Lung Transplant: What can I expect?

Posted by helenrivera @helenrivera, Jun 17, 2023

I would like to know more about the procedure for Lung Transplant. My insurance approved my referral to UCLA. What can I expect?

Interested in more discussions like this? Go to the Lung Health Support Group.

I understand how hard it can be when your oxygen is dipping. At the end before being hospitalized, my oxygen would dip into the 30s when I walked 10 feet. I couldn't get my oxygen above 80s and that was after lying down for over an hour after doing anything. I used to pray to God to give me breath.
They believe that the fainting was due to a reaction of high doses of the medication to counteract the rejection.

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Praying your now living your best self. Thank you for sharing.

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@helenrivera @windwalker @jackiez @nnelson823 @djallan @mariakathleen @shariscorner @sbt19 @spider109 @beckbeck67 @chrisxkauffold @abmac - many of you have connected with @chickytina in the Transplants Support Group.

Tina is featured in this week's Member Spotlight, interviewed by fellow transplantee, @rosemarya. Tina talks about acceptance and findng answers together on Mayo Clinic Clinic. Learn about her passion for zapote ice cream and how someone can have joy with hurting feet with every new breath. 🙂

- Dancing til my feet hurt with new lungs: Meet @chickytina https://connect.mayoclinic.org/blog/about-connect/newsfeed-post/dancing-til-my-feet-hurt-with-new-lungs-meet-chickytina/

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@colleenyoung

@helenrivera @windwalker @jackiez @nnelson823 @djallan @mariakathleen @shariscorner @sbt19 @spider109 @beckbeck67 @chrisxkauffold @abmac - many of you have connected with @chickytina in the Transplants Support Group.

Tina is featured in this week's Member Spotlight, interviewed by fellow transplantee, @rosemarya. Tina talks about acceptance and findng answers together on Mayo Clinic Clinic. Learn about her passion for zapote ice cream and how someone can have joy with hurting feet with every new breath. 🙂

- Dancing til my feet hurt with new lungs: Meet @chickytina https://connect.mayoclinic.org/blog/about-connect/newsfeed-post/dancing-til-my-feet-hurt-with-new-lungs-meet-chickytina/

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FYI, my name is not Tina. Chickytina is a nickname my husband gave me 20 years ago.

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@helenrivera

I should have added what you feel, is they pain tolerable after, how you felt afterwards and now....

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I have a very high pain tolerance and everyone is really different. The most important thing is to keep moving forward. Get up and walk even though you are in pain. I would ask the nurse for my pain meds and get up and walk laps around the floor and then added stairs to it. I have spoken to some other people and they were in the hospital a lot longer than I was after the surgery. I wanted to be able to do things with my son, so I didn't want to just sit around. Other people that took longer, after hearing their stories, gave into the pain more. They wouldn't get up and walk, because they were in pain. My doctor told me there was a small window to get the lungs fully functioning. I didn't want to lose the opportunity and my lungs actually grew a little.

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@vollenweider6154, I just read in the 'Snapshots of hope, Life on the other side of transplant' discussion that you are on the lung transplant list. I can understand the fears that you are experiencing as your health is affected while waiting and hoping for your transplant. You are noy alone in this.

I would like to invite you to meet @chickytina who is a lung transplant recipient. What would you like to know from her about her transplant experience?

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