Today marks the 4th year of my second transplant. 4 years ago through the kindness and unselfishness of one family's decision to donate their loved ones organs i was given the gift of life for the second time. After 7 months on the priority waiting list and little hope of survival that gift gave me and my family a glimmer of hope that i may survive. It was a long and difficult surgery which went on for 16 hours.
Two weeks after my transplant i was told the bad news that my main artery was blocked and that my new liver was being deprived of oxygen and blood therefore it was not functioning so my only chance was to have another transplant, which came as such a blow to me that i just wanted to give up as i didn't have the strength to go through it all again. However i couldn't do that to my mum and i saw the distraught and sadness in her face so i agreed to be listed again. Fortunately, 3 weeks later i went for a scan and miraculously my liver looked healthy again and somehow it was no longer being deprived of the blood and oxygen therefore the doctors decided to take me of the list for a while.
However, they thought i would not make it to a year without the need of another transplant but here i am today 4 years on and despite all the complications i've had post transplant i live to the tale.
Thursday, 30 September 2010
Wednesday, 22 September 2010
Another admission & sad news :(
Here i am again, in a hospital bed as a patient and unfortunately it's not for my surgery yet. As usual my body just couldn't wait until then and obviously wanted to come in sooner. However fortunately for me it's not serious, just a case of another infection od and the good thing is that my LFT's are good. Hoping and fingers crossed that i can go home tomorrow all being well.
Sad news shattered my day as i found out that a member of staff in the liver unit had passed away over the weekend in a tragic car accident. Her death came as a great shock to the whole liver unit as she was a lovely and well respected member of the team who has been in service for 35 years and was loved by all fellow coleagues and patients. She will be sorely missed by all and liver outpatients will never be the same again without her bubbly personality and warm smile. R.I.P Kathleen.
Sad news shattered my day as i found out that a member of staff in the liver unit had passed away over the weekend in a tragic car accident. Her death came as a great shock to the whole liver unit as she was a lovely and well respected member of the team who has been in service for 35 years and was loved by all fellow coleagues and patients. She will be sorely missed by all and liver outpatients will never be the same again without her bubbly personality and warm smile. R.I.P Kathleen.
Sunday, 1 August 2010
Prayers for a friend
Daniel, a brave little boy who was born with Biliary Atresia was recently diagnosed with Lukemia and after 2 failed chemo treatments he has only weeks left and his family is left distraught and heart broken.
I am a true believer in miracles and prayers so i ask you all to please keep this special little boy and his family in your prayers that he does not endure much pain and enjoy the rest of his days with his family happily.
Liz, Michael and family sending you all my love and prayers. I can't imagine what you are all going through. May you find the strength to cope with everything.
Thursday, 29 July 2010
Thanks Holly!
This post is dedicated to the greatest psychologist ever. Holly, i don't know if you'll ever get to read this but if you d0 i just want to say a massive thanks for all your help, support and guidance. I wouldn't be where i am today if you hadn't come when you did and i often think how different things would have been if you hadn't taken me on.
I know, i was not an easy patient but you gave me back my motivation and drive to get better and sort my life out. I hope that i can make you proud and go on to live my life with all the tools and skills which you have tought me over the past year and a half. It's a scary and daughnting prospect but i know now that i am in a much better place and can get through the tough times thanks to you. I wish all the best in your new job, i hope it brings you happiness and success.
As you all know i have been on an emotional journey this past three and a half years what with all my health issues and personal problems. A year and a half ago i was blessed with such a great psychologist who took me on despite the fact i wasn't a pedeatric or teenager which she specialises in and thanks to her hard work and patience with me i have managed to get back part of my life and learn things about myself i never knew.
As she leaves for a new job i am left to live life on my own using the skills and knowledge that she has thought me and begin a new chapter in my life. I don't know what way it is going to go but i am determined to stay focused and deal with any challenges i may be faced with in the future with a more positive approach.
I know, i was not an easy patient but you gave me back my motivation and drive to get better and sort my life out. I hope that i can make you proud and go on to live my life with all the tools and skills which you have tought me over the past year and a half. It's a scary and daughnting prospect but i know now that i am in a much better place and can get through the tough times thanks to you. I wish all the best in your new job, i hope it brings you happiness and success.
As you all know i have been on an emotional journey this past three and a half years what with all my health issues and personal problems. A year and a half ago i was blessed with such a great psychologist who took me on despite the fact i wasn't a pedeatric or teenager which she specialises in and thanks to her hard work and patience with me i have managed to get back part of my life and learn things about myself i never knew.
As she leaves for a new job i am left to live life on my own using the skills and knowledge that she has thought me and begin a new chapter in my life. I don't know what way it is going to go but i am determined to stay focused and deal with any challenges i may be faced with in the future with a more positive approach.
Friday, 26 February 2010
2010 Brief Update
Wow, it's been a long time! I don't really know where to start as i got lots of thoughts swimming around in my already very confused head. Okay instead of cramming the past few months into one post i think i will break it up as there has been quite a few things going on, some good and some unfortunately not great, but hey that's life!
A New Year, New Beginnings...
This year i have been very fortunate to have been blessed with a lot of good things. In January i started my first job since my second transplant and my first job working for the NHS. I decided it was time i started to get my life back on track despite my current health condition as i was becoming more and more depressed. I now work as a Healthcare Assistant funnily enough at Kings which at first was very strange as i've gone from being a patient to an employee.
Then in March i decided to take the next step into leading an independent life so i finally moved out of home. It was decision that was not made lightly as it was both difficult for me and my mum but more so for my mum who is a constant worrier and at first found it very difficult to let me go.
Also in March i held my first Charity Fundraising event which i managed to organise on my own with the help of a good friend for The Liver Intesive Therapy Unit at Kings.
Well those are the most major things that has happened so far this year and will go into more detail about each in future posts.
The best thing though is that my LFT's have been PERFECT all year so far and no hospital admissions!!!
A New Year, New Beginnings...
This year i have been very fortunate to have been blessed with a lot of good things. In January i started my first job since my second transplant and my first job working for the NHS. I decided it was time i started to get my life back on track despite my current health condition as i was becoming more and more depressed. I now work as a Healthcare Assistant funnily enough at Kings which at first was very strange as i've gone from being a patient to an employee.
Then in March i decided to take the next step into leading an independent life so i finally moved out of home. It was decision that was not made lightly as it was both difficult for me and my mum but more so for my mum who is a constant worrier and at first found it very difficult to let me go.
Also in March i held my first Charity Fundraising event which i managed to organise on my own with the help of a good friend for The Liver Intesive Therapy Unit at Kings.
Well those are the most major things that has happened so far this year and will go into more detail about each in future posts.
The best thing though is that my LFT's have been PERFECT all year so far and no hospital admissions!!!
Wednesday, 4 November 2009
Health Update...
Well it's been a while since i did a proper update. This year has flown by and has been a emotional rollercoaster. I don't understand how i got to this state. Fortunately i have been blessed again with such a great team of support. Holly, my therapist has been a godsend, Abid, my consultant and Jo,one of the transplant co-ordinators have both been very supportive and understanding. Although my liver numbers and health has been stable throughout the year except for the minor hiccup earlier in the summer i'm still struggling with my feelings and the change in lifestyle.
Since i was discharged in July the pain had stopped and i was feeling great health and energy wise as it is the first time in 3 years that i have actually been pain free and not having to take painkillers everyday felt so good. However, the past month the pain has suddenly come back but they don't know what is causing it again as my bloods are normal and x-ray was okay although it did show that i was very constipated and bunged up which could be the reason.
Holly, if you ever read this oneday i hope you know that i am so grateful for EVERYTHING. Like i've always said you're the BEST therapist i've ever had. If it weren't for you i think i would be in the nut house by now.
Abid and Jo, thanks for your continued support. It's very much appreciatted and i know that with your help i can get through all this.
At present i'm so thankful that all my tests are NORMAL and it's been a good year in terms of not being an inpatient. I stilll have the usual symptoms of itching, pain, fatigue and my osteoatheritis but i guess those things will never really go away.Hoping for many more healthy years ahead.
Since i was discharged in July the pain had stopped and i was feeling great health and energy wise as it is the first time in 3 years that i have actually been pain free and not having to take painkillers everyday felt so good. However, the past month the pain has suddenly come back but they don't know what is causing it again as my bloods are normal and x-ray was okay although it did show that i was very constipated and bunged up which could be the reason.
Holly, if you ever read this oneday i hope you know that i am so grateful for EVERYTHING. Like i've always said you're the BEST therapist i've ever had. If it weren't for you i think i would be in the nut house by now.
Abid and Jo, thanks for your continued support. It's very much appreciatted and i know that with your help i can get through all this.
At present i'm so thankful that all my tests are NORMAL and it's been a good year in terms of not being an inpatient. I stilll have the usual symptoms of itching, pain, fatigue and my osteoatheritis but i guess those things will never really go away.Hoping for many more healthy years ahead.
Friday, 21 August 2009
Little hiccup
Well my good run of staying out of hospital came to an end last month, but hey i made it 8 whole months which is a record for me. The pain was becoming unbearable was taking over my life again making me feel depressed which drove me to become an emotional wreck.
One day i was in so much pain that i could not move at all and i was home alone so i had to call mum at work to come home as it was so bad. I called Kings and was told to come to clinic the next day before my CT scan and as soon as they saw me in clinic i was admitted on the ward. The next few days consisted of invasive procedures and the findings where quite shocking.
The CT showed i had a anurysm in my splenic artery and the endoscopy showed that i had some little ulcers, inflammation of the duodenem and constipation. They began making plans to block the anurysm as they didn't want to do surgey as it would be too risky and they put me on alot of laxitives to help with the constipation and a course of antibiotics for the inflammation. However me being me something always has to go wrong. After my angiogram i developed a hematoma on my groin where they went in and then the consultant decided not to do the embolization procedure (block the anurysm) as it is in a very akward place which they cant get to without open surgery and they are so against doing any surgery as the chances of perforating or damaging something else during the surgery is very high and it will set me back even more and i may end up needing a splenectomy. Therefore they decided to leave it and just keep an eye on it and if it ruptures then they will have to deal with it as an emergency.
The good thing that came out of my hospital stay is that they found the inflammation which was the cause of the majority of my pain and for the past few days i have been somewhat pain free which is great.
One day i was in so much pain that i could not move at all and i was home alone so i had to call mum at work to come home as it was so bad. I called Kings and was told to come to clinic the next day before my CT scan and as soon as they saw me in clinic i was admitted on the ward. The next few days consisted of invasive procedures and the findings where quite shocking.
The CT showed i had a anurysm in my splenic artery and the endoscopy showed that i had some little ulcers, inflammation of the duodenem and constipation. They began making plans to block the anurysm as they didn't want to do surgey as it would be too risky and they put me on alot of laxitives to help with the constipation and a course of antibiotics for the inflammation. However me being me something always has to go wrong. After my angiogram i developed a hematoma on my groin where they went in and then the consultant decided not to do the embolization procedure (block the anurysm) as it is in a very akward place which they cant get to without open surgery and they are so against doing any surgery as the chances of perforating or damaging something else during the surgery is very high and it will set me back even more and i may end up needing a splenectomy. Therefore they decided to leave it and just keep an eye on it and if it ruptures then they will have to deal with it as an emergency.
The good thing that came out of my hospital stay is that they found the inflammation which was the cause of the majority of my pain and for the past few days i have been somewhat pain free which is great.
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