Along for the Ride

I can't quite believe this, but yesterday marked 8 weeks from transplant!  Things have been going very well during these last two months.  I've been recovering at home, and I've enjoyed some relaxing time reading, watching Netflix, and catching up on household chores. When I was released from the hospital, I had Steri-strips along my incisions and a list of activity restrictions: no driving, no lifting, no exercise except gentle walking in the house, no crowds, no shopping at stores, no visiting kids, and no time spent outside.  Since then, some of the restrictions have been lifted.  I can drive again, and I can go outside for short periods of time as long as I wear a surgical mask.  I can go to stores as long as they aren't busy (so no weekends or evenings), and I have to wear my surgical mask at all times, clean my hands thoroughly, and wipe down the carts.  Needless to say, we've become BIG fans of curbside pick-up for groceries and Amazon for delivery...

I am sitting down to write this entry a full four weeks post-kidney-transplant!  That's right!  On Sunday, May 13, I got "the call" and received a kidney transplant in the wee hours of the morning on Monday, May 14, 2018.  For the last few weeks, I've been thinking that I wanted to get online and write up a series of blog posts about that experience.  Believe it or not, despite being in recovery from surgery, those four weeks have been super busy!  So I'm just now getting around to gathering my thoughts and putting digital "pen to paper." First, to clarify, I was technically listed on two transplant lists.  I was placed on the deceased donor list just last summer.  However, because they count your dialysis time as "wait time," I had accrued almost 6 1/2 years of wait time on the list, which put me pretty close to the top.  The average wait time in the DFW area with my blood type (O+) is 6-7 years, so I knew that it was possible I could get ...

Well, hello there!  Guess what?!?!  I have an UPDATE!!!! Y'all may remember that I mentioned in my last post that I had a potential living donor who has generously volunteered to go through the testing process. Well...he isn't a match for me. BUT... he's open to a paired donation, which is where they match us with another pair (or multiple pairs) to swap kidneys.  So, in other words, he won't donate directly to me.  Instead, his kidney will go to another person on the list who also has a living donor.  Then that living donor (or another one) will give to me. So...the news is that he is approved and now fully listed! The way I envision this is... Imagine you're going to a concert.  You get in the line, buy a ticket, and now you're in the venue with thousands and thousands of other people.  Groups of people are in their sections, but they aren't allowed to go to different sections.  This is like the cadaver donor list.  Lots, an...

Greeting and salutations, dear friends! Happy 2018!  I hope you've had a wonderfully relaxing holiday break.  I know we have!  Tomorrow, it's back to school for me, but Mike has the rest of the week off as his post-holiday PTO (personal time off).  I'm sure he'll enjoy a quiet house for a few days! I thought I'd pop online and a post a quick entry just to fill everyone in on the progress for #teamkidney. Basically, I'm still waiting.  All of my potential direct donors have been eliminated, but I do have one more very generous donor who is open to doing a paired donation (where h/she will donate to another person who will then have someone donate to me).  They are getting started on the workup and testing for this potential donor, so we shall see how that goes. The donor process is completely confidential, so - understandably - my docs and transplant team don't give me any updates on the donors.  The only way I know anything is that this potenti...

Greetings, fine friends!  Look at this!  Two updates on the same day?!?!  Yup. Today my mom and I went down to UTSW to see the infectious diseases doctor for a follow-up.  He still wants me to try to track down some documentation of my vaccinations from when I was a kid.  Apparently, I have antibodies for mumps and rubella, but not measles.  With the increase in anti-vaccine parents over recent years, he's concerned about me returning to the classroom without documentation of my vaccines.  Basically, if a kid comes in my room and happens to have skipped his/her vaccines, I could be in serious trouble.  So tomorrow I'm calling my university to see if they have any student records that would show my vaccines.  Public Service Announcement: Keep your vaccine records.  You just never know when you might need them. He also shared that - right after transplant - I'll be given three doses of an IV medication that will essentially wipe out al...

Hello there! The last few weeks have been somewhat uneventful at Chez Penny, but I do have some updates to share. First, this is pretty much the best way to depict my state of mind since being placed on the transplant list. Yep, that's right.  Every call results in a frantic reach for the phone.  Typically, it's just an automated voice offering me a free cruise or life insurance.  I have no idea how they get around the nomorobo, but alas... they do. So yeah, I'm pretty much just waiting. Mike was contacted and told to start his donor testing.  He went in at the beginning of July for glucose monitoring testing.  Unfortunately, his results came back slightly elevated.  They discussed his case at the transplant committee meeting yesterday and decided to deny him as a donor.  So today I got a letter saying that they have exhausted all of my potential living donors. Mike isn't giving up.  Even though he's already lost 30 pounds, he's dete...

Well, the transplant testing is now complete!  I am officially listed!  And now...we wait. Mike and I enjoyed a celebration dinner last night. Sushi, of course. Post-transplant, I'll have to avoid sushi and buffets. Sushi is my favorite food, so I'm filling up on tuna nigiri while I can.  Now that I'm listed, they'll start testing my living donor. Mike goes in for his blood work on Monday, so they haven't wasted any time getting him started.  They estimate that his testing will take 4-6 weeks.  They also told me 4-6 weeks, and I started in mid-April. The entire process for me wrapped up yesterday, so that was more like 10 1/2 weeks. Therefore, I'm taking the time estimate that they gave him with a grain of salt.  If Mike is the donor, we'll have the luxury of scheduling the surgery. That would allow me to prepare for a long-term sub at work and consider recovery time.  Of course, it's still possible that I could be offered a cadaver kidney anytime...