Drove down to visit my sister/donor Silvia and gave her a shirt I painted for her.

My sister, Silvia (on left) continues to be healthy, as always.  It's been almost 5 years since she donated her kidney to me.  My husband, son, and I went to visit her and our families in December 2013.  We live 7 hours away.  This picture of the 2 of us was taken when we took our kids to Chuck-E-Cheese.

I have been doing well also.  My last creatinine was 0.93 and my glucose was 91.

It's been 4 years since my sister, Silvia donated her kidney to me in 2009.  We are both happy and healthy.  My creatinine is .98 and I rarely get sick.  I've never had a rejection and all my blood test results are always normal.  I will always take care of the gift she gave me.  I am thankful every day.

Visiting my sister/donor

Silvia (my donor), my 5 year old son and me at the zoo.

Do you like our t-shirts?   We were at Disneyland.

My husband, son, and I drove down to visit the family.  We spent almost 3 weeks with them.  I got to spend a lot of time with my sister/donor, Silvia.  It's been almost 2 1/2 years since the transplant and we are both doing great.  We all visited Knotts, Disneyland, the zoo, and ChuckECheese with my son, our nieces and nephews. Both Silvia and I have enough energy to keep up with the kids, our blood pressures are great, and we are very happy.  We continue our long distance communication daily.

Was sick, but now I am better.

My son, Christopher (is 4 years old) and we love to play together.

A few months ago, I got sick, which started with a day of vomiting and weeks of on-an-off diarrhea.  The doctors (my PCP, my nephrologist, intestinal specialist and Kidney Center) never figured out what made me sick.  They did all sorts of blood tests and stool samples but nothing came up.  The only thing they did find is that my Prograf medicine level had reached a toxic level in my blood (it was 20 and a normal number is 5).  We don't know if it was the Prograf that made me sick or my sickness that made my Prograf go up.  But it made my Creatinine go up to 2.04 (it had been at 1 just a month before).  The Kidney Center doctor told me to gradually lower my  Prograf and do frequent blood tests.  I've been doing that since and I am no longer sick and my Prograf and Creatinine are back to normal numbers.  I am relieved because it gave me a big scare.  If I ever get sick like that again, I am running to the lab to get my blood drawn right away in case it is my Prograf level getting too elevated.  FYI:  My sister and donor, Silvia Encinas is doing well and we talk by phone or messenger every day.  I miss her and am thankful for her gift every day.

Visited the Family in Southern California

This picture was taken on March 28, 2010, on my sister's 28th Birthday, just 2 weeks  after our 1 year Kidney Transplant Anniversary.  I am on the left (Denise), my husband (Yarid), and my sister and donor (Silvia).  My husband, son, and I went to visit our family in Southern California in March.  And now we are all getting over our colds that we caught over there.  My cold is taking the longest because I am on immunosuppressants (Mycophenolate and Tacrolimus).  I had sore gums and pain in my throat for a couple of weeks.  But now I only have a cough and runny nose.  I am still anemic but my folate, iron, and B12 levels are fine.  My hemoglobin has remained at around 11.3 for months.  My potassium has stayed under 5, and my creatinine around 1.05.  Everything is going well.

Doing Well

I only have to take 2 anti-rejection medications and a tiny aspirin every day. It has been 6 months since my kidney transplant on March 16,2009. My anemia is gone, my hemoglobin went up to 11.5 and continues to climb. I only have to get my blood tested once a month now. My weight is completely back to normal and is stable. My husband and I are looking forward to Halloween with our son, Christopher (he is 3 years old) and will be Batman. My sister, Silvia continues to be well, she is visiting family in Mexico and we will travel down to visit her as soon as she gets back.