Kidney Transplant...It Wasn't About Me

After being at my daughter's home for some time

improvement came slowly. I had blood tests two days a week

for the first two months, and I saw the doctors every other

week. The 50 to 60 pills I was on slowly decreased to 40 to

50. Now I am taking 31 pills.

I still could not do much and was extremely tired. I

had two iron infusions and waited for weeks for the iron

to kick in. Waiting for increased strength and energy seemed

to take forever.

Since there was little I could do about any of this, I

had a lot of time to think. I knew months before that this

experience was not necessarily about me. Sure, I needed

a kidney transplant, but there was a much bigger picture.

What was truly wonderful was realizing that my daughter

and I had the opportunity to help many more people

because of our experience.

We found out about different community activities

we could participate in (such as a 5K fundraiser) that was

coming up in Aug. of this year. We realized that we could

send articles into publications interested in human experience

stories. My doctor in California requested that I become a

kidney transplant ambassador and share my experience at

educational events helping people learn more about transplants

and organ donation. (My daughter has also been asked to

be an ambassador of sorts for organ donation from the

donor side; stay tuned in the next blog post for ways you

can help in this important effort.) We realized that we could

also help more people just by seeing the needs around us.

I think we have more empathy and can be of greater

service to our fellow human beings because of what we have

experienced. I know for myself and my daughter, we have

such a passion to spread the word about organ donation and

all the many ways people can help save lives.

This started out as a trail, it then became a journey,

and  now an eye opening adventure. I have learned many

things about myself, my life's mission, and the goodness

that is still in people (despite the chaos out in the world),

and especially the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the

eternal love of a Heavenly Father.

I am so grateful for all that has happened to me, to

help me understand better where I need to go with my life

and better serve the needs of family, friends, and people

around me. It has been a wonderful learning opportunity

for all of us.