Anna Rivers

A Gratitude Letter to the Nurses of Pacific Global Medical Center A story of care, compassion, and small gestures that carried us through long hospital stays Our first stay and how relationships began Dennis’s first hospitalization at Pacific Global Medical Center was for gallstones and a liver abscess in 2024 . Two weeks in the hospital turned strangers into familiar faces. By the seventh floor we had names we could call out in comfort: Nurse Jun , Nurse Kate , Nurse Abel , Nurse Grace , and Nurse Dennis . Their patience and kindness made a frightening time feel safer. When cancer came this year, hospital visits became frequent. Because of those early bonds, we always asked for a room on the 7th floor for chemotherapy . The familiarity felt like a quiet blessing — people who knew us, who remembered small details, and who cared consistently. The surprise on the 6th floor and new bonds In July 2025 there were no rooms available on the 7th floor, so we were placed on the 6th. Imagine our...

  When the Words Came: Telling My Husband It’s Stage 4 July 29, 2025 — a date seared into my memory. It had been eight months since the first diagnosis: Stage 3 colon cancer. Those early days were a storm of shock, fear, heartbreak, and quiet determination. We chose to carry it with lightness because we believed with all our hearts that God was with us. Dennis began Neo Adjuvant Chemotherapy—six cycles of Oxaliplatin and Capecitabine—so surgery could come after treatment. We followed every instruction, never missing a dose or a lab test. The provision was real; the Lord provided in ways we could feel and trust. The Hope After Cycle Three After the third cycle we felt a miracle of sorts. A CT scan showed the biggest tumor had shrunk by half; several lymph nodes responded too. We cried with gratitude and held on tighter to hope. The oncologist decided to continue treatment, believing we could downstage the cancer further. For a while, it felt like we were moving forward. Signs...

A Journey of Compassion and Care at Pacific Global Medical Center In April 2024, what began as a festive getaway in Cabiao, Nueva Ecija, turned into a defining moment of trust and gratitude. It was my 38th birthday, and my husband—already feeling under the weather—insisted on celebrating. Two hours into the party, chills overwhelmed him. I found him shivering under a blanket in our room. The next morning, nausea and headaches left us both weak, but my priority was getting him to proper medical care. First Impressions and a Change of Heart When we arrived at Pacific Global Medical Center’s Emergency Room along Mindanao Avenue in Quezon City, I hesitated. I’m used to sprawling hospitals, and smaller facilities often lack equipment. Within minutes, those doubts vanished. Attentive nurses and doctors sprang into action, ordering comprehensive labs and scans. Every test was explained, and no step felt rushed or overlooked Dedication to Diagnosis and Treatment The results were clear: a liver...

Photo from Getwallpapers Understanding Anxiety and Depression: A Personal Journey Many of us—especially here in the Philippines—hear the words “anxiety” and “depression” tossed around, but few truly grasp the depth behind them. I used to think they were just fleeting moments of fear or sadness—minor hiccups that would fade in a day or two. I was wrong, and I learned that the hard way. --- When It First Hit In the last quarter of 2021, I began to notice an undercurrent of unease I couldn’t shake. My business—which had been my pride and safety net—started to wobble. As revenue declined, my expenses and bills stubbornly climbed. I felt trapped in a cycle I didn’t know how to break. What really sank me wasn’t just the financial strain; it was the loneliness.   1. My friends and family were just as stretched—asking them for help felt unfair.   2. I feared their judgment of the decisions that got me here.   So, I tried to handle it all on my own. --- The Descent ...

On the night of January 17, 2025, we gathered at home to celebrate my husband’s 59th birthday with a few of his closest colleagues. What began as a carefree evening of laughter, stories, and wine slowly wound down at midnight. By one o’clock, the last of the glasses had been cleared away, and we sank into bed, sleepy and content. But at 4 a.m. on January 18, a quiet urgency stirred me awake. My husband stood at the foot of the bed, eyes wide with alarm—he had passed bright, pure blood. My heart pounded as I imagined every horror: a heart attack, lung trouble, internal bleeding. Grateful that he handled the worst of it privately—I never saw the blood—I ushered him into the car and we sped to the emergency room. Blood tests confirmed his hemoglobin had dropped to 11.4 g/dL. Fearing continued bleeding, the doctors admitted him and scheduled an urgent colonoscopy for the following day. I paced the hospital corridors, praying it was nothing more than hemorrhoids or diverticuliti...

How I Learned the Hard Way About Rent-to-Own Condos: My DMCI Homes Orabella Story A “Rent-to-Own” or “Lease with Option to Purchase” deal sounded like the perfect shortcut to owning real estate—until it wasn’t. Here’s the saga of how I dove headfirst into DMCI Homes’ Home Ready™ program, spent nearly ₱87,000 in up-front fees and deposits, and ended up locked out of my own unit.   --- 1. The Tempting Pitch (2020) It all began in 2020, when my agent showed me The Celandine in Balintawak. Her spiel was irresistible:   - Move in for less than ₱100,000   - Pay “rental” that later converts to equity   - Own the unit outright at a locked-in price   Pandemic panic set in, and I backed out. No regrets—yet.   --- 2. Round Two: Fairlane…No, Orabella (April 2024) Fast-forward to April 2024. I wanted a second property for Airbnb income, ideally on an “assume balance” scheme. Fairlane Residences in Pasig? Too pricey and too far. Then came Or...