Friday, July 26, 2024

BROADCAST WITH SUZANNE RUFF

 


DID YOU MISS THE BROADCAST  WITH SUZANNE RUFF, RELUCTANT KIDNEY DONOR, AUTHOR, PKDF, NKF KIDNEY ADVOCATE,  EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE FOR THE AAKP, PROFESSIONAL WRITER. CATCH THE INSTANT REPLAY HERE!
https://www.youtube.com/live/PHFRpIt4BbA?si=vduXcXfCHetb48Qmhttps://www.youtube.com/live/PHFRpIt4BbA?si=vduXcXfCHetb48Qm

Friday, July 19, 2024

BROADCAST WITH SHARON CAPLAN

D


id You Miss The Broadcast With SHARON CAPLAN, WHO MUST HAVE A LIVING DONOR TRANSPLANT, CROHN'S DISEASE, DESPARATELY SEEKING A PRE-EMPTIVE KIDNEY TRANSPLANT! CATCH THE INSTANT REPLAY HERE!

Saturday, July 13, 2024

BROADCAST WITH LJ DONG

 DID YOU MISS THE BROADCAST WITH LJ DONG, YOUR QUEEN WITH ONE BEAN  KIDNEY DONOR, & MUCH MORE? CHECK OUT THE INSTANT REPLAY HERE!

https://www.youtube.com/live/huTE5VHJVco?si=3awXcVSxgKXxWKRw

Saturday, June 29, 2024

BROADCAST WITH YUBERKY HERNANDEZ

Did You Miss The Broadcast With YUBERKY HERNANDEZ, Mother of her 15 year old son with PKD, who advises parents on raising children with Chronic Conditions. Catch The Instant Replay Here!
https://www.youtube.com/live/D98hMYKb2tg?si=GOJmkKOddbS_VcX2

Friday, June 21, 2024

BROADCAST WITH RISA SIMON 3

 Did You Miss The Broadcast With Risa Simon, Consultant,  Best Life Coach, Motivational Speaker, Kidney Patient Advocate and Author, on her new book for children & adults alike on living kidney donation, "SYDNEY'S KIDNEY ADVENTURE?" Catch the Instant Replay Here! PLEASE SHARE!

https://www.youtube.com/live/F6YOwjX2Q2M?si=rbF9mvAr9rNSmnuz



Saturday, June 15, 2024

GWEN WESTLUND BLOG 2


 NEW BLOG: GWENDOLYN WESTLUND IS MY HERO


Introduction

I recently did a Streamyard Broadcast with Gwendolyn Westlund on World Kidney Day. She is a Cancer Survivor,  a Blood Recipient,  a Heart Transplant Patient, a Recycled Life Warrior, a Kidney Transplant Candidate and a Speaker & Advocate! Link to the Broadcast:

https://www.youtube.com/live/PZlDmet_pCE?si=IQzgmRsNNEdkfP-1

Gwen's Journey Begins with Hodgkins

Gwen 's journey began back in 2002 when she was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma at the age of 21. She was successfully treated with radiation therapy, sending her cancer into remission a year after her diagnosis.

Issues With Her Heart

This was just the start of a long list of health issues for Gwen.  Five years after the radiation for cancer,  she learned that same radiation had scarred her heart.


"After a two-week hospital stay with double lung pneumonia, I was diagnosed with congestive heart failure due to mitral valve prolapse,”Gwen said, “I managed to keep my heart problems in check over the next five years by maintaining a healthy diet and taking my prescribed medications.”


By May of 2013, Gwen went into end-stage heart failure. She felt very ill and was taken to the Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where she had numerous surgeries,  blood transfusions, eventually receiving both a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) and a temporary external right ventricular assist device (RVAD).  After being sedated for 8 days she was told she would need a new heart and had been placed on the heart transplant waiting list.

https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/ventricular-assist-device/multimedia/left-ventricular-assist-device/img-20006714

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25433641/


Gwen's Heart Transplant
After a two month hospital stay and three months waiting at home, she received the Heart Call in October of 2013 that a donor heart had been found.  The heart transplant surgery was successfully done at the Advocate-Aurora Heart Institute at Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, Illinois.
https://care.advocatehealth.com/locations/cardiology-oak-lawn-95th-st-il

Gwen's Kidneys Failed

Gwen's health issues did not end there.  During that 3 months stay in 2019, her body endured a lot of trauma and the immunosuppressive medications she took caused her kidneys to fail in March of 2019. After 3 rounds of pneumonia that year & while undergoing treatment, she suffered an Acute Kidney Injury.  Without warning she was placed on dialysis 

https://www.kidney.org/atoz/content/AcuteKidneyInjury;

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/kidney-failure/symptoms-causes/syc-20369048



She has currently been on dialysis for 4 years.

Gwen Is Seeking a Live Kidney Donor

She is currently listed for a kidney transplant at Advocate Christ Medical Center’s (Oak Lawn, IL) kidney transplant office at 708-684-7100, tell them you’d like to schedule an appointment for a donor talk for Gwendolyn Westlund.  Her post that you can share is referred to in the comments.  She is actively looking for a living donor. Currently she is on hold and they would like her to gain approximately 14 pounds, but we are confident she can do that. A living donor would be very helpful to have in her pocket.


In Gwen's own words, "I'm particularly looking forward to travel. My mom and brother and twin nephews live in North Carolina and I can't visit. There are also tons of places I'd like to go. Nieces and nephews I'd like to make better memories with." She has seen her family since the time that this blog was originally written. 

Link to Gwen's profile: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100086468287121&mibextid=ZbWKwL

Link to Gwen's Transplant Center: https://www.advocatehealth.com/health-services/organ-transplant-surgery-program/kidney-transplant/

Please share and if you can, please consider donating to this generous advocate!

Gwen's Advocacy Work

Despite all of her health issues,  Gwen has advocates for all of us with the Gift of Hope and Vitalant Blood. She also plans to walk for various organizations including the National Kidney Foundation of Illinois and ACS Relay for Life. Because of her health issues currently most of her Advocacy work is currently done on social media.

Gift of Hope: https://www.giftofhope.org/

Vitalant Blood: https://www.vitalant.org/

National Kidney Foundation of Illinois:
https://www.nkfi.org/


ACS Relay for Life: https://www.cancer.org/involved/fundraise/relay-for-life.html;

https://secure.acsevents.org/site/SPageServer?pagename=relay

Conclusion:

Gwen is an example for all of us concerning her ability to persevere through the most adverse of circumstances. Please share this blog so we can spread Gwen's story and help to find her a kidney donor!

Friday, June 14, 2024

RE-POST OF GWENDOLYN WESTLUND BLOG



NEW BLOG: GWENDOLYN WESTLUND IS MY HERO

Introduction

I recently did a Streamyard Broadcast with Gwendolyn Westlund on World Kidney Day. She is a Cancer Survivor,  a Blood Recipient,  a Heart Transplant Patient, a Recycled Life Warrior, a Kidney Transplant Candidate and a Speaker & Advocate! Link to the Broadcast:

https://www.youtube.com/live/PZlDmet_pCE?si=IQzgmRsNNEdkfP-1

Gwen's Journey Begins with Hodgkins

Gwen 's journey began back in 2002 when she was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphoma at the age of 21. She was successfully treated with radiation therapy, sending her cancer into remission a year after her diagnosis.

Issues With Her Heart

This was just the start of a long list of health issues for Gwen.  Five years after the radiation for cancer,  she learned that same radiation had scarred her heart.


"After a two-week hospital stay with double lung pneumonia, I was diagnosed with congestive heart failure due to mitral valve prolapse,”Gwen said, “I managed to keep my heart problems in check over the next five years by maintaining a healthy diet and taking my prescribed medications.”


By May of 2013, Gwen went into end-stage heart failure. She felt very ill and was taken to the Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, where she had numerous surgeries,  blood transfusions, eventually receiving both a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) and a temporary external right ventricular assist device (RVAD).  After being sedated for 8 days she was told she would need a new heart and had been placed on the heart transplant waiting list.

https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/ventricular-assist-device/multimedia/left-ventricular-assist-device/img-20006714

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25433641/


Gwen's Heart Transplant
After a two month hospital stay and three months waiting at home, she received the Heart Call in October of 2013 that a donor heart had been found.  The heart transplant surgery was successfully done at the Advocate-Aurora Heart Institute at Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, Illinois.
https://care.advocatehealth.com/locations/cardiology-oak-lawn-95th-st-il

Gwen's Kidneys Failed

Gwen's health issues did not end there.  During that 3 months stay in 2019, her body endured a lot of trauma and the immunosuppressive medications she took caused her kidneys to fail in March of 2019. After 3 rounds of pneumonia that year & while undergoing treatment, she suffered an Acute Kidney Injury.  Without warning she was placed on dialysis 

https://www.kidney.org/atoz/content/AcuteKidneyInjury;

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/kidney-failure/symptoms-causes/syc-20369048



She has currently been on dialysis for 3 years.

Gwen Is Seeking a Live Kidney Donor

She is currently listed for a kidney transplant at Advocate Christ Medical Center’s (Oak Lawn, IL) kidney transplant office at 708-684-7100, tell them you’d like to schedule an appointment for a donor talk for Gwendolyn Westlund.  Her post that you can share is referred to in the comments.  She is actively looking for a living donor.


In Gwen's own words, "I'm particularly looking forward to travel. My mom and brother and twin nephews live in North Carolina and I can't visit. There are also tons of places I'd like to go. Nieces and nephews I'd like to make better memories with."

Link to Gwen's request for a kidney: https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=3043498069252354&id=100007765724022;

Link to Gwen's Transplant Center: https://www.advocatehealth.com/health-services/organ-transplant-surgery-program/kidney-transplant/

Please share and if you can, please consider donating to this generous advocate!

Gwen's Advocacy Work

Despite all of her health issues,  Gwen still advocates for all of us with the Gift of Hope and Vitalant Blood. She also plans to walk for various organizations including the National Kidney Foundation of Illinois and ACS Relay for Life.

Gift of Hope: https://www.giftofhope.org/

Vitalant Blood: https://www.vitalant.org/

National Kidney Foundation of Illinois:
https://www.nkfi.org/


ACS Relay for Life: https://www.cancer.org/involved/fundraise/relay-for-life.html;

https://secure.acsevents.org/site/SPageServer?pagename=relay

Conclusion:

Gwen is an example for all of us concerning her ability to persevere through the most adverse of circumstances. Please share this blog so we can spread Gwen's story and help to find her a kidney donor!




Jim Myers 











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