Complications

   So the school year started that September just like every other year. I was going to my doctor appointments every other day just for standard check ups just to watch my kidney function. Other then that the beginning of the year was rather simple. You see, for me it was going to be a little more complicated then most school years. Having the new kidney not only made me feel better but it also made me a little more stressed. After having the transplant i had to be put on anti-rejection medicines. This would make it so that my body wouldn't attack the foreign object, the new kidney, that was in me. One of the key side effects of the medicine was a lowering of my immune system. The medicine was keeping my body preoccupied from infections , pretty much. So, that made it easier for me to get sick. I was always careful of what I was doing and who I was around. If anyone was sick I would be sure to stay away from them. I also never shared my drinks, food, etc. This was pretty easy, for the most part. During flu season I was told by my doctors to be extremely care around sick people. I think it even go to the point to where I was even tempted to wear a face mask out in public. Although with a low immune system I was still able to not get sick, for long.
   Near the end of my seventh grade year I started getting a fever. At first I ignored it because I thought maybe it was just from the heat. Well, I was wrong. Day after day my fever got higher and higher. At one point my fever got to almost 102 degrees. Needless to say there was something wrong. I was then taken to the hospital in Philly and went straight to the emergency room. My mom had called ahead so they were waiting for us with a room. I was put into a gown and had my temperature taken. 101.6! I've never had a fever that high before. The nurses were very concerned about my well being. I was then told to stand up and get my weight. My mom helped me stand up at first because I was extremely weak. I walked up to the scale and waited for my weight to come up. Then, everything went black. I woke up in a hospital bed with nurses all surrounding me in a panic.
  Next week...what the heck just happened?

Recovery (cont'd)

 So recovery was actually kind of easy for me. I was only in the ICU for one day. In total I was actually only in the hospital for about a week. My dad was only in for about 4 days in total. I was told numerous times that I should have been in there longer. Apparently I was supposed to be in the ICU for a week and in the hospital in total 3 weeks. I feel that the main reason I wasn't in there for so long was because of my support group. I had family members, family friends, and even people from my church come to see me in recovery. That was another reason I was probably only in there for a short period of time. I had a lot of people praying for me. I was up and moving around by day 3 after the surgery. I felt very week after the surgery but I was able to get on my feet and walk around the hospital floor. I had no complications with my surgery scars and I was taking everything with the kidney well.  Needless to say, my recovery was rather remarkable.
   The months following would be a little bit difficult. I would have somethings to get used to. First, I was going to the hospital every other day just to be sure that everything was working properly. Blood work, urine test, and physical checkups were part of the norm on those days. Second, I was taking a crap-load of medicine (lol). I was taking anti-rejection medicine along with blood pressure and cholesterol medicine. You see, high blood pressure and high cholesterol go hand and hand with kidney disease. So I had to stay on the medicine from before along with the new ones. The new schedule of medicine was very important. Missing one day of anti-rejection medicine could cause me to have my kidney be rejected by my body. I NEVER missed a day without taking my anti-rejection medicine for 10 years after that. That's kind of amazing for a kid that 10 years old.
  I had alot of things going on at the time. I was getting prepared for a new year at school with a new kidney. I had to be very careful with being around sick kids. My immune system was low because of the medication. I would have to stay away from sick kids all year long. My family was being helped for a few months after I had my transplant. My church was always bringing over dinner for my family. It was relief for my mom because she was also worrying about my health and work among other things. Once everyone got into the swing of things our lives got a little bit easier. Until I started having some complications.
  Next week... complications ensue.