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Donated a kidney in May, new to Connect!
Transplants | Last Active: Nov 19, 2021 | Replies (8)Comment receiving replies
@leftyleft, Welcome to Mayo Connect. I am honored to greet you as a new organ donor! I am a recipient of a liver and kidney from an anonymous deceased donor in 2009. I will always remember the joy of receiving a phone call from my transplant surgeon who informed me that I was a match to receive an organ transplant. It was an immediate change in my life, one that I had hoped for, but feared would never happen. I cannot imagine, although I do try, to know how it must feel for you and other donors to go thru the transplant donation process and then to be scheduled for a life giving surgery by sharing one of your kidneys.
I look forward to learning more of your story as you join into the discussions here on Connect.
Leftyleft, What was it like for you to learn that you could not be a match for your friend? How did you decide on an organ donation chain? How much time lapsed between your surgery and your friend's surgery?
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Hello @rosemarya and thank you so much for your volunteer mentoring! Wonderful to hear of your story and hopefully continued health.
The best I can conceptualize and articulate when going through the first first matching test is that it’s like going to buy a lottery ticket. You’re so hopeful that you’re a match, but trying to caution yourself that you’re not, but ohhh that glimmer that you could ‘win’ and have that elated moment. It was a little sad and disappointing to not have that “meant to be” rare match, but, I knew that it was an option for me to proceed as an ‘exchange’/donation chain donor.
Being 35, and healthy, (and very long story(s) short!), I knew that my life/lifestyle was conducive to the testing and donation process, so we proceeded with scheduling and the battery of tests - so many!!! It was a life changing day finding out that I had been approved, then the next week she had been approved, then that WE were in the system waiting for a chain to come together.
Without mention of anything religious in tone, I will just say that it was ‘meant to be’ that we actually ended up being wheeled off to our respective OR’s at the exact same time, though that was not the original scheduled plan. My left kidney (“LeftyLeft”) was flown to Rochester, NY and my friend’s was flown in from Cleveland, OH.
So very thankful to have been given the gift of going through this process and everything that Mayo has done for my friend. And their staff has been incredible for me, again, life changing!!!