This is something else that I’m going to overcome.” My whole life has been overcoming obstacles. My gift to the world and myself was keeping my inner child and staying young. 8. Nate Robinson, NBA Star and kidney failure patient Mental wellness, self-love, and acceptance is so important." Healing is not linear and at times can be a long process. “Kidney disease and post-transplant patients can live a joyful, productive and fulfilling life. 7. Valen Keefer, polycystic kidney disease (PKD) patient and double transplant recipient Don't stop asking until you receive some type of resolution." If they haven't addressed your problem, go back and ask them again. Talk to your doctors if you're having problems. That's very important and it's a part of staying healthy. “Whether you have itching (CKD-aP) or you're in pain, it's something that you should talk to your care team about. 6. Dawn Edwards, home dialysis recipient with CKD-aP and Voices for Kidney Health Advocate It's one more thing we integrate into life so it’s not intrusive." I've adopted the mindset that kidney disease doesn’t have to stop everything. You can't suffer in silence when you need other people's help. “This disease has forced me to change, to talk with people about my challenges, and advocate for myself. 5. Manusca Benony, IgA Nephropathy patient and Peers Mentee It allows me to work full-time and spend time with my children. I've gotten so much better doing dialysis. I get tired often and have to hook up to a machine every other night, but I still find joy in life. Twenty years later, I feel like I'm thriving. "When I was first diagnosed, I thought I had five years to live. 4. Melissa Bensouda, Voices for Kidney Health Advocate and dialysis patient It was rough on me, but there were a lot of lessons that I learned along the way.” That's the biggest thing I could take away from this journey–helping others. “I hope I can be the person I needed back then. 3. Mario Silva, chronic glomerulonephritis patient and transplant recipient It wasn't perfect but I did my best to make the most of it.” It was an opportunity for me to continue having some quality of life. I never saw dialysis as a death sentence. I felt like I had to create some type of normalcy for myself. "People kept asking me how I managed to do both since dialysis is like having a full-time job and I was so tired all the time. 2. Natasha Kelly, lupus patient and transplant recipient If you learn from it, then it's a lesson and you go on and move on.” “Learn upfront to budget (fluid for hemodialysis) and learn that if you mess up once, then that's a lesson, not a failure. Anthony Reed, former dialysis patient and kidney transplant recipient We hope that these quotes from people who have lived with kidney disease, undergone dialysis, or received kidney transplants will remind you that hope, strength, and perseverance can be found even in the hardest of times and inspire you to keep moving forward. Living with kidney disease, especially during the later stages, can be challenging, but you are not alone.
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