Petes Fight Continues
For months the forest was growing dark, the trees were sad, and the butterflies had broken wings. That was until Thursday 3.21. When my telephone rang at 5am with the news that a donor had been matched, and my brother would be given a second chance at life. It was go time.
But how did he even get to this point? This past September my brother suffered a widows maker heart attack. The type of heart attack that most never survived, and yet he did. We joke that he had 9 lives. But things grew grim, and he was getting sicker and sicker. He was living in Florida, so my mom and my sister drove and packed him up, took him to Boston. If he stayed in Florida I am certain he would not be here today. I cannot say enough amazing things about Brigham and Women and the staff that saved my brothers life.
My brother has been laying in the ICU since early February waiting for his only chance at life. A heart.
If I am being honest I was not sure it would happen. That is because there are 103,223 individuals waiting on the organ transplant list. 17 people dies each DAY. There are far more of a need than donors. I had hope, but each day that past I was getting a bit more realistic with myself about what the outcome could be. Prior to my brother going into ICU we sat and planned his funeral together. That's how real this was. I knew those plans may need to be put in place. I prayed they would not, but they were in back of my mind. My mom stayed at his bedside every single day.
I didn't want my brother to die, but reality was growing as he was taken off the donor list due to an infection. Last week they relisted him. The rollercoaster of hope was back in place. And Thursday morning a family was losing their loved one only for us to gain ours. What a pull of emotions. I am ever so thankful to that individual. Their heart will continue to beat. The ultimate sacrifice, the ultimate gift. Life.
My brother has a very long road to recovery. He came out of surgery Friday morning. He went in Thursday late afternoon. My hat goes off to those surgeons, nurses, techs, doctors, who worked tirelessly through the night to save a life. I constantly think how they walked out of the hospital and went home as it was another day at the office--without anyone around them ever knowing the impact of what they did. My family knows the impact, I am just as grateful to them as I am the donor.
So I have gathered my friends, family members, coworkers, and we are running for BRIGHAM AND WOMEN hospital and team PJL to support the staff and my brother in his continued fight for the beat to go on. There are countless other families in similar situations, and I know the anguish, but there is good in this world you just have to trust in it, even when the forest seems so dark.
Pete's road ahead to recovery is still long, and he is just waking from surgery as I type this, with so many unknowns but so much damn hope:)
330th Overall
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31st On Team
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0 | 0 | $300 |
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