cowboyup1824’s Profile

Where do I begin. I was born with medical problems so I have never known any other life. I was born with post urethra valve syndrome. This ultimately kills the kidneys if undiagnosed while in the womb. I was placed on dialysis when I was a few days old. When I was 1 or 2 I recieved my first transplant from a cadiver. All was going well until 1995.

In 1995 I found out my kidney was rejecting. At that time the doctors at Mayo Clinic placed me on a new immunosuppresion drug to try and slow the rejection. Unfortunately this new drug rapidly scarred and killed my kidney. Again I was placed on dialysis. Every three days I would make the trip from South. St. Paul to Rochester just for my treatments. On October 16th, 1995 I recieved my second transplant from my mother. Like clockwork everything was going well up until I believe 2005.

Around this time my health rapidly deterioated. I don't remember the exact date but one day in 2006 I awoke in the emergency room after going to bed at home. Come to find out I had a grand maul seizure that lasted more than an hour. Coming to from a seizure I really wasn't sure what was going on but somehow I knew it wasn't good. I was hospitalized for a few weeks. They say the seizures were caused because a build up of prograf was located on my brain stem. So they put me on an anit seizure medication called Depekote!

Let's just say depekote was my own personal hell. During my run on this drug I become satan in the flesh. I don't remember why I was in the hospital but I ended up in a drug enduced coma. I was on three different narcotics which completely made me a potato. It was to the point that the doctors told my mother to say goodbye and to let me go because I wasn't going to make it. Again it was a drug induced coma so wouldn't you think take away the drugs and he'll awake. Thankfully they finally took me off the drugs after fighting with my mother about it. I awoke and three days later walked out of the hospital forever being addicted to painkillers.

Another battle down and more on the way bubbled in my head. At this time my kidney was failing enough to be placed on dialysis. I was placed on hemo dialysis while my peritional dialysis access healed. Everything was going fine until the infections started and the replacement of dialysis access's. During my dialysis run I went through two different hemo dialysis access's and two periotional placements. I had a fistula placed in my left arm. Like everything else they placed in my already battered body it failed. It began to get aneurysms and grow bigger than an artery. I had to carry around zip ties just in case it blew. It wasn't to scary and I had some fun freaking people out with it.

So I guess the dialysis part of my life is well covered time to get to the dark part of it all. While on dialysis and on depekote the anit seizure drug I did a lot of stupid things. I never took care of myself due to the mental damages this drug inflicted. The percussions of this drug still have it's effects today. Taking this drug caused me to skip multiple dialysis treatments, skip medications which all eventually lead to more health problems. All of the medical conditions that arose because of this drug are four heart attacks, one mild stroke, depression, physciatric problems, and a broken home. All in all I should be dead but again I guess I'm still kicking.

So enough with the bad things right? November 2nd, 2008 I recieved another chance at life. A beautiful angel named Stacy
Sather appeared from the darkness with a light surrounding her face. She gave me a piece of her soul, a kidney. I can never her thank her enough for the sacrifice she has done. Unfortunately she hasn't done so well since the transplant. Since the transplant she has endured over 14 surgeries because of wounds that will not heal. She has almost lost her life a few times due to infections. Yet she said she would still do it again. That can't even be measured. I just pray everything eventually works.

As far as me things have been good up until now. My creatine on June 9th was high so they did a biopsy. Unfortunately they were right. I have acute mediated t cell rejection as well as acute mediated antibody rejection. They said that treatments probably wouldn't work to slow down the rejection but they were going to try because it wouldn't hurt me to try. Most people would probably accept that and take it as a death sentence but I honestly won't accept that. They are not God and only God can tell me what will and won't work. So for two weeks I've had to do thymoglobulin, IVIG drug treatments, apheresis treatments, and large amounts of steriods to try and stop the rejection. I have a pic line in my arm and a centeral line in my neck. Unfortunately I'm out of work because of the risk of infection but my hopes are high. I will find out sometime within the next two weeks if the treatments are working! God Bless!