Living Donors Online Message Board
Living Donation Discussion and News => Living Donation Forum => Topic started by: BYUFAN on September 19, 2013, 01:20:35 PM
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Greetings! This is a victory post!
This is my first post though I read some topics about a year ago now, when I was preparing to donate a portion of my liver. What an experience! I doubt it is news to those on this forum that donating and receiving sums up to one of the most arduous and rewarding experiences of a lifetime. I had an opportunity to donate to my brother and we are both doing great! He had some liver issues as a child, experienced juvenile onset diabetes and, later, Addison's disease. Maybe 2 years ago his liver began to fail and he was given a MELD score a year and a half ago. We had the surgery in November at the University of MN, Fairview - amazing people, amazing place. I am looking forward to visiting there near the year mark and it just happens to coincide withe the BYU Wisconsin football game : ). I live in San Antonio Texas and am from Provo, Utah.
I'm posting just as a shout out for success and gratitude. I hope that those with the opportunity to donate will give it careful and serious consideration. I was blessed with a vast support system that made the process so much more bearable. I was blessed to have the support of an amazing wife - family, friends, work, and church - and the faith and prayers of a small army. It made such a difference for me, I really could not have done it otherwise. I've often felt like writing down a lot of my experience, but I have had the hardest time doing it. I think in part because it was so emotionally intimidating. Even with a great outcome and no real issues for me, it was tough. It was physically and emotionally demanding, but the benefits far outweigh the challenges - which are basically now behind me. Now my biggest (trivial) challenge is cleaning up this gut I am growing so as people ask to see the scar I feel like it's on a canvas worthy of the cut. The process was so much harder on my brother and his family. It is, now, so rewarding for both of us to have him healthy and doing great.
I think my favorite thing leading up to the surgery was new knowledge or expectations of what was to come. I LOVED the diagnostic and evaluation portions of the process. That was such a great thing as I have seen others state in these forums. Your posts were helpful to me - Thank you. I was also given a list of folks to contact who would share with me their experiences as donors. I was comforted to have the list though good intentions to call never met the act of doing so. As i signed on to the forum, I checked the "allow other to email" box. I don't assume I have what you are looking for, but if I can offer some help or info then I'm all in.
I hope things work out for you and your loved ones. I hope the happy endings find you sooner than you expect. I'm grateful for the victory that blessed our experience. May God bless you wherever you are in this process.
Mark
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Congratulations Mark! When I once joked about donating part of my liver at some point in time because of how great it felt to give someone a second chance with a kidney I was told that liver donation can be much more prone to complications. So I think you're just great for donating to your brother. I know your recovery process was longer and am so glad to hear that both you & your brother are doing so good! This is a great place for sure!
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Bravo, Mark! Glad to hear you're both doing well a year out. Might you consider being a supportive resource person here for prospective liver donors, their families and friends, and the many others who find their way here hooping to learn more? Thanks for your inital post, and so glad you found LDO helpful. Best wishes.