6 Year Eval

I finally had a chance to get to clinic today.  My original appointment was the day of Oklahoma's "Snow-maggedon of '11" so they asked to move me back to my Spring Break since I appeared to be doing well.  All my bloodwork came back in great shape except for triglycerides which were high so I have to watch my carbs.  I got scolded for not working out as much as I should but for the most part, Doc E. was very pleased with how I've progressed. 

I had hoped to avoid having the heart cath but alas, that is scheduled for Friday.  This will be my 9th one since my initial heart problem diagnosis with each one getting a little more difficult to get over.  The groin can only take so many punctures before it gets sore!

But as I sat in clinic today and watched some of my fellow heart transplant patients stream in, I felt very lucky.  Some of the patients had been in and out of the hospital in recent weeks, some were having to go back and have biopsy tests again, some were not doing well at all.  To some degree I felt very guilty, but I also realize how quickly things can change and how fast I could be in their place.

Life is fickle.  I've watched the newscasts of the earthquake and tsumani in Japan and have seen video of people who were just living their normal day be washed away by the waters as they tried to move to higher ground.  When they woke up that morning they had no idea it would be their last on this Earth.  I relate this to organ donors who often are victims of car or shooting accidents.  They didn't know when they awoke one morning that their day might end with their family making the decision to donate their organs.  It just goes to show that all of us need to live our lives the best we can, doing all we can to make the world better for others.  One morning, it might be our last day.  How would we be remembered?

Hollywood's Version

It is amazing how one never seems to take notice of movie/television stories until they seem to relate to your life.  The first movie about heart transplants I remember seeing was "Return to Me" where the young girl who got the heart falls in love with her donor's husband.  I remember thinking at the time how amazing the whole process was and wondering how I would feel in the same situation.

Then, as I was dealing with the possibility of a heart transplant, Denny was on "Grey's Anatomy".  At that time I could see where the Hollywood version had its inaccurate moments, although they did an excellent job of describing the emotions of the subject.  "Grey's" has had several transplant episodes and while the medical facts are often off, the emotional descriptions have been right on and have often been cause for great discussions among family and friends.  For it is the emotional side of transplants that vary from each patient.  Some are grateful for the second chance and try to do better.  Some continue on the way they had been living and find further need for medical aid.  Others can't handle the amount of medications and side effects they cause and stop taking them, which becomes their death sentence.  All transplant patients face the wicked side effects of the medication and the challenges they represent.

Today, I caught the last half of an old movie called "Repo Man" about people who had been given artificial organs but had failed to pay for them, and a group of men who were assigned to track them down and remove the organs for use to other people.  While the concept of artificial organs is great, I do hope we never get to the point of "selling" human organs.  I know I am very fortunate to have been given the gift of a heart and I also know that there are many in this world for whom time runs out before they are given the same.  But to have a "black market" where organs are sold to the highest bidder is not the way to go. 

I hope that the government, in their desire to create a new health system, keeps all this in mind in regards to transplants.  Life is a gift and as should be passed on as such.  If you haven't signed up to be a donor and then discussed it with your family, please consider doing so.  If you have, thank you.

Six years and counting

Yesterday was my six year anniversary of my heart transplant.  While I was celebrating my second chance of life, I couldn't help but think about the family of my donor, Tiffani, and how this was the six year anniversary of her death.  In a couple of weeks I'll be thinking of a former student of mine, Allen, who became a donor after suffering a cerebral hemorrhage at the age of 13.  His parents donated his organs after he came home and made remarks about how neat it was that I could be saved because of someone one else's generosity.

For the most part, I've been feeling great.  Recently, I've been in schools doing enrollment and have exposed myself to more germs than I normally do and I've felt my body fighting those germs every day.  This is a busy time of year for school counselors and it is easy to wear down when you are healthy, nevertheless when you have a compromised immune system.

Everyday when I look at the 36+ pills that I often have to take, I have to remember that they are part of the process that is keeping me alive.  It is not always fun to swallow all of those, and because of the cost of the medication I will probably never own a home, but I'm alive.  For that, I am grateful.

In the last six years I have celebrated my parents' 50 year wedding anniversary, spent quality time with my brother and sister-in-law, learned to value my friends in ways that others probably never will, and tried to help as many kids as I can.  Hopefully, the good Lord will let me hang around a few more years to see my "adopted" children graduate from school and head out on their own and maybe be able to visit some places I've never been before.

Whatever time I may have, I hope to always remember the gift that I was given and use it wisely.  I believe that to be the best way to honor a life that was taken too soon.