Register as a Donor
More Than Just a Job
Monday, December 20, 2010
When I applied for my current position at LifeGift, I already knew a little bit about organ donation. In 2002, my older brother married a heart transplant recipient and my family soon became familiar with the subject.
I vividly remember sitting in my brother’s living room watching my sister-in-law empty what seemed like thousands of anti-rejection medications into her weekly pill box. I also remember late night trips to the convenience store on Christmas Eve to buy milk – it was the only way she could take all of her medication. And then there were the annual heart caths. I would meet my brother at the hospital and sit with him, waiting anxiously for the cardiologist’s report. These annual tests determined how well the heart was working and if any rejection or failure could be detected. They were extremely nerve-wracking!
What I remember most, however, is when my brother and sister-in-law rang my doorbell one January evening in 2005. Because of particular medical condition and all of the anti-rejection meds she was on, childbirth was extremely risky and would probably kill her. So imagine my surprise when I opened the door and was introduced to my baby nephew who they had just picked up from the adoption agency one day before. That little boy wrapped his hand around my pinky and it was love at first sight. We are extremely close and I love him like I would love my own child.
Flash forward to several years later and we learn that the anti-rejection meds have taken a toll on my sister-in-law’s kidney system. She started dialysis three times a week. It’s a pretty sad reality when your 4-year-old nephew can tell you where Mommy gets her dialysis treatments. “Dialysis” is a word that no 4-year-old little boy should know.
In August of this past year, I received a call from my sister-in-law informing me that she needed a second heart transplant. The meds and the dialysis had caused her first heart to “peter” out for lack of a better word. She had the first transplant 14 years ago; most heart transplant patients can live for 10 without a second transplant so she was “above average.”
My nephew is 5 years old and just started kindergarten this past fall, and his mommy needs a double-organ transplant. That’s a lot for a 5-year-old to handle and comprehend.
I’ve always been a hard worker. While I was at Texas Children’s Hospital, I fought for cancer patients and their families; now I find myself in a position where I’m fighting for my own family. My job at LifeGift is not just a job – it’s a personal mission.
