Be active

There are plenty of statistics available about organ transplantation; survival per age, survival per organ, survival per sex, etc. The vast majority of the patients are alive after 1 year but are they really doing well? Are they really living their lives to the fullest? What are they doing to live as long as possible? The most successful stories I have witnessed are where the transplant recipients take matter into their own hands and stay active with their lives. They go to rehab 2-3 times a week even though they don’t really need it.  They are still doing the little things that usually people stop doing 3-4 months after the organ transplantation.

Dear organ transplants recipients; you have a duty to honor the person who gave you a second chance in life. You are responsible to take care of that organ for as long as you can. Your transplant team will give you the tools to help you have a successful outcome but most of the hard work is done by you. If you don’t want to do it for the organ donor, do it for your family who has been there with you or just do it for you.


Be compliant

You got to work hard and be compliant every day so your new organ can work as long and as well as possible. Get out of your house and go live your life. You don’t really have an excuse anymore; you can breathe, you can walk upstairs, you don’t have to go to dialysis or your ascites is gone.

Also, be compliant and on top of your medical care. You have only one person to think and it’s you. Your transplant team may have hundreds of patients like you; they don’t have time to babysit you. You should know that labs are drawn every so often especially early on after transplant. You should know that putting on 60 pounds after a transplant won’t help you in the long run. It will make your blood pressure go up, cause sleep apnea and worsen your diabetes.

The only thing I want is for all of you to have successful outcome after organ transplant. Go live your life and stop being anxious about everything. If you can’t work, go volunteer somewhere. Join support group in your area to help other patients who are waiting. Go take that vacation you have been putting off.

Anyway, what I am trying to say is you have a big part to do so your long term outcome is successful. Go out and enjoy yourself. You did not get a transplant so you can watch TV all day long!

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