“Kid”ney Sisters – A New Life for Lynn

I remember 20 years ago or so Lynn told me about her declining Kidney function.  Back then, doctors said she only had about 6 years before she was going to need dialysis. Little did they know who they were dealing with.  Lynn was going to prove them wrong! 

My sister Lynn:

As the “middle child”, Lynn was always the athlete of the family – full of energy and a joy for life.  You name the sport, she ROCKED it.  From softball, basketball, volleyball, BMX, and golf, she was fearless and phenomenal at them all.  She trained hard, worked her butt off to be great and it showed.  But then the kidneys started to have issues. She got a little slower, but never complained, she still tried just as hard!  


Docs said it was likely strep throat she had when she 10 that caused her kidneys to stop growing and then as a young adult, they just weren’t able to handle the load any longer and were starting to decline. Lynn put the same energy and focus into keeping her kidney’s alive as she did to her sports, her work, her friends and her church and they responded.  They hung on.  She monitored what she ate and drank each and every day.  She had detailed spreadsheets of her lab results, tracking every dip and making adjustments where she could.  While she couldn’t STOP her kidneys from declining, she did everything in her power to SLOW the progress.  But the fatigue was getting worse as were the migraines.  There were meds for that, but they were taking their toll on her body, too (some creating more brittle bones causing her hip to break this past January).  Even then, she didn’t complain.  She worked with what she could control to try to make her situation better.  Our Lynn, for her, the glass is always still 1/2 full no matter what!  Unfortunately, though, while she was in the hospital for the hip and dealing with the resulting blood clots, the kidneys took their final nose dive and the docs said… “That’s it, Lynn.  Dialysis Time”. 

This is where I come in…. “NOT ON MY WATCH”!

“Kid” sister, Loreen:

So many years ago, when I learned about Lynn’s declining health, I read everything I could get my hands on to understand what could be done.  I learned about GFR (kidney function number) and how Lynn’s had been declining year over year.  I told her over 10+ years ago, that she is not alone on this journey.  She had touched so many lives over the years, that there would be a multitude of people that would want to help her and I wanted to be first in line.  The book “Dialysis Without Fear” made me immediately realize that this was not the life I wanted for my sister. I decided then - No Dialysis For Lynn… Not if I could help it!  So when the nephrologist came into her hospital room after hip surgery this past February and said her GFR was 10, I knew the time had come for me to give new meaning to the word “kid sister”.  I wanted to be her “kid”-ney sister as well as her kid/baby sister. 


Did you know that research shows that a kidney from a living donor (before the recipient was ever on dialysis) had the best chance possible for long term success?  That is what I wanted for our Lynn.  The BEST CHANCE.  I reminded her of the promise I made so many years ago... that when the time came, I was going to be the first in line.  "I am ready", I told her.  I wanted her to have one of MY Kidneys.  "I’ve been taking good care of them", I told her.  To this, she could only smile BIG as I am a bit like her in that regard and had my own set of spreadsheets to prove it.

But was I going to be a fit?

Well... I AM A FIT and a great one, too!  Seems I have 2 extraordinary kidneys, with a GFR that is off the charts at 146.2!  What this means for BOTH of us is that she gets a kidney with great function right out of the gate and I’ll be left with a stellar one, too. 
 
Our BIG DAY

July 15th, 2019 is our BIG DAY.  LyLo (what our “shared kidney” is named – combo of Lynn and Loreen) will be making her debut and move from NH to PA for good.   Go Team LyLo!



How You Can Help Lynn

Lynn is going to have a new life with her new kidney, but with the costs of transplant soon to mount – from missing work without pay, lodging during transplant, lifelong anti-rejection prescriptions, etc, she will soon replace the burden of health issues with the burden of financial issues without our help. 

Help me show her… NOT IF WE CAN HELP IT!

Lynn prides herself in being able to handle any issue on her own.  She much prefers helping others.  It’s simply not in her DNA to ask for help.  But without disability coverage, a kidney transplant and all the financial things that spawn from that are more than she can bear.  Lynn needs all the help she can get.  She needs you. 

I am grateful for anything you can give.  Every dollar will go to offset her medical costs, lost wages and the associated expenses.  Even if you can't give financially, please send prayers her way as when prayers go up, blessings come down.  Your gifts will enable Lynn to completely focus on her health and healing and move past this incredible challenge to the bright future that awaits her with her new kidney - LyLo. 

With the love and support of her fiance Kevin and everyone else that loves her, Lynn will once again be able to thrive and truly enjoy life again.  She will go on making memories, giving LyLo a new life.  She will continue to bring joy to everyone she meets and resume competing like a pro in everything she does! 

Lynn makes the world a better place… Let’s help her continue that journey!