Close but no cigar.......

Just finally heard back from the people at Pinnacle and found out that I was a perfect  match for the organs......but so was the person that was ahead of me on the transplant list.
That person received the SKP transplant and I wish them the absolute best.
It's very cold, but sunny here today and at this juncture  I can only imagine waking up on a beautiful morning like this with the firm belief that from this day forward you are going to get better....and feel better. 
That's my hope for the person who received these organs.
That's the hope that I continue to hold onto.

Thanks for checking in.

A New Year.....and here we go....

Just got a call from the tx center and they are currently cross matching my blood with a potential donor so once again I am waiting in the wings. Told to just go about my day and they will get back to me.

However, every silver lining has a touch of gray.....I was dutifully advised that these organs are from what is termed a "high risk donor" but I signed a form in the past saying that I would want to be considered for such organs after being advised as to what determined the high risk.
At this point in my life, I am well aware that beggars can't be choosers and so I'm throwing my hat into the ring and we'll see how it goes.
That's all for now.
I'll keep you posted.

Life comes from within your heart and desire...

Ok this past year I've used this blog to keep folks up to date on my health which can be kinda depressing . In retrospect a lot of the posts seem to have a bit of a melancholy air to them and that isn't me. It's not suppose to be like this. It's been a tough year, but you gotta keep on keeping on.
With everything else that's been going on in my life I haven't got any Christmas cards sent out this year but in lieu of those cards, please check out the following link.
When the music begins, take your cursor across the image and reflect a moment on the message therein.

I wish all of you a most wonderful holiday season!
May 2012 be good to all of us.

                                                  May the very best of holidays be yours!

Unthought Known

After a very full day of  testing, my yearly evaluation at the tx center is in the books. I think all went well. I  don't expect any bad results from the persantine thallium stress, it seemed to go OK.
I met and talked at length with one of the surgeons - Dr. Narins, also my transplant counselor, and financial advisor (which was very helpful since I'm in a bit of an insurance tumult currently) and finally the psych lady. Ahem.....I think I passed. But I mentioned the fact that I ride a sine wave of emotions that range between extreme anxiety and desperate depression. To this, the doctor quoted the great philosopher Petty and told me that "the waiting is the hardest part". He said that when people are brought in in an ambulance and told they need some sort of surgery right away, they don't get much time to think about it whereas I am getting years to think everything through before we even get started.

The one nugget for thought that Dr. Narins gave me to mull over was the option of going forward with just a kidney transplant for now and then a pancreas transplant later when an organ is available. He said that although I've stated that I only wanted to go through the surgery, etc. once, this option may save me from being placed on dialysis or being rejected by the tx team because I refused to do dialysis. Saying again that since the pancreas is the "touchy" organ / and harder to successfully transplant, that by splitting up the procedure and doing kidney, then pancreas later, this may actually shorten my wait.
And since time isn't exactly on my side.... this is something else to ponder now.

I'm praying for direction.

Thanks for checking in here.
I do appreciate it.

Testing...Testing... 1..2..3....

Alright, tomorrow I'm off for an all day service check at the transplant center.
Kinda like a yearly car inspection.  I start the day at 6:45am with a persantine thallium stress test, a physical, more bloodwork, then off to the tx department for a meeting with the surgeon, a meeting with the pre-transplant coordinator, financial advisors, then the psych/soc lady.
So much fun to fit into one day.

I'll let you know how it goes.

In and out of in between....

I had my appt. with my nephrologist today and although some of my numbers were down from last time, the doc is not quite as worried as I thought he might be. He reassured me by saying that I have had bad numbers in the past and bounced back. He said he couldn't say just how many of these bounces I have left  but for now, unless we see several of these tests come back with real low numbers, we are "ok".

On the issue of the fistula, he said that I could have it put in now but since I am dead set against dialysis he thought it a moot point. (The doctor did however take me for a walk through the dialysis center to show me all the fun that takes place there. Ugh.) But he told me that my levels, as they are now, are not bad enough to get me kicked off the transplant train.

My next big appointment is at the transplant center on December 12.
Thanks for checking in here.

Argh.

Got this month's bloodwork results back this morning. While the numbers that I can control most seem to be doing ok, my GFR has fallen to 17.  This is not good. : ( 
I'm really not looking forward to my nephrologist appointment on the 30th.