My journey has been difficult. Despite those difficulties, I have tried to maintain a positive attitude, although at times it was hard. I found comfort in prayer, friends, and my family. I am so very grateful for everything I have. The transplant has made my life so much better. I often think about the family that lost a loved one and allowed me to live. You feel as though you want to take on the world, give back as much as you can so the family that donated to you, are proud of what you did with your  precious gift. I was fortunate to have a medical team that really treated the person, not just a ordinary patient. They really tried to help you navigate while you were there. Then you're home and you are own your own, and freaked the hell out.

Getting to the transplant stage was fraught with so many obstacles. The red tape is astounding, I mean it just blows your mind at how disorganized the whole process was. It was demanding and frustrating. The insurance company and Medicare never would work together,even though they know the rules of the pre authorization game. They just don't want you to know.

My feeling about giving back is with knowledge. The knowledge of trying to navigate the medical nightmare that was created by insurance companies and medicare.  I was so confused and frustrated by that process that sometimes, all I could do was just put my head in my hands and cry. It was a fulltime job jumping through the medical hoops that have been created by policy and ignorance of the illnesses.

I had to be my own advocate. After leaving my job due to my illness unbeknownst to me, I had gained a new job, navigating the medical community.