The other day I read an article by a young man in his 20's who donated a kidney to a relative when he was 18. Eight years later he wishes he had been a little better informed about lack of research on the subject and he feels a little paranoid about every twinge of pain he feels.
I can appreciate his feelings. I can be kind of paranoid about my one remaining kidney. And I agree he was probably too young to be allowed to make that decision (I was told you had to be 21 to donate). His family tried to talk him out of it, but he would not be dissuaded. But, although the relative he donated to is still in good health, he now regrets being a kidney donor.
So what are my feelings about being a kidney donor? I donated five years ago to a man I still don't know, who lived in New Jersey at the time. I was actually really donating in behalf of my daughter who had kidney failure due to her extreme prematurity. Despite my paranoia, the bottom line is, I don't regret the decision at all.
Here are some reasons why:
1. My health is still good. My remaining kidney doesn't do quite the work of the two kidneys I used to have but it is good enough. The only difference I have noticed is I need to drink more water. I have tried hard to protect my remaining kidney by drinking a lot of water and generally taking care of myself through good diet and exercise. My health isn't perfect: I have had a few problems with UTI's so hopefully I can keep those under control. Having only one kidney makes me feel a little more vulnerable but I think I'm also a little more health-conscious than I would be otherwise.
2. My daughter's health is good and has improved a lot since her kidney failure. Pre-transplant, she wouldn't eat at all and she threw up almost every day. We had to give her epogen shots once a week to help her be less anemic. Five years later, she's made a lot of developmental progress and seems pretty healthy most of the time. We work hard to keep her kidney healthy through lots of fluids and taking her anti-rejection medicine faithfully. I think we have missed doses of her medicine only a couple of times in over five years. We got to meet her kidney donor several years ago and I think she still feels good about donating to Camille. We stay in touch a few times a year.
3. I helped someone have better health for at least a little while. The man I donated to wrote me a letter about a year after I donated to him. It was an amazing experience to get a letter like that, with him having so much gratitude to me for helping him. Before the transplant, he was in terrible health with multiple hospitalizations. He had two previous transplants that had failed. After my kidney donation, his health improved a lot. He said that people kept telling him how much better he looked now. He was able to go to work and have the energy he needed. It's been four years since that letter and I wish I knew if my kidney was still working for him. I like to think that it is. But if it isn't, at least it helped him for a while.
4. It was something I was supposed to do. When I started the process of qualifying to be a donor, I was a little scared. But I prayed about it and got the impression I should do it and I didn't feel so scared. Later on, when I didn't like the date of the transplant because of other events going on (mainly my son coming home from his mission), I got a very clear answer I should do it. I remember those answers and I realize, no matter how paranoid I may feel about my kidney or blood pressure or anything, God wanted me to do it.
So, no, the bottom line is I don't regret being a kidney donor. If I had to remake the decision to do it five years ago, I would do it again. I hope that young man can feel better about the decision he made 8 years ago. If it was good then, it's still good now.
I can appreciate his feelings. I can be kind of paranoid about my one remaining kidney. And I agree he was probably too young to be allowed to make that decision (I was told you had to be 21 to donate). His family tried to talk him out of it, but he would not be dissuaded. But, although the relative he donated to is still in good health, he now regrets being a kidney donor.
So what are my feelings about being a kidney donor? I donated five years ago to a man I still don't know, who lived in New Jersey at the time. I was actually really donating in behalf of my daughter who had kidney failure due to her extreme prematurity. Despite my paranoia, the bottom line is, I don't regret the decision at all.
Here are some reasons why:
1. My health is still good. My remaining kidney doesn't do quite the work of the two kidneys I used to have but it is good enough. The only difference I have noticed is I need to drink more water. I have tried hard to protect my remaining kidney by drinking a lot of water and generally taking care of myself through good diet and exercise. My health isn't perfect: I have had a few problems with UTI's so hopefully I can keep those under control. Having only one kidney makes me feel a little more vulnerable but I think I'm also a little more health-conscious than I would be otherwise.
2. My daughter's health is good and has improved a lot since her kidney failure. Pre-transplant, she wouldn't eat at all and she threw up almost every day. We had to give her epogen shots once a week to help her be less anemic. Five years later, she's made a lot of developmental progress and seems pretty healthy most of the time. We work hard to keep her kidney healthy through lots of fluids and taking her anti-rejection medicine faithfully. I think we have missed doses of her medicine only a couple of times in over five years. We got to meet her kidney donor several years ago and I think she still feels good about donating to Camille. We stay in touch a few times a year.
3. I helped someone have better health for at least a little while. The man I donated to wrote me a letter about a year after I donated to him. It was an amazing experience to get a letter like that, with him having so much gratitude to me for helping him. Before the transplant, he was in terrible health with multiple hospitalizations. He had two previous transplants that had failed. After my kidney donation, his health improved a lot. He said that people kept telling him how much better he looked now. He was able to go to work and have the energy he needed. It's been four years since that letter and I wish I knew if my kidney was still working for him. I like to think that it is. But if it isn't, at least it helped him for a while.
4. It was something I was supposed to do. When I started the process of qualifying to be a donor, I was a little scared. But I prayed about it and got the impression I should do it and I didn't feel so scared. Later on, when I didn't like the date of the transplant because of other events going on (mainly my son coming home from his mission), I got a very clear answer I should do it. I remember those answers and I realize, no matter how paranoid I may feel about my kidney or blood pressure or anything, God wanted me to do it.
So, no, the bottom line is I don't regret being a kidney donor. If I had to remake the decision to do it five years ago, I would do it again. I hope that young man can feel better about the decision he made 8 years ago. If it was good then, it's still good now.
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