Wouldn't it be wonderful to be lucky enough to receive an organ transplant and that be the end of it . Transplant surgery , re plumbed donated organ , feel 100% better and go and live a healthy long, long life into old age.
Whereas in reality you are never far away from the thought that this transplanted organ may fail you or your loved one.
Your daily medication for a start , a constant reminder that life is now different, that you rely on those pills to keep you alive and well. But do they keep you well ? Immunosuppressants can actually make you ill, too high a level in your blood stream you damage your other organs , kidneys for example and you catch every germ going. Too low again you're ill as you reject the transplanted organ. Such a fine balance and to achieve that balance you need regular blood tests. Who can say they like being stabbed with a needle ? Then other medications are added into the mix, statins to keep your cholesterol low to help prevent coronary artery disease. The further down the transplant road you get your pill pot selection seems to increase. Eloise now needs Amlodopine to keep her blood pressure down and Ivabradine to keep her heart rate down.
Anyway Today Eloise had clinic an anxious time for me but thankfully not for Miss Horizontal ! First hurdle the ECG , yippeee nice tall peaks , good heart rate, you get used to looking at these things. I know what to look for , what indicates rejection. Low voltages. Just the echo to get through as Eloise passes her examination on seeing her consultant, he's pleased with how she looks etc, heart sounds, liver, etc. Find myself holding my breath, gazing at the screen for signs of increased fluid. The tech seems confident, doesn't call anyone in, remains chatty and in eye contact all reassuring signs , believe me, I can read these people. Echo is reviewed by Dr M and all is good, great heart function. We escape clinic next appointment is in 2015 in GOSH, that sounds good, back to our normal 3 monthly routine. Yep normal, normal for a Transplantee .
If only..........
Eloise hadn't caught that bloody hand, foot and mouth virus.
I'd rather it hadn't been this way of course but I know we got the best possible outcome in a dire situation. Many people don't even get this second chance, time runs out they die waiting. Eloise has had 12 amazing years, normal childhood. I want more of course I do, we will spend our time bouncing from one appointment to the next. I can't look into the future........can you ? In case my daughters not in it. I'm afraid of that. So Tonight I'm reflective , I'm thankful for all I have, for the life of my precious girl, she is special and I love her deeply. So come on medical advances, come on science, come on drug developers, come on researchers please , please find I way to keep my daughter and our transplant family fit and well for many , many decades. My daughter has the determination , we just need your skills then we'll be invincible !
If only.......
If only we were all organ donors, if we all signed onto the Organ Donor register, maybe more people would get their chance. Thinking of my friends with children waiting desperately for their call, living in limbo at home or separated from their families while they wait in hospital, hooked up to machines to keep them alive. So, so hard, thinking especially of two families who are waiting for second transplants for their sons . They've experienced life post transplant only to have the organs fail and be rejected. Now they wait for a more complicated second miracle.
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