For those of you who don't know, I only have one kidney. The other resides in my brother, Aaron. This is our story.
I Just Knew
My brother Aaron found years ago (after what turned out to be a rather providential bicycle accident) that his creatinine levels were really high. We discovered that he was born with smaller kidneys that couldn't keep up. So began the monitoring. Doctors mostly agreed that someday he would require a transplant.
My brother Aaron found years ago (after what turned out to be a rather providential bicycle accident) that his creatinine levels were really high. We discovered that he was born with smaller kidneys that couldn't keep up. So began the monitoring. Doctors mostly agreed that someday he would require a transplant.
I remember when my parents sat my brother Jason and me down to tell us of this possibility. They hoped, obviously, it wouldn't come to that, and they hoped we wouldn't have to think about being donors, but they wanted us to know just the same. I knew right then and there that it would be me.
No, seriously, I did. Partly because I knew how bad I was with needles, the idea of surgery, etc. (i.e. I pass out when they prick my finger for a cholesterol test!). The irony was just too convincing. But even beyond that, I just knew somehow...as if God was preparing me long long before the event so that I wouldn't be surprised.
Alpha & Bravo
One day my mom said something to me that she thought was "interesting". She told me I had an X-ray when I was about 1 month old which had showed that I had one "abnormally" large kidney...perhaps with 2 lobes or something. I had never known this. All this time a magical kidney!! Ok, not really - but it made me know all the more that it would be me that would donate.
One day my mom said something to me that she thought was "interesting". She told me I had an X-ray when I was about 1 month old which had showed that I had one "abnormally" large kidney...perhaps with 2 lobes or something. I had never known this. All this time a magical kidney!! Ok, not really - but it made me know all the more that it would be me that would donate.
I started joking about my 3rd kidney all the time. But I didn't have names for them until one night at Silver Diner with my then friend and now husband, David, his friend Mike, and one of my best friends, Sonja. I was explaining the larger kidney thing to them. Mike cracked us all up when he said, "So you have an Alpha and a Bravo kidney! Make sure they take Bravo and leave you with Alpha". From then on, my kidney's were referred to as Alpha and Bravo. Of course, I hadn't had an x-ray or any other procedure to determine whether I did, in fact, STILL have a larger kidney or if I had outgrown it over the years. I guess we'd find out if it came to that!
No Really, It's Me...Right?
Anyway, time passed and Aaron's creatinine levels continued to get worse. Finally he was at about 20% function when he was put on the transplant list and testing for donors began. My father had had heart surgery, so he couldn't donate. So my mom began testing.
Anyway, time passed and Aaron's creatinine levels continued to get worse. Finally he was at about 20% function when he was put on the transplant list and testing for donors began. My father had had heart surgery, so he couldn't donate. So my mom began testing.
My mom's donor testing went very well. SO well that one day I found myself driving down to UVA to be there for the transplant surgery. I wasn't going to make it in time to see mom and Aaron before the surgery, but I was going to be there with the family afterwards for several days. Then I got a call.
PAUSE - let me explain to you how crazy this was. Thirty seconds before the phone rang, I was literally talking out loud to God in the car saying something like, "Lord, this is so weird, I really thought it was going to be me." ........RING!
Sadly, my father explained that the surgery had been called off - the transplant was not going to happen. The doctor had somehow missed something on my mom's CT Scan which wasn't a problem for her physically, but could become one if she were to donate. They didn't want to take the chance. (FYI - Even WE could see the issue once it was pointed out...obviously someone dropped the ball and it was rather upsetting to the family. That being said, the UVA team is still AWESOME, fyi).
I felt especially bad for my mother who had been seconds away from anesthesia. At the same time, I couldn't help but laugh at my words just seconds before finding out...I KNEW it was me! Telling my family this story when I arrived to UVA seemed to be comforting to them in this time of disappointment.
Well, I really didn't KNOW for sure yet. Still much testing to be done!
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