Today is my birthday and I have done something special. Before I tell you what I need to tell you about my friends CaptainTom3 and MrsTom3. They are a married couple that I follow on twitter.
A few months ago I discovered I had a new follower on twitter. She had only sent 1 tweet and only followed one other person, her husband. Intrigued as to why she had started following me I struck up conversations with @mrstom3 and @captaintom3. It turned out that their son was suffering renal failure and needed a kidney transplant. It was @mrstom3 who was going to give her kidney to her son. She had joined twitter for something to do whilst sat at hospital with her son and for when she had the operation herself for some light relief. My son had been ill in the past and in hospital so I knew how boring it could be just sitting around so I was only too happy to drum up some more twitter followers and get a special support group going.
I'm not sure they knew that twitter could offer a great support service but I think they have found that it does. Even Duncan Bannatyne has taken the trouble to tweet and show an interest in @mrstom3 and the roller coaster ride she is on.
The transplant took place on 9th March and we have all followed the progress being made. It truly is a roller coaster with good news followed by bad news followed by good news followed by bad. This week it was discovered that the glandular fever virus had been in the donated kidney and so more worry for the family.
Before meeting the Toms online I hadn't really given much thought to transplants. My family are healthy and so it never crossed my mind. I know that if any of my family were taken ill in this way and I could help by being a living donor I would. I know if they were really ill and needed an organ that I couldn't donate I would be frantic with worry and wish for an organ to become available.
That set me thinking and so today, as a birthday present, I did something I should have done a long time ago. I registered as an organ donor. I hope that I die peacefully in my sleep of old age but if something dreadful should happen to me then I hope that something good can come of it. I hope that a frantic family can be helped. I've put it off for years because I've never been pushed into thinking about it. Captaintom3 wrote a blog about it which put it back in my mind.
If you'd like to give me a present for my birthday then register as an organ donor here .If you are all ready on the list then why not make a donation to kidney research via @mrstom3 at her just giving site
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Happy birthday good for you, hope it encourages even more
ReplyDeletepeople to join as many intend to but never get round to it.
Happy Birthday Penny!
ReplyDeleteGood for you getting on the register...! It's a big thing. I'm very passionate about it, and have always felt that way. I told my parents as a child I wanted to be a donor, and they agreed to allow this if worst happened. Soon as I could legally join and carry the card, I did so.
but for all those on/joining please also remember to let your next of kin etc know your wishes. At the end of the road if time came where you could be a donor - it would be the next of kins decision - regardless if you're on the register, they could still say no. So please, communicate how important it is to you, and that they respect your wishes if the worst happened.
I always tell people in discussions on this topic..
Take a hard look at yourself. Tomorrow you get told die, or have this transplanted organ... what would you chose? If you chose the organ... get on the register to be a donor yourself! It's only right thing to do surely?
For those who don't know, I'm a operating theatre nurse, and though we don't do transplants at my hospital - we do organ harvesting from donors. I've never been present during one yet, but there'll be a time that I will. It's such a powerful gift they're giving, that when there is a donor coming to theatre, the atmosphere is so different. Everyone feels immense gratefulness at this persons gift to others, yet sadness of the death of the person. A mixture of emotions, thankfulness and sadness. And hope. Hope that if you needed one, that there'd be someone out there willing to give YOU the greatest gift in the world. A second chance at life.
So please everyone, get on the register if you believe you'd take an organ if you needed one.
Great blog Penny!
Thanks for raising awareness of such an amazing cause.
I'm so pleased that the Toms are doing well. I follow them too as you know, and they're an awesome family!!
Well done you and happy birthday, I give blood every 4 months, and I am on the organ donor and bone marrow register.
ReplyDeleteI hope nothing ever happens to my family to warrant needing any of the above, but I like to think if they ever did, there are othetr people like me out there who are on the register and are willing to give this amazing gift, I also feel I couldn't ask someone to do that for me or my family if I am not willing to do it myself.
Lovely post Penny - and happy birthday! I think I'd best just donate - the amount of alcohol that has flowed through my organs probably makes them unsuitable for reuse, lol!
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday! I'm on the register and have been for years. Such a lovely thing to post for your birthday and an excellent way to get people to get on the register.
ReplyDelete