Check-in: It’s Been One Year!

Happy Holidays!

Just got the tree up and decorated

It’s December 26!  

The anniversary of one of the most important days in my life.

This time last year, I was undergoing a lifesaving kidney transplant from my living donor.

I wanted to give you an update of my year.

2018 — Year One after Transplant

A beach in Bermuda

Life has changed a lot since the surgery.

  • I haven’t needed dialysis because the kidney started working immediately and is holding its own.
  • I was allowed to start exercising after my incisions were sufficiently healed.
  • I was able to go on vacation to Bermuda without a dialysis machine
  • On a sad note, my mother passed away in July and I had to help my father handle her affairs (there went the exercising!)
  • My father has moved in with us in Texas and we sold the family home in Alabama.
  • I have gained weight – ugh! I know it’s not all my fault: some causes include the meds, an improvement in my appetite, and a lack of exercise because of all the other things going on. I plan to fix this in 2019!

A Difficult Summer

Right after the transplant, I saw the transplant doctors every week and then every 2 weeks with a blood draw every week or two. Every time we tried to space the appointments out more, my white blood cell count would take a dive – usually because of a medicine that I had been prescribed. This didn’t surprise me as my blood count has always been on the low side even when I was younger –it’s typical for me.

But those white cells were really low at the time I found out that my mother had died. I developed a fever and the doctors wanted to admit me to the hospital. But then I would have missed her funeral. Because I protested so much, my doctors sent me to an infectious disease doctor who determined that there was no active infection. I had developed this fever because my white blood cell count was way too low. They put me on antiviral medications and antibiotics and allowed me to travel to Alabama, which is how I got to attend.

I still had to go to the clinic every two weeks because of that setback.

Since August

Since then everything physically has been stable. We have just been trying to adjust to our new normal. I also have a lot of stuff from my childhood home in my office that I need to go through.

Attending a wedding

Earlier in December, the doctors said I could come back for my next visit in 2 months with a blood draw in January.  My veins really appreciate the break — it’s getting harder to get blood from me LOL. Hopefully, by the end of the next year, I have appointments every 6 months or maybe even every year!

What Else Have I Been Doing this Year

Other things that have changed over the past year:

  • I started a blog, Life: The Reboot
  • I just published some journals and planners for 2019 on Amazon KDP
  • I have been working on my novel (more on that later)

Check my blog and my Amazon pages out. I would appreciate it!

Moving Forward

I am excited and hopeful about what the next year has in store. I will continue to post about my progress and plans. But the biggest plan for this page now is to provide awareness of other people who are looking for donors. 

WIthout people taking the time to read my posts and share the information with their networks, I would have never met my donor. I am just so grateful to my donor who –by the way—is doing well herself. She’s just busy with life, work, and family. We touch base when we can and want to plan some kind of girls’ trip. I will let you know when we get that scheduled!

I really do appreciate all of the help you provided for me by sharing my posts and my page and your comments and prayers. Let’s spread that to others who are in the same spot I was.

Loving Life–The Reboot!

Dominique

Check-In: My Six-Month Transplantiversary

Hi everyone!

Sunset in BermudaIt has been six-months since my kidney transplant. So far, so good! My doctors’ visits have been good, and my lab work has been normal. Hopefully, there will be no changes in my medication levels for a while.

It’s been three months since I posted a personal note. What’s going on with me since then?

1. I have been cleared to start some core abdominal exercises. Hooray! I started Yoga this week. Well, I learned that I have a long way to go to get back into shape! LOL

2. I am still posting to my blog. Please check it out!

3. I have been trying to help my parents  get situated from a few states Thomas and I in Bermuda in June 2018.away.  My mother can’t stay in the house anymore and my dad can’t really help her.  They have an aide during the day — but this week, her doctors upped that to 24 hour care. I think they are going to move into a senior care facility in my hometown. I tried to move to nearer to me, but my mother is being stubborn. Oh well, what can you do? When they get ready to move, I will have to travel back to Alabama to help clear out the house.

4. I am finishing up my first novel. An editor friend of mine is editing it. Again, so far, so good.

5. I am still publicizing stories from people looking for donors or people who donated. Just email me through the site.

My donor is doing well, and we text each other at least once a week.

Send in your stories about people who need a kidney and please share the posts with your friends– remember more eyes, more exposure!

Have a wonderful day!

Be inspired—Give Life!

Dominique

Wanted: A Kidney for Cindy Elrod

My name is Cindy Elrod. I am a wife, a mother, and I need a kidney. I was diagnosed with Polycystic Kidney Disease in December 2013. I have been on the waiting list since then. I am on two waiting lists, actually, in hopes that I will be able to receive a transplant sooner rather than later. The most certain and expeditious way for me to receive a transplant is to reach out to potential living donors. I am sharing my plea and hope that you will make the call to be tested should you feel compelled to do so.

Since being diagnosed with PKD and renal failure, I have been on peritoneal dialysis. For 9 hours each night, I am hooked to a machine designed to rid my body of toxins since my kidneys can no longer function as they should. I visit the doctor as least twice each month, have monthly labs drawn, and went from taking no medications to taking ten pills daily. Needless to say, it is a lot to keep up with and can be physically exhausting. I am limited in my ability to travel to spend time with family and friends, as the equipment and supplies required for peritoneal dialysis are bulky and numerous. I also have diet restrictions to include no chocolate, ice cream, or sodas.

Receiving a transplant would change my life in so many ways. I would have the time and energy to be the active mom I would like to be. I would be free from dialysis, allowing me more freedom to travel and visit family and friends. I would feel better and be able to enjoy the things I am currently missing.
If you would like to be tested as my potential donor, I could never thank you enough. My blood type is O. I can receive a direct transplant from all Type O blood types but anyone could potentially help me, as both of my transplant centers participate in the Paired Exchange Program.

More information on Paired Exchange can be found here:
https://unos.org/donation/kidney-paired-donation/

I am on the transplant waiting list at:
Augusta University
Coordinator: Kate Hefner
706-721-2888, ext. 8560

Or visit: augustahealth.org/transplant, then click on “Become a Living Donor”.

As mentioned above, I am listed at a second transplant center:
Medical University of South Carolina
Coordinator: Sarah Parker
1-800-277-8687

Please let them know you would like to be tested to become a living donor for me, Cynthia M. Elrod, DOB 4/23/60.

Thank you for reading my story and for helping however you can. You can follow my page here if you’d like.
https://www.facebook.com/cindy.m.elrod

Weekly Digest- Wanted: A Kidney for Nikki

It’s the middle of spring, I am 4 months out from surgery, and I really am looking forward to summer! The weather has been weird this year, hasn’t it? Hopefully, it’s on the upswing, right?

So far so good with my transplant. We are still changing medicines, but the kidney is working well. Hooray!

I still would love some stories for donors and families of kidney donors. But until then, I am going to try to highlight stories of other people looking for donors. I published these on Facebook, but I didn’t put them on my blog. So, I think I am going to publish the stories of the people that I share on Facebook on the blog as well. Some may get a solo post depending on how much information is provided on Facebook or if they or a family member sends it in. Just another chance for exposure…

Joel

Joel is a single father of 2 beautiful kids (11-year-old son & 15-year-old daughter) who still works full time as a home health Physical Therapist (despite having ESRD (Endstage Renal/Kidney Failure) & being on Dialysis 3X a week for 12-15 hours per week). He’s been a physical therapist for 30 years now.

Hospital: Methodist Specialty Transplant Hospital, San Antonio, Texas. Visit his Facebook page for more information.  

 

Hahn

 

This is another person looking for a kidney donor.
Her name is Hanh Nguyen. She is 34 years old and mother to a 2-year-old boy. Her blood type is Type O. For more information, please send a

message through her Facebook page.

 

Please consider! My husband Marcus Lewis is 28-years-old with stage 5 end renal failure. He is on dialysis 3x a week and will remain until he finds a kidney. MarcusHe has been on be transplant list for 3 yrs. He was diagnosed with CKD November 7, 2013. Marcus has 2 children and 2 step children. He married in July 2017.

If you can find it in your heart to get tested, please call the number on the poster to Piedmont in Atlanta. 404-605-4792.

 

My name is Manjinder Singh and I was diagnosed with kidney failure in 2013.

ManjinderI am highly convinced that upon receiving a kidney I will have a completely different outlook on life, in fact I already do. A second chance at life will mean everything to me and my family. A chance to live out my dreams again, a chance to attend medical school and most important a chance to help others in need. My inspiration remains the same as before. I have always sought ways of helping those that are less fortunate. Community service is a huge concept in my religion and it is something that I value very much. If I am given a second chance at life, I will make sure it doesn’t go to waste, but rather I become an example of someone who did the right thing.

If after reading my brief story you feel like having yourself tested to be a potential donor, please contact the following transplant center and/or visit this link to fill out a kidney donor questionnaire using my DOB of 10/07/1988 and full name of Manjinder Singh. I thank you for reading about my struggle and possibly considering to be a donor.

California Pacific Medical Center (CPMC): 415-600-1700

Please share to help get the word out for these people.

Be Inspired—Give life!

Dominique

Wanted: A Kidney for Manjinder Singh

Good morning!
This is a post of another person looking for a donor. Please share!
My name is Manjinder Singh and I was diagnosed with kidney failure in 2013. The exact disease that I have is known as IgA Nephropathy. I had always lived a simple and clean life, so to have heard from the doctor’s mouth that I have kidney disease was surprising to say the least. My initial response was that of disbelief and quite frankly I thought someone surely must have made a mistake in the diagnosis process. I thought to myself how could someone who has never drank alcohol, smoked, or done any other drugs be hit with kidney failure at age 23. Surely this was a bad dream and I would wake up from it.
Unfortunately this was reality and for the next several years I would live with the idea that I will one day end up on dialysis and need a transplant. That day arrived in June of 2016. I received a call from my nephrologist telling me that I need to go to ER right away. I was in end stage renal failure and would need dialysis to sustain my life. As one can imagine it was a traumatic moment in my life. Here I was sitting in a hospital waiting to be dialyzed for the very first time thinking in my mind that I was supposed to be the one taking care of patients not becoming a patient myself. You see, I had high aspirations of becoming a physician. I had finished my Bachelor’s degree, taken the necessary tests and obtained the proper experience to enable myself to apply for medical school.
Unfortunately it wasn’t meant to be as my condition wouldn’t allow me to handle the ever so demanding coursework of medical school. Though this was a hard pill to swallow, I stayed positive and moved forward. Dialysis became part of my life, in fact it became the reason I have a life. I currently attend Hemo- dialysis three days a week for 3.5 hours each treatment. I have had significant changes to my life ever since I started dialysis. For example, I am always on a fluid restriction, which is absolutely horrible for someone who loved drinking water and juice. Besides controlling fluid intake, I have to always watch what I eat as well. Avoiding foods high in certain nutrients is key to sustaining longevity while on dialysis. Besides the drinking and eating component, your overall lifestyle changes as well. I haven’t been able to work out since starting dialysis, nor do I have the same energy level as before.
 
Being in kidney failure has not just impacted my life, but it has also drastically impacted the lives of my family members. They have struggled right along with me for that past several years now. My family has left no stone unturned in an effort to find a solution to my problem. My mother in particular has been an angel for me through this process. She takes care of me on a daily basis, and continues to believe that her son will be healthy and thriving very soon. My brother and sister-in-law have done everything possible to help get through this difficult period in my life. My father, who is an exceptionally hardworking individual, makes sure that I stay positive even when things get really difficult. I know my reality now more than ever before. I am in end stage renal failure and I have accepted that truth. My only solution to have a normal life again is to receive a kidney transplant.
I am highly convinced that upon receiving a kidney I will have a completely different outlook on life, in fact I already do. A second chance at life will mean everything to me and my family. A chance to live out my dreams again, a chance to attend medical school and most important a chance to help others in need. My inspiration remains the same as before. I have always sought ways of helping those that are less fortunate. Community service is a huge concept in my religion and it is something that I value very much. If I am given a second chance at life, I will make sure it doesn’t go to waste, but rather I become an example of someone who did the right thing.
 
If after reading my brief story you feel like having yourself tested to be a potential donor, please contact the following transplant center and/or visit the following link to fill out a kidney donor questionnaire using my DOB of 10/07/1988 and full name of Manjinder Singh. I thank you for reading about my struggle and possibly considering to be a donor.
My Transplant center participates in paired donor exchanges, so any blood type will work, however, blood types A+\- and O+\- are most likely to match.
California Pacific Medical Center (CPMC): 415-600-1700
Thank you for reading and thank you in advance for sharing my story.
Be Inspired-Give Life!
Nikki
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