"I'm just so grateful for my life - every day of my life" A Transplant Recipient's Story
National Organ & Tissue Donor Awareness Week: April 21 - April 27
Patti was a happy, healthy, 33-year old attorney and was expecting her first child. She contracted a cold in February of 1987 and by mid-March she wasn't feeling very active. She wasn't terrible worried about not feeling well, though. She thought it was all part of being pregnant. A few weeks laterPatti was rushed to the emergency room. Her lungs were full of fluid and her heart was dialated. The virus had resulted in myocarditis. Doctors said she might need a transplant if nothing else worked.
Baby Christopher was born on May 5, three months prematurely, weighing in at 2 1/2 pounds. He had breathing difficulties, intestinal problems and some areas near his heart were deformed. Doctors placed him in a high risk unit. Patti visitedChristopher each day. She assumed she would feel better now, but on June 15, Patti had a stroke. She gradually regained total use of her body. By July, the transplant became her only choice.
On July 29, doctors told Patti they had a heart available. Her spirits lifted. It turned out to be a false alarm when, at the last minute, the donor family refused to allow transplant of the heart. The long wait continued. Two months after the stroke when Christopher was three months old, a 13-year old boy was injured in a tragic accident. His parents decided to donate his organs. Because Patti was very petite and because their blood types were a match, Patti received her new heart.
Christopher will celebrate his 15th birthday this May. He is perfectly healthy and Patti and her husband, Gary thank God that she was allowed to see him grow up. She no longer practices law, but spends her time chauffering Christopher to activities, working for donor education and helping other transplant recipients face their jounrey. Patti's big brown eyes fill with tears when shespeaks of the young donor whose heart she received. When asked what she would say to those trying to decide whether to become donors, Patti's eyes fill with tears. This time the tears spill over and she cannot answer. Finally, she said, "I am just so grateful for my life - every day of my life."
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Over 80,000 men, women, and children are now on the National Transplant Waiting List. Fifteen pople die every day waiting for that second chance. If you would like to find out about registering as an organ donor or would like more information about organ donation, please call The Living Bank at 1-800-528-2971 or visit the website, www.livingbank.org.
