But thankfully no other complications maski isa. She needed to stay sa NICU for 23 days until maabot ang desired weight na 1.6 kilos while gina-feeding sya and vitamins. Nakagawas mi sa NICU March 12, 2020, pila na lang ka adlaw before ang lockdown,” added Anne.
Now, one-year-old Margaux is a healthy and active little girl. One may see her and would not even think she was a premature baby.
A year after Margaux was born, Anne was also expecting another baby - a boy this time. She didn’t develop gestational diabetes while pregnant with the second child but she did develop Antiphospholipid Antibody Syndrome (APAS), an autoimmune disease.
“Lapot akong dugo. High blood pud ko. So gina-monitor ko strictly and naa koy gina-inject sa akong tiyan twice a day for five weeks. Stressful kaayo ko with Zale (second child) and thought dili na siya mabuo,” said Anne.
The doctor also told her that getting pregnant while the CS wounds from the first birth had not healed yet was very risky. She was told of the risk that might occur with the possibility of the placenta separating from the fetus and may develop into sepsis. At 33 weeks or eight months, the condition was so alarming, and also because of severe preeclampsia, that the gynecologist decided on another emergency CS on May 8, 2021.
Thankfully, Zale Acrux Louis weighed 1.96 kilos and didn’t need to gain additional weight. However, with the sensitivity of his situation, he was admitted to NICU for two weeks under antibiotics. Zale even developed pneumonia while inside the NICU.
“Infairness na friend pud nako mga nurses and doctors sa hospital. Pati guards kabalo na sa NICU ko, kabalo na sila kinsa akong doctor, even mga na-assign sa elevator,” she laughs.
Just June 5 this year, Zale was admitted again to the hospital for 10 days because of a blood infection. His oxygen went down to 49 when the normal was around 95.
While she was going through all this, she could only share virtually with her husband who was away and deployed overseas. She’s lucky to be supported by her family while she continues to pray for the improvement of the health of her children. She said she is also blessed to have doctors like Dr. Juliet Coching, OB for high-risk pregnancy, and Dr. Rommel Bernardo, a Neonatologist specializing in premature babies. She said if it weren’t for her intelligent and caring doctors, she wouldn’t be enjoying her children now.
Both Zale and Margaux now continue to grow as a healthy little boy and girl bringing smiles and laughter to the family.
“Hindi ako nagsisi that I gave up sisterhood for this kasi ang marriage is the highest calling sa vocation. All along, gi-prepare ni God yung mapangasawa ko. Then na experience ko ang mga complications during my pregnancy. Parang total package. Nabuntis at na experience ko ito. Ma-amaze din ako na nakayanan ko kahit malayo si Lowie. God is so good. Pray ko lang talaga na sana healthy silang dalawa until lumaki sila.,” she said.
“Sana lumaki silang healthy and I am praying to God that both of them will receive the gift of calling to religious life as priest and religious sister. If not, for Margaux to become an OB and Zale to be a neonatologist pedia,” added Anne.