Going into the 6th week post transplant and over all feeling pretty good. Last week Jack wowed the surgeon with his charismatic ways. The surgical strips were removed from the incision area. Maybe this is TMI but I will say it anyways. My incision is pretty low. Slightly peeks out from waist of bikini line. When the PA removed my strips it was like getting a bikini wax. SO FUN! Big scar reveal and it is healing very well.

I am shellacking my body in shea/cocoa butter everyday. The anti-rejection meds make my skin pretty dry, sensitive and dry. And with the nice weather coming, I need to keep my skin hydrated to prepare for the summer UV rays.

I find myself with some free time now that I am feeling stronger and not sleeping the day away. So I have decided to start on those projects that you always say you are going to get to but it just never happens. Like what? Like that drawer in the kitchen that could be labeled “misc”. That box with important documents but no real organization. Those stacks of old photos. Yes back in the day you printed photos. No filters, No posting to Social Media. You took a photo and waited for the film to develop to see what you captured. Nowadays people complain about phone storage mostly due to all the random photos taking up your memory. What a luxury.

My first camera was a Kodak hot pink 110, my dad bought it for me at a flea market. The film cartridge looked like a mini set of binoculars. I then used to borrow my mothers 35mm. Then in 1996 the Advantix film system came out. It had the ability to create photos in 3 different size. Standard 4x6, HD 4x7 and the Panoramic 4x11. It was AMAZING. Until it wasn’t and you had a million panoramic photos that didn’t fit anywhere.

Hang with me, I am almost getting to the point. I have been lugging around two storage bins filled with photos and cards for the past 20 years. Barely ever able to enjoy looking through them. We hold on to things/objects for sentimental value but if you don’t ever get to enjoy them what is the point? And not to be dramatic but after going through something like needing a life saving kidney transplant - “things” have less value. Now don’t get me wrong there are photos that are literally priceless. Especially the ones with family and friends that are no longer with us. But that night in the club when I was 20 and the photos with random people that I don’t even know - trash. Also the 3 copies of every photo - trash. Any photo where I did not know anyone in it - trash. I had an entire photo album from one summer as a summer camp counselor. I only knew the names of 2 people in a 100 page book - trash. This has been a project of mine for the past week or so. I have found some gems. I have put all the photos in 3 categories : Family, Friends, College (because that was an ERA). Next I will scrub them into special events and/or years. And then scan them all so I have digital files and I can make some photo books. It feels good to have a plan.

The point I am trying to make is that I need to take advantage of this Kidney Maternity Leave. Yes I am resting, walking around and eating well. But the reality is I can’t do much - so I started focusing on what I can do. I have been reaching out to other Kidney Warriors that are still waiting for transplant to offer words of encouragement and advice. I don’t have all the answers but I know that the main reason I received a transplant is because I had an amazing Kidney Campaign Manager - Rhoda. She knew how to build a strategy, make me advocate for my own health and make people pay attention. And I was fortunate to have family and friends share the message that I was in need of a kidney transplant. It’s important to have a community and to help each other but make sure your own needs are not getting lost in the process. Being a little selfish when you are fighting Chronic Kidney Disease, recovering from transplant or any illness is A-OK. It’s okay to take time to heal and feel 100%

Big news for the week. Mr. Stent is coming out on Monday - whoop! Jack and I are very happy about this. I will try to take a photo of it - that seems to be the thing you do. And keep you posted on side effects.

This was a rant. Next post more kidney details promise.