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Donating my kidney: Any tips? What do you wish you'd known?

Posted by Tammi @danhoe, May 16, 2020

On Wednesday at 5 am, I report for surgery to donate my left kidney to an unknown person. During this strange time in our world it's time for patience and understanding. Although I have to be dropped off for surgery, I know others will be with me in their hearts. I wonder who will be receiving my kidney? Are they make or female? How old is the recipient? Will it be local or will my kidney travel? I have been so pleased with my team at Mayo handling the donation testing. My nurse, Zach, has been with me since day 1 of testing and keeps me well informed. It's almost surreal that this journey is about to take the biggest step. Any tips or advice are welcome.

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Tammi | @danhoe | Jun 19, 2020
In reply to @tasher3433 "Tammi, I think of you every day! We did have a stall in recovery. My husband..." + (show)
@tasher3433

Tammi, I think of you every day! We did have a stall in recovery. My husband went into early kidney rejection 3 days after receiving his new Bean. After a biopsy, the Mayo Team started him on Turbo Blasters ( thyroglobulin) for 4 days. Meds have been adjusted 3 times, and each day is a new day! Our Donor, is recovering at a speedy rate though is still having shoulder/back pain from the gas. If I may step off topic for a moment..pre transplant, all you think of is the Gift of Life and rather scoot around any potential setbacks. However, as each day is a baby step closer to the new normal, we are all adjusting. I hope you are well, I hope you have support other than all of us, and I hope you know the Sun shines for you!

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I pray for your family as you adjust and learn what's the new normal as healing continues. Hopefully the Dr team will find the right dose of meds for your husband's body to work with his new addition.
For the shoulder pain it really helped for me to get up and walk and some light massage. For me 3 1/2 weeks was when I began to feel much more human again. What really seemed to be the way I had the biggest improvement was when I got the okay to be in the pool. Just doing light exercise, stretching, and treading water seemed to lift the fog I was in and help relieve aches and give me a bit of energy. I still tire if I over do it but it's a huge welcome improvement. Your daughter will hopefully be noticing big changes soon.

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1 reply
Tammi | @danhoe | Jun 19, 2020
In reply to @dhelmstetter "I am blown away by your selflessness and generosity! Awaiting kidney transplant evaluation, I know how..." + (show)
@dhelmstetter

I am blown away by your selflessness and generosity! Awaiting kidney transplant evaluation, I know how meaningful your gesture will be to some one!!

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Dhelmstetter, I will pray your evaluation goes smoothly and you find your perfect match quickly.

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1 reply
tasher3433 | @tasher3433 | Jun 19, 2020
In reply to @danhoe "I pray for your family as you adjust and learn what's the new normal as healing..." + (show)
@danhoe

I pray for your family as you adjust and learn what's the new normal as healing continues. Hopefully the Dr team will find the right dose of meds for your husband's body to work with his new addition.
For the shoulder pain it really helped for me to get up and walk and some light massage. For me 3 1/2 weeks was when I began to feel much more human again. What really seemed to be the way I had the biggest improvement was when I got the okay to be in the pool. Just doing light exercise, stretching, and treading water seemed to lift the fog I was in and help relieve aches and give me a bit of energy. I still tire if I over do it but it's a huge welcome improvement. Your daughter will hopefully be noticing big changes soon.

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Thank you for your prayers, and the advice. That helps immensely and we are closing in on that mark!

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Mentor
Ginger, Volunteer Mentor | @gingerw | Jun 19, 2020
In reply to @tasher3433 "Tammi, I think of you every day! We did have a stall in recovery. My husband..." + (show)
@tasher3433

Tammi, I think of you every day! We did have a stall in recovery. My husband went into early kidney rejection 3 days after receiving his new Bean. After a biopsy, the Mayo Team started him on Turbo Blasters ( thyroglobulin) for 4 days. Meds have been adjusted 3 times, and each day is a new day! Our Donor, is recovering at a speedy rate though is still having shoulder/back pain from the gas. If I may step off topic for a moment..pre transplant, all you think of is the Gift of Life and rather scoot around any potential setbacks. However, as each day is a baby step closer to the new normal, we are all adjusting. I hope you are well, I hope you have support other than all of us, and I hope you know the Sun shines for you!

Jump to this post

@tasher3433 Hope to hear in a few days, that your husband is doing better each day! This underscores that each surgery is its own unique situation. My husband had a couple unforeseen glitches early in his recovery, but then has been stellar in the almost 4 yrs since. And your donor, how great she is recovering well, also!
Ginger

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1 reply
tasher3433 | @tasher3433 | Jun 19, 2020
In reply to @gingerw "@tasher3433 Hope to hear in a few days, that your husband is doing better each day!..." + (show)
@gingerw

@tasher3433 Hope to hear in a few days, that your husband is doing better each day! This underscores that each surgery is its own unique situation. My husband had a couple unforeseen glitches early in his recovery, but then has been stellar in the almost 4 yrs since. And your donor, how great she is recovering well, also!
Ginger

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Thank you, Ginger! You, who have gone before, offer so much help and inspiration! We thank you
😊

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dhelmstetter | @dhelmstetter | Jun 19, 2020
In reply to @danhoe "Dhelmstetter, I will pray your evaluation goes smoothly and you find your perfect match quickly." + (show)
@danhoe

Dhelmstetter, I will pray your evaluation goes smoothly and you find your perfect match quickly.

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Thank you so much. That is certainly MY hope! With the backup from COVID, they may not get around to the eval until August! 🙁

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Mentor
Rosemary, Volunteer Mentor | @rosemarya | Jul 1, 2020
In reply to @tasher3433 "Tammi, I think of you every day! We did have a stall in recovery. My husband..." + (show)
@tasher3433

Tammi, I think of you every day! We did have a stall in recovery. My husband went into early kidney rejection 3 days after receiving his new Bean. After a biopsy, the Mayo Team started him on Turbo Blasters ( thyroglobulin) for 4 days. Meds have been adjusted 3 times, and each day is a new day! Our Donor, is recovering at a speedy rate though is still having shoulder/back pain from the gas. If I may step off topic for a moment..pre transplant, all you think of is the Gift of Life and rather scoot around any potential setbacks. However, as each day is a baby step closer to the new normal, we are all adjusting. I hope you are well, I hope you have support other than all of us, and I hope you know the Sun shines for you!

Jump to this post

@tasher3433, I have you on my mind today and just want to drop in to let you know that I hope you are seeing some progress in husband's recovery. Have the post biopsy meds been helpful?

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1 reply
tasher3433 | @tasher3433 | Jul 1, 2020
In reply to @rosemarya "@tasher3433, I have you on my mind today and just want to drop in to let..." + (show)
@rosemarya

@tasher3433, I have you on my mind today and just want to drop in to let you know that I hope you are seeing some progress in husband's recovery. Have the post biopsy meds been helpful?

Jump to this post

Hi Rosemary! Thank you for your kind thoughts. It has been a very rocky road, but other than hemerroidal pain, my husband improves every day. After the biopsy scare and 4 days of thymo infusions, he is home and walking more. Creatinine levels were too high yesterday, but fluid transfusion helped immensely. Possibly another today, though levels are good and we are waiting for Dr to say yay or nay about that and tweeting the meds. Best wishes to you all. I hope my posts aren’t putting anyone off transplant! This is minor compared to the alternative.

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1 reply
Tammi | @danhoe | Jul 1, 2020

Prayers for strength and healing continue.

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Mentor
Rosemary, Volunteer Mentor | @rosemarya | Jul 1, 2020
In reply to @tasher3433 "Hi Rosemary! Thank you for your kind thoughts. It has been a very rocky road, but..." + (show)
@tasher3433

Hi Rosemary! Thank you for your kind thoughts. It has been a very rocky road, but other than hemerroidal pain, my husband improves every day. After the biopsy scare and 4 days of thymo infusions, he is home and walking more. Creatinine levels were too high yesterday, but fluid transfusion helped immensely. Possibly another today, though levels are good and we are waiting for Dr to say yay or nay about that and tweeting the meds. Best wishes to you all. I hope my posts aren’t putting anyone off transplant! This is minor compared to the alternative.

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@tasher3433, Improvement is a beautiful word! I think it is neat that you can se the improvement, and I am quite confident that he feels the daily improvement, too. I know that me and my husband did when I got my transplant.
Your posts are perfect because they are your story, your experience, and no one else has the same identical experience. We are fortunate that the doctors know what to do when any complication happens. The are ready to act immediately, and that is why they keep ordering all those labs! Sometimes it takes a little while to find the right combination of drugs to help the kidney to be happy in its new home.
I know that you are happy to have him home. It has been a long journey for all of you.

I'll be checking on you. Any questions? Ask me anytime.

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