Lifesavers for Latasha

When I was first listed in July, data on OPTN showed there were 38 people in the United States waiting for a heart/lung transplant.

Today, that number has changed to 33 people.

What happened to the five people?

Did they receive transplants?

Did they remove themselves from the waiting list?

Did they die while waiting?

The waiting is so hard. Chris and I have wanted to go somewhere on vacation for a while, but, with his work schedule and all my doctors’ appointments, the timing hasn’t been right. We could go on Status 7, which is inactive status, to take a vacation somewhere. But, what if while I’m inactive, a would-be match came about and I lose my chance at transplant?

Do I risk that for a few days or couple weeks of stressful fun? I say stressful, because I’m not able to fully enjoy any vacation due to having to take medications and monitor swelling, for example. Traveling is a hassle. Throw in medical issues on top of that and it’s just much easier to stay home. So, sure, some of it would be fun, but a lot of it just doesn’t seem worth the trouble.

Chris is stuck here with me, and I feel bad about that. His work is stressful, and he deserves a nice vacation. It’s a topic of discussion that we go back and forth on, trying to weigh the pros and cons of our current situation.

For now, we’ve decided to wait. There may come a time, though, where we get tired of waiting and having our lives on an unknown hold.

How long will we wait? How many people will be added or removed from the list by then? The numbers may change, but the questions, uncertainty, and frustration I have won’t.