PKD Life - Summer 2023 - Cover3

BREATHE
FIND RESOURCES NEAR YOU AT PKDCURE.ORG/GET-INVOLVED
29
" Posting on social media provides an outlet for me to
share my journey, hoping that it helps someone else.
Since I discovered the grave statistics on how kidney
disease affects people of color, I've been further
inspired to amplify the message. "
My PKD Story
G rowing up, I knew my
mom had died from
complications of kidney
disease. However, it wasn't
until my late 20s that I found
out that she had PKD. An
ultrasound later confirmed
that I had multiple cysts.
When my kidney function
started declining rapidly in my
early 50s, my nephrologist discussed
finding a living donor,
but my mind wasn't ready for
that possibility. So, I started
the work of getting listed for a
transplant and simultaneously
shared the news with close
family members. They went
into action setting up a kidney
donation website and getting
the word out. Things evolved
quickly, and I went from listing
to getting an arteriovenous
fistula to dialysis in less than
a year.
Soon after dialysis started,
I discovered my sister was
a match, and a transplant
date was set. Preoperative
bloodwork revealed that I had
developed antibodies (from a
blood transfusion), rendering
us incompatible. Together,
we entered the paired kidney
exchange, and after many
hurdles and two years of
OLUFUNKE OJURI
Los Angeles
@teamfunkepkd
end-stage renal disease, a chain
of eight people allowed the lifechanging
miracle of transplant
to happen for me. I feel so much
better, and I'm back to taking
regular spin classes, which is an
activity I missed terribly.
MY ADVICE
Adjust your perspective. Try to
think of having PKD as a journey
that will be filled with highs and
lows, just like any other. As you
go along, be sure to find your
happiness through it all.
Live life to the fullest. Do
what you love despite the challenges
and the circumstances.
Make good choices. Seek
medical care, exercise, and adopt
a healthy diet.
*
COURTESY OF OLUFUNKE OJURI
http://www.PKDCURE.ORG/GET-INVOLVED
PKD Life - Summer 2023

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