@ginal My daughter and son both volunteered to be a living liver donor for me. I very much discouraged them but my daughter persisted. I finally got her the info at her constant urging, they said she could go through the tests at one of the NYC transplant hospitals but then it did not work out.
I really did not want my son to because I felt it would be very disruptive to his career since he would have to come east for about a month (he lives in CA) but I know if he thought I was absolutely urgent he would have been on the next plane east.
I would suggest that you let your daughter get tested at some point and then if it does become urgent she will be ready to go. She can be tested and you can still try to wait for a cadaver donor. I know the wait for kidneys is very long though.
JK

@contentandwell, Thank you for sharing your very personal experience.
When I was transferred to Mayo, and only listed for a liver transplant, some of my family members asked about getting tested to be donors. However. since I was so critical, they were told that there was not enough time for that. Soon after that, I was listed for both a liver and a liver and a kidney. I, too, had a deceased donor.
Rosemary

@dshaver, I'll continue to pray. Rosemary

I have done both, and peritoneal dialysis is easier but you have to be very carful because you can get peritonitis, which is very painful and you get very sick.

Thank you, I might just do that.

What is that?

@cmael, I want to drop in and say that I hope that you are continuing to make progress.
I am so happy that we had the opportunity to meet in the waiting room at Mayo in April! I was delighted to meet your family, too. That was quite a coincidence that we ended up sitting face-to-face while waiting for our labs!
I had a good checkup and finished the next day in mid afternoon. Due to the heavy snow, we decided to have out celebratory dinner in the clinic cafeteria! We drove home next day and the roads were clear the entire trip.

Are you home? How are you feeling since the transplant?
Rosemary

I'm out of breath just reading through all the messages. My doctor was the one who wanted me on the transplant list before I had to start dialysis. In order for me to be placed on the list I had to go through the evaluation first. My insurance would pay for only one evaluation. This was in 2003, so my memory may be a little "fuzzzy". I began dialysis about 6 months later. A little over 10 years ago, friends visited their family, about 100 miles away, came back to let me know that their niece worked in a transplant center that was in a different region than I was in and their waiting list was not as long as mine. If I paid for the e-val I could be placed on 2 list. So I did. Less then a month later I had a kidney, at my first transplant center which was closer to home. Go figure. I have had my kidney for just a little over 10 years now and every time I see a new doctor I tell them the kidney comes first and they honor my wishes.

I was on hemo-dialysis 4 days a week, in the evening, and found it to be wonderful. I did have to have dialysis one morning and it just wiped me out. If that was what everyone else felt like when they came off dialysis during the day I understand why people hate hemo-dialysis. I was not a candidate for anything other than hemo. Dialysis has changed so much in the last 15 years. There is home hemo-dialysis and at the center hemo-dialysis. If you are unable to check out the different types of dialysis and what is right for you, just about everyone has a teenager in the family or knows of one who are more than willing to do the research for you. Just give them a phone, tablet, or a computer and they will be happy. Good luck.

mlmcg

@mlmcg,, Thanks for providing your insightful answer as an experienced pro! The whole dialysis/transplant/kidney conversation is very confusing and frightening when we begin to hear these unfamiliar words and conditions. I clearly remember that. I was fortunate because I had doctors from the very beginning who were always on top of taking care of me, or were ready to refer me to specialists who could take care of me.

I will probably be facing a new doctor in the not-to-distant future, because mine will probably be retiring. Thanks for what you said, "every time I see a new doctor I tell them the kidney comes first and they honor my wishes."
Rosemary

@kanaazpereira Thank you I have a appointment at the Mayo on the 23rd of July looking forward to finding out more information and hoping I'll be able to be on the Transplant list.