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Thirty-one-year-old Shantell Smith is courageously fighting a double health crisis - renal failure and lupus. It is a shocking turn of events for the bubbly mother of one, whose life was on the rise 18 months ago.

She and her partner were both contractors for a major company and making ends meet. In August 2023, she gave birth to their first child, a baby boy, and felt that everything was falling into place.

But things took a turn in March last year when she began experiencing excruciating headaches and constant vomiting. Doctors initially thought her ailment was a stubborn sinus infection.

"I was vomiting and was very weak," the Spanish Town, St Catherine resident said.

"My spouse told me that this was very unusual and that we should look deeper into it. I went to my doctor and got some blood work done and the results all came back normal," she related.

"I felt a bit comfortable saying it was sinus but by the time June came around, I had the most excruciating headache. It was every day and I felt like it was driving me crazy. I went back to my doctor and my blood pressure was extremely high. I got meds but after that my vision got blurry due to the blood pressure," she recalled.

Despite medication for her hypertension, Smith's condition deteriorated. She continued vomiting, rapidly lost weight, and felt constantly weak. Her sister, deeply concerned, took her to another doctor, who noticed a pimple on her forehead and referred her to a dermatologist.

When she visited the dermatologist, Smith was told that the appearance of the pimple pales in comparison to what was suspected.

"Immediately, they started to run some tests as I was still vomiting, having the headaches and other things. After that, it was like everything escalate so fast. I was just not getting any better and even began having hallucinations," Smith explained.

By September, her vision was gone, and she was admitted to the University Hospital of the West Indies. She said much of her time there was a blur due to ongoing hallucinations, and lesions had appeared all over her body.

"My mother told me that it was like my body melted away, I looked like a burn victim. By this time the test results came back that I had systemic lupus," Smith shared.

Lupus is an autoimmune disease that causes the immune system to attack the body's own tissues and organs. The condition can inflame everything from the skin and joints to the kidneys, lungs, heart, and blood.

In Smith's case, she was told that the lupus attacked her kidneys, resulting in her suffering kidney failure.

"I was shocked," she said of the double health crisis diagnosis. "I was normal just months ago and then my body just broke down," she said.

When THE STAR caught up with her earlier this week, she had just wrapped up yet another gruelling round of dialysis. She takes more than a dozen medications and undergoes dialysis twice per week.

"I have been in and out of hospital so much lately that it scares me. However, I speak life over myself every day and I keep calling life back into my kidneys as this dialysis is weighing me down more than the lupus. I never question God and ask why me, I just keep fighting," Smith shared.

The financial strain has been overwhelming.

"There is this particular medication that I take for lupus, and although I am taking the generic form, it costs $50,000 monthly. Dialysis is $17,000 for each session, and I am taking four different medications as well as antibiotics and others. My spouse, family and friends all do their best, but it is really expensive," she said.

She has reached out to the CHASE Fund and other organisations and is hopeful for help. In the meantime, she is appealing to the public to assist her in any way they can.

"It is very hard although my loved ones are trying their best. I am grateful for every prayer and just about anything that anyone can offer to assist me on this journey," she said.

Persons wishing to help Shantell Smith can reach her at 876-535-7450, donate to her GoFundMe account at or Scotiabank account #602920, Spanish Town March Pen Road branch.