The isolation she felt was further underscored by the indifference of family members. "I remember once, one of my aunts who lived two houses away asked, 'Oh my god! Juan Juan is sick? When did it happen? How long has it been?' I replied, 'It's been 10 years since I've been sick.' Want to know what she said? 'Oh my god! I didn't know that.' She lives two houses away, she's my aunt, and everyone in the village knows I'm sick. Yet, she doesn't know that I've been sick for 10 years? Is this some kind of twisted joke?"