Saturday, June 26, 2010

Getting Started!

Hi there,
I'm not very good at this internet stuff- shopping and facebook are my usual limits, so sorry if this takes a while to get going!

So, I've been accepted onto the lung transplant waiting list and not sure what to do now really! I know all the information that the hospital give you, what I don't know is what it's like to be a young person waiting for and going through a transplant! There are so many questions and things that I don't feel anyone else really understands. I live in a small island where only a few people have had transplants and really want to make some friends in similar positions to me.

Although I've always struggled with asthma and breathlessness, I lived a normal life until a year ago, when suddenly my lung function dropped dramatically as did my weight and I've spent a year unable to walk and even bath without some assistance. I also started having panic attacks which don't mix too well with a lung condition! Not much fun and a big shock. I fought needing the transplant for quite a while and have now realised that I am lucky to get the chance to get back to a normal life. I am very glad that I haven't spent years in this condition and very much hope I won't spend too much longer, although I have a huge task ahead of me!

I started to look on the internet for people like me and have found huge comfort in reading about their lives and journeys to and through transplant. Their honesty has been so comforting to me and I hope that one day my blog will provide inspiration to others, the way these have for me.

So, would love to hear from people

Kerry xx

4 comments:

  1. hi Kerry!
    Thanks for following :)
    I look forward to reading your blog and hope that you dont have too long to wait for your shiny new puffers!
    May i suggest a read of Tori's blog at http://tori-x.livejournal.com/ if you havent stopped by there already, she is amazing. She's 27 too (i think!), had 8 false calls before getting her tX around a month ago...the blog is full and frank and hopefully useful to you.
    XX

    ReplyDelete
  2. PS. just put me in my place if this is being too nosy, but do you have a diagnosis? Or have you just had bad lung luck kinda thing? And also, I'm from a small island too, Jersey, so I can empathise there. How big is where you're from?
    XX

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hiya Lauren, thanks for the lovely messages.

    I'm actually in Jersey too- small world hey?! Whereabouts do you live? Do you work?

    I don't have a proper diagnosis no and don't worry it's not nosey at all! I'm a bit of a puzzle to the doctors unfortunately, they thought they had finally solved it being a condition that means my body doesn't make collagen or the type of it that the lungs need but like everything else I tested negative for that too! They have decided it is something like that and stopped trying to find out now! I had pneumonia at 18 which they think did the damage.

    I have come across Tori's blog- I think she is incredible, such an inspiration and her honesty in the blog has been so helpful ( a little daunting but it's better to know these things!).

    Would love to hear more about you. I'm going to have a read of your blog now- I'm so new to this that I haven't looked at anything in detail yet!

    Thanks for getting in touch xx

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hi Kerry :)

    Thank you for your lovely post!! I'm glad my journal has helped you! I know some of what I've said in it seems a bit scary but trust me it's much better to be a little bit scared now than petrified when they happen to you and you have no clue what's going on.

    I look forward to reading your blog (It really is a good outlet for the emotions that you feel you can@t share with your loved ones) As you can see I have two blogs. Right now my live journal is dominated with posts but this one is a little more for me and no one I know except Gregg has the link for it. It probably has more of how I was feeling on the lead up to transplant than my live journal one so might give you more of an insight.

    Feel free to ask me any questions and if your on facebook give me a wee add Victoria Glen xx

    ReplyDelete