Chronology of Asri Welas's Son's Seizures Until Unconsciousness when Taken to the Hospital

Dream - Asri Welas's husband, Galiech Ridha Rahardja, recounted the chronology of their son, Rayyan Gibran Ridha Rahardja, who was briefly unconscious and was taken to the ICU of a hospital in Jakarta.

"It was a very shocking incident. It happened during Maghrib prayer, and I had just finished work," said Galieh Ridha in Jakarta, on Friday, June 16, 2023.

Usually at that time, Galiech saw his son still active. But he was surprised when his son did not respond when called.

"Then someone at home told me, 'come here, sir, your brother seems unconscious.' When I saw it, he indeed seemed unconscious. When I tried to wake him up, he didn't respond," he said.

Rayyan Gibran also experienced seizures. This condition even continued until his son arrived at the ICU.

"We have taken action, but the seizures are still ongoing. They stop for a while, then start again, and again. So it had to be done in the ICU," said Yuni, a pediatrician at Melia Hospital.

Asri Welas was surprised to see her son's condition. Because Gibran had never had seizures before.

"Gibran has never had seizures before. When he came to the hospital yesterday, he wasn't in a feverish condition," she added.

Asri and the medical team are currently investigating the cause of Gibran's seizures. Until now, their second son is still being treated intensively.

"Later we will do a CT scan and brain recording if necessary to find out why this happened," she said.

Asri Welas's Struggle to Care for Her Son with Congenital Cataracts Since Birth

Dream - Asri Welas's second son, Rayyan Gibran Ridha Rahardja, or affectionately called Gibran, has had a vision impairment in both eyes since birth in 2017.

It is known that Gibran has a congenital cataract eye disorder. At the time of birth, Gibran had to wear glasses with +18 lenses.

"Those glasses greatly helped Gibran's development. At the age of three months, he could only roll over and see people in the world. Because previously, it was covered by cataracts," said Asri Welas in Jakarta, recently.

Asri admitted that she was confused when she found out about her son's eye disorder. Because the condition her son experienced was quite rare in Indonesia, and information about congenital cataracts was limited.

Asri Welas's second son has already undergone surgery, but he cannot fully recover. Gibran still needs to wear glasses.

According to Asri, special glasses for congenital cataracts are essential for children to optimize their development. The price for these glasses is also different from regular glasses.

"These glasses cost millions. If a child is born with cataracts and not supported, their dreams and hopes will die. So with the glasses, all aspects of the child's development are good, even though there are other viruses in his body," said Asri.

On the other hand, Optik Tunggal CEO Alexander Kurniawan revealed that glasses for congenital cataracts are indeed very expensive because they use special lenses that are comfortable for children to wear.

"It costs nearly 10 million per pair of glasses, and it can be even higher than that. Logistics also need to be considered," said Alexander.

Meanwhile, considering the expensive price of special glasses for congenital cataracts, Optik Tunggal provides assistance in the form of 90 free glasses for less fortunate children with congenital cataracts.

Asri Welas admitted that she initially blamed herself for the cataracts her second son, Rayyan Gibran Ridha Rahardja, had. However, that feeling gradually disappeared after her husband gave her support and encouragement. 

"I once said to my husband, what did I do wrong to deserve this? But he said not to judge anything," said Asri Welas with teary eyes at RSIA Bunda Menteng, Central Jakarta, on Friday, September 15, 2017.

Not wanting to continue blaming herself, Asri finally prayed for her son's recovery. She also entrusted the same prayer to her older sister who was performing the Hajj pilgrimage.

"So I asked when Ibran was going to have surgery. I always include in my prayers, 'brother, please pray that Ibran can see again,'" she said.

The blessings of prayers and Asri's resilience are starting to come true. Her son is gradually able to see.

"Alhamdulillah, it has become a reality now," she said.

Asri Welas's second child has had cataracts in both eyes since the age of two months. At the age of three months, Asri took action to take her son, Ibran, to the hospital for surgery on both eyes.

Currently, Ibran is said to be improving and can already see, although he still needs assistance with +16 glasses.

After undergoing cataract surgery, Asri Welas's son, Rayyan Gibran Ridha Rahardja, still needs to undergo a series of medical procedures. One of them is blood transfusion for the five-month-old baby. 

"So at 8 o'clock, blood transfusion has already taken place, but the blood vessels are too small, causing swelling," said Irawan, Asri's manager and younger brother, when contacted on Wednesday, September 13, 2017.

According to Irawan, the blood transfusion was necessary because Gibran's hemoglobin level dropped, while his platelet count was high. This was also caused by prolonged diarrhea.

He added that the blood transfusion has been successful. However, Gibran, who is still a baby, will need another blood transfusion. 

"So another blood transfusion is necessary, and it is currently ongoing," he said. The medical procedure is being performed at Bunda Menteng Hospital in Central Jakarta.