Yesterday, we celebrated Kidney Day. Eight years ago, Patrick received
a transplant from a wonderful, selfless family who’d lost their daughter. We
named the kidney Sidney, and Sid’s still going strong. It’s an odd year to be
celebrating a health milestone. Even when it’s not 2020, health is something
that we are always cognizant of, that we never take for granted. We survived
three years of dialysis and all that went with it—disability, blood
transfusions, shingles, hernias, pain, countless nights at the hospital,
innumerable medications (some more helpful than others), bankruptcy, and
foreclosure. (We did home dialysis, and just to give you an idea, home dialysis
cost around $12,000 a month, and the dialysis machine was $65,000.) Recovery
from the transplant took another year. So it’s hard to see people being so
flippant about their own health and the health of others; it’s hard to see
leaders who are more concerned about shareholders than they are about the
health of non-millionaires.
This is something we are never not worried about. Antirejection
medications are not a joke. They have to be taken on time, every time. They
suppress the immune system which makes Patrick more vulnerable to contagions.
Also, a transplant is not a cure—it’s only a treatment. Sidney could eventually
give out. Medical advances have opened up more options, so we hope he never has
to do dialysis again. I really, really hope we never have to worry about a
ventilator for COVID.
So it was a quiet celebration at home, with take-out, chocolates, and
binge-watching Killing Eve. We take a moment to reflect on the young woman
whose passing has given us our own lives back, as well as improved the lives of
at least fifty people. We reflect on her family, total strangers, who we can
never repay. We appreciate everyone who is doing their part to protect
each other. Thank you.
The day after transplant surgery, June 2012
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