Living Donor at 21.

[ashfacei]

Hello everyone!

Firstly, I'd just like to say how glad I am to have come across a site like this. I've been struggling mentally with the upcoming dates, and am relieved I have found somewhere I can just let everything go.

So, long story short, my brother suffered from acute kidney failure about five months ago, due to being on multiple medications for so long. He was hospitalized for days in the beginning just to do all the testing, and went onto dialysis directly after wards. Just about a month ago he started the donor process, which my aunt and I both went and did the blood testing and everything else needed.

I found out that I have his blood type, we are a level 2 HLA match, and his blood did not reject mine. I then volunteered to become his living donor. At the moment, the both of us have to lose a few pounds before everything else can begin.

I'm not afraid to donate to him, because I know he needs and deserves it. My work is willing to work with the surgery and healing schedule and everything else it set in place. But occasionally I find myself worried about -my- reaction to this kind of surgery, and how -my- healing process will go. I'm about to turn 22, and I know this will likely impact the rest of my life. I've done a ton of research and I keep in contact with the living donor nurse every week with updates and preparations, but I don't think anything I read on an informational website can really tell me what to expect after wards.

Does anyone have any advice / wisdom / opinions that might help?
Thanks!

[Scott337]

I'm Scott and I became a living donor last October (2010) for a young man I had never met.  I was about to turn 51 and I began testing in April.  I spoke to a transplant coordinator in February and they made a rough estimate on my BMI (Body Mass Index) based on my weight and height and I was told to be considered, I would have to lose a significant amount of weight.  I began working out on a treadmill in March and started modifying my eating habits (healthy eating).  By August, determined to be a donor, I had lost 60 pounds.  I also had lowered my resting heart rate to 51, became much stronger and leaner.  I had accomplished my goal when I finally passed all of the physiological testing and was found to be an acceptable match for the recipient in September.  The surgery took place on October 22 and went as expected.

Within about 2 weeks, I was able to start some light walking on the treadmill again and started getting outside to walk short distances (fresh air really helped).  Within about 6 weeks, I was back to nearly my full 900-1200 calorie/day workout with little difficulty.  Within about 16 weeks I was surpassing my pre-operative workout regiment.   I don't know if this is untypical of most donors (I'm guessing I'm fairly average), but not I just passed 6 months post-operative and I'm off my Cholesterol medication for good, had a great yearly physical, I'm down a total of 75 pounds from my original start weight, went from a 40 waist to 34 and so on.   

Not only am I not anxious to return to my former weight and undo the hard work, I now have a reason to continue to live healthy - to stay healthy and provide myself the best opportunity for a healthy, happy life after donation.  I'm guessing most all of us who have become donors, understand this simple premise and try our best to live healthy or healthier life-styles. 

You CAN donate and live a NORMAL and HEALTHY life my friend.   I hope this helps and please feel free to contact me if you have any other questions or just want to talk.  Good luck and thank you for your consideration of such a generous and life-giving gift.

Scott in Minnesota

[ohtobeahayes]

I love your journey, Scott!!!

I'm Nicki. I'm 34 years old. I have 4 kids, who are currently 9, 7, 6, and 4.  I donated last July. At the time I donated, I was working full time, part of that "full time" was from home, so I could take care of the kids and not pay $100+/week for 4 kids in daycare during the summer.  After my surgery I decided to leave that job, which I'd be at for 13 years, to be home full time with the kids until my youngest goes to school. I'm watching my niece and nephew and a couple of neighbor kids to bring in some money.
In other words, I have plenty to do, all the time.
If I didn't have the scars, I would never, ever know that I had surgery. I feel completely normal. The only things that are different are that when I drink, I feel it much faster, and I was a lightweight going in.  I also don't require as much medicine if I ever take it. I think these things are pretty normal for donors.
Like Scott, I feel like I'm more conscious of my body and how AWESOME it is, so I do what I can to be good to it by staying active and feeding it well.
No doctor has ever once said that I need to change a thing at all, but common sense kinda leads on this.
Thank you for considering such a selfless gift!!!! Keep researching. Knowledge, especially when it comes to living donation, is power!
Nicki

[sherri]

Sound like you are giving this a lot of thought because you realize this is a decision that will impact the rest of your life. Given that you are very young you may have some questions to discuss with your doctors. It might be a good idea to discuss your particular situation with a nephrologist outside of the transplant center to see what kind of impact this could have on your future health. Generally, the consensus is that most donors do fine with one kidney. However, donating at a young age you will need your one kidney to last you a lot longer than a donor in their 40's - 50's.

I remember when my brother asked me to give him one of my kidneys, he also asked if my then 18 and 19 year old daughters would test also. I said absolutely not as I was very fearful of something happening to them or if this would impact their ability to cope with a difficult pregnancy, impact high blood pressure etc. So you may want to speak with your OB about preganancies. Many donors have gone on to have uneventful pregnancies and births but you may be at risk for slightly higher blood pressure and proteinuria as a donor and this may put you in a category for a high risk pregnancy.

How do your parents feel about your decision to donate? do they want both their children undergoing surgery at the same time? Does your aunt match also? You can also ask the nephrologist how long they think a living donation would last for your brother given his particular case. On average transplanted kidneys don't usually last forever and many recipients go onto needing a second or third transplant, especially a younger recipient. Some families decide that if there are 2 potential donors, the older donor would go first and then at a later time the younger donor could be a possible donor if the need arises for a second transplant.

lots of things to think about. you may also want to speak with a social worker or psychologist at the center about theissues surrounding family donation or speak with someone outside the hospital.

You sound like a very mature and thoughtful person. I wish you and your family the best as you go through this journey.

Sherri

[ashfacei]

I want to thank everyone so much so far. All of these stories and thoughts are very, very helpful.

@Sherri - My parents are actually more relieved that I am a match for my brother. And yes, my aunt was a match but ironically HER brother (my uncle) also just went through kidney failure... so she intends to donate to him. As for pregnancies, that will never become an issue because I cannot have children (proven, too many pelvic issues). I suppose that is why I wanted to ask, because I see that I am a lot younger than a lot of the usual donors on this site and everywhere else. I'm a little worried how my life will run when I hit 35-40.

But yeah... all of you guys, so far, are fantastic. Thanks a lot for chiming in.