My experience as a donor
My story is for anyone considering being a kidney donor. I consider my experience ideal. I was fortunate enough to not encounter any major financial or health hardships before, during, or after my donation.
Tldr; anyone able to donate should consider it. Six weeks weeks wasn't much of a sacrifice when my donation provides years or decades to a recipient and their loved ones.
A friend told me he needed a kidney. We both hoped I could be a direct donor, but that wasn't meant to be. The idea of a voucher wasn’t appealing, so we ended up as a donor pair or paired exchange. A donor pair/paired exchange means I donated to a stranger. In return, my friend received a kidney from someone else who was more compatible.
Initially the main things on my mind were-
What if a family member needs a kidney later down the line?
This was very important for me. While ultimately my decision, I spoke to family members about becoming a donor to gauge how they felt about it. I also made sure my family didn't have a known history of kidney or kidney related health issues. They were understandably concerned about my health and future but were encouraging.
How long does recovery take ( ie. When can I get back to work?)
I work in IT and telecommute most of the time. This made donating and recovery a lot more manageable. I went back to work at a somewhat reduced schedule for weeks 3 and 4 and was back full time after that.
I spent the first 2.5 weeks recovering at a friend’s. I drove myself home after that and have been able to take care of myself since then. Took Tylenol and stool softener daily for that same time period. I was fortunate that I never had to use the stronger pain killers and laxatives.
Will my quality of life go down?
I started exercising right at the six-week mark. This was the minimum I had to wait before I was allowed to exercise. I started out with half the weight and reps of my pre-surgery routine. I'm at about 90% now. Taking my time due to my age and also because I'm lazy. I'm confident I could have been at 100% a couple weeks ago (week 9 post-surgery) if I wanted.
Had a slight sore throat from the breathing tube that lasted ‘til around week 8. It was noticeable, but didn't affect me much since most of my work is nonverbal.
Also, an ache in my testicle on the same side as the kidney that was removed showed up immediately after surgery. It was annoying but manageable. Eventually it was only sensitive when washing up or working out. Jogging was OK; I mostly felt it while using a jump rope. At week 11 I barely notice any discomfort and life is pretty much back to normal.
If anything I think my quality of life has stayed the same or even slightly improved. I’m more conscious about what and how much I eat and getting in regular exercise now than I was before.