Rebecca

…I got a phone call from that Advocate, and she told me that the committee had met and that she was calling me to tell me they really did not feel they had the expertise to do the surgery. And they felt the surgery could happen, and that it could be very successful, but they didn't feel like their surgeons and their team were prepared for the complexities of my sister's medical condition, and that they strongly encouraged me to go to [state 4]…they would make the connections for us so that we didn't have to start all-- trying to figure out how to do that process…We were devastated again because, you know, we'd gone through all the testing and now we're being told no, but we were being told a different kind of no. We were being told No at this facility. But a possible yes, somewhere else, and that was a different kind of no for us. It was… discouraging that it wasn't going to happen right away, but it was encouraging that there might be another round… So in January of 2016, we were connected to the hospital in [State 4] and they contacted my sister right away and had her fly out and go through testing because first, they wanted to know, "Do we feel that we have the expertise and the ability to do this? Do we feel she's a good candidate to receive-- that she could do this surgery?" all of that. So she went out first.…then she contacted me and said, "I've been given a green light in terms of being a recipient." So then I went out in February 2016, and they put me through a number of tests.

I remember waking up, and I remember waking up, coming out of anesthesia, and the pain was crazy, like it was really intense. And I asked for something right away. I said, "I am really hurting." And they gave me some sort of pain medication and I felt like I was flying with Aladdin on a magic carpet. [laughter] It was a really strange, odd feeling. And I remember telling them, "Okay, I don't feel any more pain, but I don't like the way this ride is going," it was- it was a little comical…But waking up and having that carbon dioxide moving in your body is without a doubt the worst. It feels like you have bubble wrap on the inside of you…And I woke up and I was like, "Oh, my gosh, it's not my belly that hurts. What is this stuff in my shoulder and my back?", you know, and it was that gas moving around because it has to literally find its way out. And so my husband contacted someone to come to the hospital and give me a massage, which was perfect. And , you know, I highly recommend that…The recovery right after surgery, in my opinion, I was a healthy person going into surgery, so it really wasn't as bad as it could have been. The incision is sore, your belly blows up, it's pretty swollen for a while, but moving, walking-- I got up and walked the first day and then I just kept walking.

My husband was key. I can't imagine going through something like this without someone that close to you. I mean, he was there from the beginning and you know, he helped process a lot of things that didn't make sense to me. He had to become an advocate for me at a certain point. You know, hospitals do the very best they can, but sometimes they are short-staffed and family members become advocates. And so there were a couple of times in the hospital that he had to become an advocate for me because you know, I had rung the bell or I had asked for something and they hadn't brought it, and he was fabulous in that process. And then he had to be my caretaker. When we went to the home for recipients and donors, he had to take care of me.