WE ARE HOME!🍀

I made it it past my surgeon, Nephrologist and coordinator today! It's is big day on the transplant floor when it's discharge day, as it doesn't take much to hang you up.  All three have to give you a thumbs up and then care has to be coordinated and in place at home, to get the big “D”-Discharged.

Our experience here at Mayo has been incredible! From the transplant floor staff to the transplant house, everyone is celebrated and congratulated by our housemates on the way out. I made some awesome connections with people at the house and feel a little guilty for those whom I left behind, and still have a ways to go. It truly is a humbling place to recover. We now have the lifetime membership there as anytime either of us has an appointment at Mayo, we can stay at the house. We will both be back in June for our 4 month, 2 day follow up and biopsy. Mike will be cleared and I'm on the 10 year follow up plan which I consider a gift to have my health and care followed by Mayo. The doctors will follow us closly at home through labs and the scheduled visits and  go to lengths to keep us safe and healthy.  I already came home to a huge box of lab work to be completed weekly and shipped back to Mayo for the next 8 weeks! Mayo is a machine of moving parts and on top of their game, which is part of makes them so great. Very blessed to have been apart of it!

In other amazing news-no kidding we walked in the door and 5 minutes later, Mike’s recipient reached out to him! She's from Ga. about 3 hours outside the Atlanta area and so very grateful for his gift. She was very ill before her surgery and Mikes gift literally gave her life back!

Such an amazing feeling for Mike to have been apart of that.  It was worth every minute of getting qualified as a donor,  to not only be able to help me, but also  another persons quality of life.   I'm so proud of him, it's indescribable!  I highly recommend you all to consider it.  At Mike’s appt he was told his remaining kidney will prob grow by up to 40 percent  to compensate for his gifted kidney being gone, Pretty cool and comforting. I was also told that because my kidney is so big ( from a man, which we named George )  I actually got a BOGOHO (buy one get one half off). My kidney will get to a function level  of a kidney and a half!🍀🍀🍀🍀

We are blessed, humbled, and so very grateful for our new life that I have been given,  and doing it together was really a remarkable experience. ( ok, second to a nice beach Spring break :-) ) It's all still pretty overwhelming and unbelievable.  

We also were so grateful for the incredible support we received near and far,  Knowing we had you all behind us, helped us and was truly wonderful support! 
We love you all and thank you from the bottom of our hearts!💚💚💚💚💚💚

~Love always, Annie & Mike 
 
And please, if you are healthy and feel a calling- SHARE YOUR SPARE!✌️👍💪