PKD Life - Spring 2022 - 14

OUR PKD LIFE
We Have Been
Richly Blessed
Our lives have been so much more
than we ever expected.
By Gina and Larry Hietpas,
as told to Leslie Pepper
I
was pregnant with our fi rst child
when Larry was diagnosed with
PKD. He was 36 years old, and
up until then we had hoped he'd
escaped the fate of so many of his
family members. His mother died
before she turned 50. He'd seen two
uncles and two aunts die of the disease.
His older sister's kidneys were
so enlarged, she had recently been
told she would need a nephrectomy
and dialysis. But as the ultrasound
tech ran the wand over Larry's abdomen,
I knew what was in store for
us. The grainy images of the black
voids meant he too had PKD.
LARRY I had never thought I'd live
past 40. The fact that I'd made it so
long without having issues was kind
of a miracle. But as soon as the back
pain began, I knew what was happening
before I even went to the
doctor. My wife was pregnant with
our son, and I feared I wouldn't be
around much longer to see him
grow up.
GINA When Larry was diagnosed
37 years ago, no medication existed
to slow the growth of the cysts. So,
we followed a healthy kidney diet,
and he took it as easy as possible. He
worked in construction, so he did as
much as he could, and my teaching
job became our chief source of
income. Larry always tried to be
engaged as a partner and as a father,
but a lot of times the only thing he
could do was take care of himself.
I understood, but it was not always
easy for a young child to understand.
LARRY It was hard for me to put in a
full day doing something as physical
as construction work, and I was fortunate
that Gina's career enabled her
to become the main breadwinner.
I took over more of the household
duties, so it worked out. I was, and
still am, lucky to have such a fi ne
partner. I can't imagine what life
would be like if I had to do this alone.
GINA The diet and lifestyle decisions
we made relieved the stress on
Larry's kidney enough to delay the
need for dialysis for almost 10 years.
14 PKD LIFE * SPRING 2022
PKD Life - Spring 2022

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