Anna's Transplant

Hello All!

Anna's little sister will be commandeering Anna's blog while she is unable to write.

Wanted to give you all an update on the night so far...

Well, we got to the hospital a little after 11PM tonight and went to admitting. But low and behold, no one was there! After a few moments of "Uhhhhh what do we do?" I did my usual daily ritual of calling the OR (as I go to the lung transplants to get the old removed lungs for the CF Research Lab to use in our research). We found out where we were supposed to go and that her surgery was scheduled for 4AM.

We made our way down to E Ground and got settled in. Going to as many transplants as I have been, I knew they were always pushed back. Somehow the time went by and those five hours went zooming past. This call felt much more real. It is really going to happen...

Lots of love and kisses were given to Anna and we all posed for a gazillion photos.

...Then...at 4:30 AM they walked in and told us it was time for her to go!
All of our stomachs flipped. This was really it. It is really happening.
This is the fastest transplant I have ever witnessed. They are normally scheduled for a time and then pushed back at least 4 hours. Thankfully we did not have to wait that long. Our waiting is over!

We went up to the second level with her to see her off. Walked up to those OR doors and gave our last kisses as we watched her wheeled away, cracking jokes like our usual crazy Anna. The doctors don't know what a party they are in for. The nurses said that everything was a go and Anna would be under and intubated within 15 minutes.

We have settled into our new home for the next 7+ hours on the second floor, waiting for news and being grateful for the donor and the donor family. Thank you to this family that has been able to see outside of their own grief and give this great gift to my sister. Please send good thoughts to them and to Anna!