Three time kidney transplant recipient, Sarah Satkowski, recently sat in Life Connection of
Ohio's "Green Chair" to raise awareness of the importance of organ donation.
Each day, 20 people
die waiting for an organ transplant, according to Health Resources and Services
Administration.
She was 18 years old
when she was diagnosed with post-streptococcal glomerulonephritis, or kidney
failure from strep throat, diagnosed after a routine visit to her gynecologist.
She was on dialysis for only six weeks before getting her first transplant.
Nine months later, she
went to the doctor for a check-up and the woman at the check-in desk noted that
her lips were purple.
She ended up being
put on a ventilator for 14 days. On the last day, the doctors wanted to take
her off the ventilator; however, she was unable to breath on her own. A nurse,
whose name she can’t recall, dedicated the entire night to talking to Satkowski
and weaning her off the ventilator. By morning, she was able to breathe on her
own and was ultimately removed from the ventilator.
A year and a half
later, she underwent a second transplant. This kidney lasted two and a half
years – a period during which she was in and out of the hospital because the
transplant created a bacteria that attacked her other organs. Doctors needed to
remove this kidney and put Satkowski back on dialysis for another couple of
years.
At around age 22,
Satkowski’s grandparents found her unconscious on the floor of her apartment
and rushed her to the hospital. Interactions among the medications she had been
taking caused her to have a seizure. Later in life, she woke her husband up in
the middle of the night with a convulsive seizure, only to learn that the
culmination of her many medications and procedures had given her a seizure
disorder.
In 2005, the 25-year-old
Satkowski received a call from her doctor. “You’ve won the lottery, I found you
a perfect match kidney. I’ll see you in the morning.” The donor, a man in Michigan , was a 100% match.
Satkowski wrote his
family a three-page letter explaining how much she appreciated the gift of life
and what it meant to her and her family.
“I wouldn’t be here
without that person,” she said.
A dire discovery
In 2011, Satkowski
discovered a lump while she was getting dressed and immediately had it looked
at by her doctors. It was cancerous. The medications she took for her
transplants reduced her immune system enough to allow cancer to develop. She
underwent chemotherapy while going to school to become a surgical tech. After
two years, she was done with chemo and cancer free.
When her grandfather
passed away, Satkowski inherited his restaurant, Curtice Hy-Flash, located in Oregon . She says she feels
as if her purpose – the reason why she survived the series of unfortunate
events – may be to fulfill her grandfather’s legacy.
She also loves
helping people, and feels that may be another reason why she’s still alive – to
spread awareness about organ donation and to help others. She recently sat in
Life Connection of Ohio’s “Green Chair” – a symbol of the importance of organ
donation. Why a Green Chair? When it’s empty, the chair represents the
overwhelming sadness from the loss of someone who was waiting for an organ
transplant that didn’t come in time. But when someone is sitting in the chair,
it showcases a recipient’s second chance at life.
“That’s why I always
sit in the Green Chair – to promote organ donation,” she said. “There are so
many people who don’t understand organ donation and how it works.”
For those who are
struggling with illness, Satkowski stresses the importance of being educated on
their conditions, and to be aware of the medications they’re taking and the
risk for potential harmful interactions.
But most
importantly, Satkowski emphasizes the significance of fighting through the hard
times.
“Don’t give up. It can be
hard, but don’t give up. Keep trying,” she said.
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