Susan
and her daughter, Dancie
(Susan's the one with the oxygen on!)
I resigned from a part-time job I loved in 1999 because my health began to fail. I was also doing art and craft shows on the weekends in North Georgia which I also thoroughly enjoyed. Over the next few years I had repeated bouts of breathlessness which became the most devastating thing in my life. I could no longer hold out for the shows and I could not understand what was happening to me.
One doctor told me I was only having panic attacks, something I had never heard of and was sure he was wrong, especially because these attacks, I called them, would happen when I was enjoying myself. Finally in 2001 after many tests I was diagnosed with emphysema/COPD and a severe form of it which disabled me. My lung function was 23%. I was 46 years old and finished -- I thought.
In 2004 a pulmonologist told me she had spoken to a surgeon at Emory about possibly transplanting me. I was horrified. I thought it sounded like science fiction. After getting over the initial shock of it, I began to research it and found that there had been many done and plenty of successful ones. After switching doctors and having another tell me the same thing, I made the decision to go to Emory. It has now been a year since my initial consultation there. I have been through numerous tests and a 3-day evaluation at Emory.
It's been a long year and a hard one both mentally and physically. Without my faith I could not have gotten this far. My family has also been very supportive of me.
Transplant candidates must do fundraising in order to be able to pay for the tremendously high costs of some of the post transplant medications that are not covered by insurance. The months just after transplants are the most crucial when unforeseen problems can crop up that are costly. The great thing is that I have been accepted into "Access to Care" at the Georgia Transplant Foundation and they match dollar-for-dollar all monies raised up to $10,000.
I sincerely hope after reading my story you might consider donating to help me to get a second chance and more time with my family. I have a husband of 33 years, 2 children and one granddaughter and I desperately want to live again.
Please help.
