High school seniors everywhere are looking forward to graduation and making plans for jobs, college, and dozens of other options that are open to them.  Hali, a high school senior, found out how quickly those plans can be sidetracked.

Last year, Hali was very involved in school and other activities.  She ran every day, played on her high school tennis team, and played the cello in a Youth Symphony.  When it came time to register for her senior year, she elected to take 5 Advanced Placement (AP) classes to give her a head start on her college education. 

Toward the end of her junior year, Hali became sick.  A trip to the doctor reassured her that it was most likely a bad case of the flu and she just needed some rest.  However, the flu-like symptoms worsened and then she had a seizure.  Tests to determine the cause of her seizure showed signs of kidney failure.  Ironically, on the July 4 weekend, when most of us are celebrating our freedom, Hali started her dialysis treatments.

For Hali, dialysis is every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and each dialysis session lasts about three hours.  On those days, she attends her first two classes and works with her teachers in her other two classes to get her assignments.  Often the treatments leave her too tired to complete assignments, making more work on the days she doesn’t go to dialysis.

She also discovered the unusual side effects of kidney disease.  She began her senior year with what she describes as ‘chipmunk cheeks’ because of the new medications she was taking.  She is no longer able to eat chocolate, peanut butter, or a whole list of other items.  She is also very limited on fluid intake, being allowed only about 40 ounces of anything liquid (including things that can melt, like Jell-O or ice cream) each day.

Hali’s family began considering living kidney donation as soon as they learned she would need a transplant.  No one in her immediate family was a match, but a cousin was tested and will be able to donate to her.  She hopes to have the transplant after her high school graduation and be able to recover in time to start college in January. 

On the national waiting there are over 80,000 people who are waiting for a kidney transplant.  For information about kidney donation, log on to www.yesutah.org or call 1.866.YES.UTAH.

Tags: donate life, donor registry, Good Samaritan Kidney Donation, Intermountain Donor Services, kidney donation, kidney transplant, kidneys, living kidney donation, organ, organ donation, organ donor, transplant, yes utah, yesutah

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