1. < Transplants

Living Donor: It's a huge responsibility

Posted by fbgibbons672 @fbgibbons672, Sep 11, 2017

I am a match for my sister's kidney transplant and will be heading to Mayo next month for evaluation. My sister has told everyone she knows about me, even refers to me as her "kidney mama". I understand she is excited and I am as well, but now I wonder how I will feel if I don't "pass" and she has to continue her waiting and dialysis. Its a huge responsibility and a huge honor to be able to do this, but.....

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Teresa, Volunteer Mentor | @hopeful33250 | Jan 8, 2018
In reply to @mlmcg "When my brother was diagnosed with end stage renal failure I thought I should see if..." + (show)
@mlmcg

When my brother was diagnosed with end stage renal failure I thought I should see if I would qualify as a donor. Less than 10 months later I was diagnosed with end stage renal failure, different reasons. He had a live donor, a friend of his wife, I did not. He died this last year, I'm still alive. Living with a different life style was not high on his list of things to do. Living with a different live style was and still is important to me to keep the kidney happy. Good luck.
mlmcg

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@mlmcg Congratulations on making such a wise life-style decision! I wish you many more years with your new kidney!
Teresa

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Rosemary, Volunteer Mentor | @rosemarya | Apr 10, 2018
In reply to @rosemarya "@fbgibbons672, I want you to know that I am thinking about you and your sister. I..." + (show)
@rosemarya

@fbgibbons672, I want you to know that I am thinking about you and your sister. I hope that both of you are doing okay. I also hope that you have gained some support by reading what others are saying as they are going through their own unique journey with kidney donation for a loved one.

Do you have any questions for us? If you are comfortable doing so, do you have any information that you would like to share with any of our other donor patients?
Hugs,
Rosemary

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@uchimaob, I am thinking about you during this month of April, as the nation celebrates and honors organ donors. I don't know whether this worked out for you, however, know that I consider you worthy of being honored because of your willingness to be part of the donor process.
Rosemary

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Rosemary, Volunteer Mentor | @rosemarya | Apr 10, 2018
In reply to @mauraacro "I was at Mayo for testing 3 weeks ago but so much has happened in such..." + (show)
@mauraacro

I was at Mayo for testing 3 weeks ago but so much has happened in such a short time that it seems like 3 years ago. I went by myself and after getting my test schedule, I'm glad I did, I would have felt bad for my husband hurrying up and waiting. It was also nice to go back to my hotel and rest, read and watch bad tv without worrying about if he was enjoying the trip. Before I left I cleaned the house and stocked the freezer for the family and for a few days of meals when I got home. We made the decision as a family for me to donate but I didn't want something that I was taking on to put my family too much off their routine while I was gone.
The testing process at Mayo was amazing and exhausting. I had 23 appointments & tests in 2 days and am still surprised that I (and the Mayo team) was able to accomplish so much in such a short time. I had 1 receptionist that was rushed and not outgoing and that was the worst of it. I would not have even noticed her manner at home, it was only compared to how outgoing, friendly and professional I found my team to be, that I noticed it.
For the surgery, my husband will be with me and 1 of my sons will stay at our house with the dogs. We have a website, "Nextdoor" that we use and found a college student that will also stay at our house so the dogs get some extra love and our son doesn't feel pressured to be home all the time. The beauty of this student is that he has 3 room mates and is happily staying for free to have a quieter place to live for a few weeks, some home cooked meals that I will stock for him and access to a free washer and dryer. I am leaving for surgery in 8 days and I have already started getting ready to go. I am both a planner and a procrastinator so I made a huge list of everything I want to get done before I leave, then broke it down into daily tasks. It works on paper but if I get to most of it, I'll be happy -I don't really need to clean the furnace filter before I go but yes, it's on the list.
I don't know if that helped anyone but it made me feel good to put it all in writing. Thanks for letting me post what should be in my journal, online!

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@fauneconner, I was passing thru some previous conversations, and wanted to drop in and say, "Hi".
I'm thinking about you.
Rosemary

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Rosemary, Volunteer Mentor | @rosemarya | Apr 10, 2018
In reply to @dank "Six plus, years ago I received the gift of life, a liver transplant ! If it..." + (show)
@dank

Six plus, years ago I received the gift of life, a liver transplant !
If it weren’t for my most generous donor and Mayo I’d not be here today, thank GOD !
In October I had my annual 6yr liver check up ( 21 appointments ). Not all of them were relating to my new liver, in fact everything regarding my transplant is going GREAT. I have a few other issues that the folks at Mayo are monitoring, treating, healing, and doing what ever miracle workers do.
Every year my wife and I look forward to our visit to Rochester and make a mini-vacation of it. For me life is going great and I pray that anyone afflicted with this disease will hang in there, follow the medical teams advice, and have the same results .
GOD BLESS !

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@dank, I hope that you continue to feel well, especially during this month of April which is celebrated as National Donate Life Month. I want to share an upcoming event, in case you are interested -Tuesday, April 24 at 12 p.m. CT for a behind-the-scenes look at the procurement process for a liver transplant.
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/webinar/video-qa-and-behind-the-scenes-liver-transplant/
Rosemary

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Rosemary, Volunteer Mentor | @rosemarya | Apr 10, 2018
In reply to @grammyx4 "Thank you Rosemary for your sweet Thanksgiving message! We just returned this weekend from the Mayo..." + (show)
@grammyx4

Thank you Rosemary for your sweet Thanksgiving message! We just returned this weekend from the Mayo in Rochester where our son had his final testing to be my husbands living kidney donor. He is a match, but has a few minor things to to work on to be in perfect shape himself for the surgery. As soon as he meets those requirements, transplant surgery will be scheduled. We are so excited and thankful for his great gift. There are just no words....... We hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday!

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@grammyx4, It has been a while since we heard from you. The saying, "Out of sight-Out of mind" is not true for me. I am thinking about you and wish you peace wherever your path has led you.
Hugs,
Rosemary

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mindyelvin | @mindyelvin | Apr 10, 2018

Hi, I just joined Mayo Connect yesterday. I also just completed my initial paperwork to donate my kidney to my best friend. She is waiting to be contacted and I suspect they will then contact me. I have had the entire workup at Sharp Hosp. in San Diego and all was a go until they decided that, for them (change in chief of Staff), she was a risk. I have a large list of questions that I asked Sharp and will also ask Mayo when the time comes. I don't know if we are permitted to exchange emails on here but I would be more than willing to share my list of questions (and the answers I received from Sharp). It may help you make a decision. My friend is also my roommate so I see her struggles on a daily basis....that alone was enough for me to decide to donate but asking questions put the icing on the cake. I wish you well and can hopefully share my list.

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Mentor
Rosemary, Volunteer Mentor | @rosemarya | Apr 10, 2018

@mindyelvin, Welcome to Mayo Connect. I hope that your initial paper work will lead you towards the journey to be a living donor for your friend. It must be difficult to witness her daily struggles with her kidneys. You are a good friend, a good person. to consider doing this for her.

Our purpose on Connect is to share our experiences with each other, to ask questions and learn from each other, to support and encourage each other. There is a private message function if you and a member opt to share personal information such as email and phone. Or if there is something that you don't want to discuss on a public forum.

I want to share the Transplant Pages, where you can find materials for transplant recipients as well as living donors.
https://connect.mayoclinic.org/page/transplant/
We wish you well. We are here and we look forward to learning more about your journey to organ donation.
Rosemary

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JK | @contentandwell | Apr 11, 2018

I met a woman today (the phlebotomist who was playing vampire on me) and her husband was also a liver transplant recipient. He had a living donor and was transplanted at MELD 17. Is there an age limit to how soon they do the surgery if you have a living donor? That surprised because it was fairly low.
JK

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tjdog | @tjdog | Jul 19, 2018

I understand that the first step for being a kidney donor is to complete a health history questionnaire. Once it's complete, how long should it take to be contacted by a living donor coordinator. I'm waiting to get a status.

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2 replies
Moderator
Colleen Young, Connect Director | @colleenyoung | Jul 19, 2018
In reply to @tjdog "I understand that the first step for being a kidney donor is to complete a health..." + (show)
@tjdog

I understand that the first step for being a kidney donor is to complete a health history questionnaire. Once it's complete, how long should it take to be contacted by a living donor coordinator. I'm waiting to get a status.

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Hi @tjdog. I add my welcome. You'll notice that I moved your messages to an existing discussion of the same name. I did this so that you can meet others who are considering becoming a donor. Simply click VIEW & REPLY in the email notification to read through past messages. You'll meet others like @grammyx4 @fauneconner @fbgibbons672 and others.

You might also be interested in learning about the experience of members who donated an organ in this discussion:
- Kidney transplant - The Journey from the Donor's Side https://connect.mayoclinic.org/discussion/kidney-transplant-from-the-donor-side/

Tjdog, Waiting to hear after you've completed the health questionnaire must feel long. Feel free to ask questions of members while you wait. If you don't mind telling a bit more about yourself, could you share what inspired you to apply to be a donor?

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