My mother is an inspiration to me for various reasons that I could list for days. Seriously; she's so cute and fun to be with. She'd go out to lunch with me when I'd skip class in high school at our favorite Mexican restaurant, she's involved in local government in the town she lives in, and I often saw her reading her worn out scriptures while I was growing up.
One of the biggest things that I admire her for though is for her ability to never complain. Yeah, she complains about traffic and people who annoy her like everyone else; however, she never complains about things that really matter. When she was a freshman in college, she was diagnosed with Diabetes. This horrible disease obviously put a huge strain on her life. Fortunately, it didn't slow her down too much. She continued to travel and do the things she loved, although it made it hard at times.
In 1985 she had a kidney transplant with a kidney given to her by her younger sister. I have always been extremely moved whenever I think about this act of love that my aunt performed so that my mother could live. I can't imagine how hard it is to live with diabetes every day, and I've seen first hand how much work it takes to just survive. My mom had a small cooler of medicine that she toted everywhere, she took 3 shots of insulin every day as well as poking her finger to test her blood sugar, amongst other things she had to worry about. Not fun. She was in and out of the hospital with random problems for most of my life. My junior year of high school I got home from a football game to learn that she had gone through a diabetic reaction and ended up in a ditch somewhere in South Carolina. True story.
In 2003, she learned that her body was slowly rejecting the kidney that my aunt had given her 18 years earlier. She was put on the transplant list and decided this time to get a new kidney AND pancreas if possible, which meant that she'd be cured of diabetes completely if her body accepted the new pancreas. All she had to do was wait for a donor. This is obviously something that I could write a whole post about, but it was a difficult time for my whole family. Waiting for someone to die in hopes that my mother could live.
The call came in December of that year. A kidney and pancreas were available and she had to get to Salt Lake STAT. I drove her up and after a few long months of recovery, she had a functioning kidney and a pancreas that actually works!! Her quality of life has improved 100% (according to her) and this has been a HUGE blessing in all of our lives.
Why am I tell you all this, you ask? Get to the point already! I got an email this morning from a friend who is still living with diabetes. In September of this year she is riding in a race and is collecting donations to help find a cure. I can't endorse this enough. You can read her blog and learn how to donate if you click here. If you're an athlete in any way, reading about her experiences will motivate you to get off your lazy rear end in a second. Don't get me wrong. I'm not asking you to donate a kidney. I'm asking you to donate a few dollars so that together we can help find a cure for diabetes. Awesome.
One of the biggest things that I admire her for though is for her ability to never complain. Yeah, she complains about traffic and people who annoy her like everyone else; however, she never complains about things that really matter. When she was a freshman in college, she was diagnosed with Diabetes. This horrible disease obviously put a huge strain on her life. Fortunately, it didn't slow her down too much. She continued to travel and do the things she loved, although it made it hard at times.
In 1985 she had a kidney transplant with a kidney given to her by her younger sister. I have always been extremely moved whenever I think about this act of love that my aunt performed so that my mother could live. I can't imagine how hard it is to live with diabetes every day, and I've seen first hand how much work it takes to just survive. My mom had a small cooler of medicine that she toted everywhere, she took 3 shots of insulin every day as well as poking her finger to test her blood sugar, amongst other things she had to worry about. Not fun. She was in and out of the hospital with random problems for most of my life. My junior year of high school I got home from a football game to learn that she had gone through a diabetic reaction and ended up in a ditch somewhere in South Carolina. True story.
In 2003, she learned that her body was slowly rejecting the kidney that my aunt had given her 18 years earlier. She was put on the transplant list and decided this time to get a new kidney AND pancreas if possible, which meant that she'd be cured of diabetes completely if her body accepted the new pancreas. All she had to do was wait for a donor. This is obviously something that I could write a whole post about, but it was a difficult time for my whole family. Waiting for someone to die in hopes that my mother could live.
The call came in December of that year. A kidney and pancreas were available and she had to get to Salt Lake STAT. I drove her up and after a few long months of recovery, she had a functioning kidney and a pancreas that actually works!! Her quality of life has improved 100% (according to her) and this has been a HUGE blessing in all of our lives.
Why am I tell you all this, you ask? Get to the point already! I got an email this morning from a friend who is still living with diabetes. In September of this year she is riding in a race and is collecting donations to help find a cure. I can't endorse this enough. You can read her blog and learn how to donate if you click here. If you're an athlete in any way, reading about her experiences will motivate you to get off your lazy rear end in a second. Don't get me wrong. I'm not asking you to donate a kidney. I'm asking you to donate a few dollars so that together we can help find a cure for diabetes. Awesome.
1 comment:
Beautifuly written Steph! Your mom is such a trooper! I never knew that she had a second transplant. I'm SO glad that she is doing so well now. What an inspiration to us all. :o)
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