I am coning up on my two years. i donated my kidney to my dad on Feb 9th in 2010. i will share what info I have.
1.)i was also about 5 hours from home when I donated. I was nervous and my way of dealing was to be hyper prepared. I brought so much more than I could possibly need but the things I am happy i brought were
-chap stick, the air gets so dry
-warm fuzzy slippers
-my own fuzzy comforting blanket
-a small pillow, to hold against your incision when you sneeze or have to sit up
-big comfy clothes to wear home (sweat pants or pajama pants, a big comfy hoody)
-slippers with grippy feet. They will make you walk and you do NEED to walk so you want to make sure you have the right slippers.
-juice boxes! This one is partially just because I think it is impossible to be unhappy while drinking out of a juice box but also because they are easy to drink when laying down and not too heavy to hold.
I think those are my only absolute necessities. like I said I brought so much more, such as prunes (io was paranoid about constipation and I inaccurately thought I would be able to eat), books (no way I could read), makeup lol i guess I actually thought I would care what I looked like.
2.)I had someone there with me a lot during the days but not through the night. I would have liked someone through the night but it wasn't too awful being alone. i think you need someone there at least part of the time, or at least i did. someone definitely has to help you when you leave.
3.) i felt capable of pretty much nothing that first week. i was a little too drugged (had me on high does of dilaudid in the hospital and was the come down/withdrawal that week was difficult). i was a sore walking zombie. not everyone is this way I am sure but I was. Give yourself a break and expect nothing of yourself, you just had major surgery.
4.) I don;t think i would have gone to a wedding 2 weeks after surgery, unless it was my very best friend or sister perhaps. if you must, have good pain killers and expect to be extremely tired the whole time. I found I was prepared for the pain but the tiredness was actually much harder for me. walking for any amount of time would be very hard at 2 weeks. its just so hard to know what you will feel like.
5.) unfortunately no. Tylenol doesn't work well for me either and there aren't really any other good options unless you get into narcotics
6.) I am not sure how long before I felt 100%. I felt about 80% or 90% after about 6 weeks but I wouldn't say i was really 100% for quite a few months. i still felt a little pulling around my incision if I walked a lot (hours of shopping or something) after 6 months, maybe even a year. i ran a lot recently and i actually felt my incision for the first time in quite a while. Not pain exactly, just felt it.
I have never had a c-section so I can't comment on that.
my other thoughts- be kind to yourself through it all, be patient with your body. It is a big surgery and you need to give yourself that time.
I was told about depression post donation and never thought it would apply to me but it did. i think it is a combination of feeling so tired and rough as well as the big excitement leading up to it being over. I am not entirely sure why but it is common. if you do experience it, come on this site and talk to to people. do whatever you need to get through it. For me, knowing it was a thing people often go through after transplant helped me and I just felt better as time went on and I got stronger again.
This is an amazing experience and I think we are all so blessed to be a part of such an incredible act! you will now be part of an exclusive club, be proud of what you have done!
Thank you for taking time to read this and answer the questions!
good luck!
Ebony
donated left kidney to dad feb.9, 2010