From the monthly archives:

December 2008

Heart Transplant Part 4 and conclusion: Hope

read parts 1,2,3 of the story of Heart Transplant.

 

We all have our own desire to live, and transplant patients have theirs as well. Mine is that I want to live until I can dance at both of my grand children’s weddings (they are 3 years and 11 months). Others have told me much more involved, more specific desires. Others are very profound, and humanitarian in nature. Their desires run the gambit. These desires are their own personal “HOPE”.
To see me, to talk to me, to know I have been in that bed before gives them hope. Or at least I hope it gives them exactly that. I made such an impact on one gentleman that as soon as he recovers and regains some strength; he wants “to be just like me”. Another lady wrote me a note expressing her thanks that made me cry. What does volunteering do for me? What do I get out of this adventure, that consumes almost one full day per week.? The looks on people’s faces that see me and see HOPE is my reward. To know I am giving them hope, is all that I need. It makes me want to go back, week after week, to see my friends. I can’t wait ….. tomorrow is my day to volunteer.*

Visit 2nd Heart Beat to learn more. Thank you again Don for sharing your story with Senior Health Moment!

 

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Heart Transplant Part 3: Meeting my first patients

 

Go here to see part one and two of the heart transplant series.

For many people, being sick is a private thing. Visitors that just “drop by” can be dismissed by the patients in short order.

 

I saw this during my training with non-transplant patients. What seems to unlock that door of privacy was the phrase “I am a heart transplant recipient”. The entire atmosphere in the room changes immediately. I have been welcomed by patients and family in such enthusiastic ways that it makes me smile to be welcomed and not feared. As we talk, the patients and myself, we share each others stories, what happened, how long have they been waiting, family, and lots of other general

things. I always tell them I am NOT a doctor or a nurse or a medical professional, but I have been here and I have done this transplant thing and possibly I can give them some HOPE.

With most, an immediate bond starts to form. Their guard is lowered a bit and often I become a bit emotional as we talk. I become emotional, a bit misty eyed, as I remember how I felt and also because as sick as I was, many of these people have been through years of what I went through in less than a month. We all have our own fears. And transplant patients each have theirs. For some it might be money, others worry about not being able to work in the

garden again (due to the mold & spores in the ground that can cause rejection), others worry about going back to work, can I drink a beer, can I ……….. fill in the blank.

Sometimes it’s the BIG question ……..

how long will I live? The one that can only be answered by God ………

come back for part 4 and the conclusion soon!

 

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Heart transplant volunteer Part 2: Getting Started

Go here to read part one of the heart transplant volunteer 
Continued from part 1….
These 2 people gave me a bit of hope where I only could see uncertainty Even though I was back home in less than a month; I was on a long path to recovery. I often thought of these two people and what an impact they made on me. I was never quite sure how to go about volunteering but I had the email address of a social worker I had met during my “events” and I was soon pointed in the right direction. I wasn’t able to start as quickly as my mind wanted me to, as I forgot about the corporate and legal bureaucratic stuff that I would have to complete initially.
Forms, orientations and training. But after a short wait I was visiting with patients, and then ultimately cleared to see the pre and post transplant patients. At first I wasn’t sure what to expect when I went on the transplant floors in the hospital, possibly even the same room where I had been shortly after my life changed in such a dramatic fashion. Regardless, I walked in with an open mind. 
Check back to read part 3!

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A heart transplant recipient and volunteer’s story

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 I am a hospice and bereavement volunteer and I have shared some of my stories here on Senior Health Moment about my experiences. Recently I met Don from 2nd Heart Beat and learned of another kind of health volunteer – a transplant volunteer.

Don was nice enough to share his story on how he became motivated to volunteer and what he gets out of it. I am delighted to provide you with his interesting thoughts and story in 4 parts beginning below:

Part One: How it all started

To understand a bit about how I decided to become a volunteer, you first need to know a little about my “story”.

 

In the big scheme of things I am a walking, talking miracle. It started one Saturday with a heart “issue”, that didn’t know that I had. This first chapter ended 27 days and 6 hours later when I walked back in the front door of my house that the paramedics had carried me out through, with a new HEART.

 

 Yes, I had a heart transplant.

 

The transplant happened at one of the largest and most respected transplant centers in the world. The doctors, nurses and staff were phenomenal to me and my family. They, truly saved my life, not once, but over a hundred times. However, in retrospect, there were 2 individuals, both volunteers, that stopped by to see me that ultimately led to my desire to volunteer. To give something back.

Come back soon for Part 2!

Read Don’s thank you letter to his transplant nurses

 

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