At a young age, Lisa Washington knew that at some point in her life, she was going to need a kidney. When that time came, she was in a coma. Fortunately, her husband, who was a blood match and was able to give her one of his kidneys, saved her life.
Now, Washington is sharing her story with the masses and encouraging others to save a life by being organ donors.
At the Organ Donor Awareness art exhibit, Washington spoke with rolling out about her story and why people should become organ donors.
Tell us your story.
I was born with chronic kidney disease, and by the time I was seven years old, the doctors told my mom that I would need a kidney one day. I ended up falling in love with this incredible guy and when we had our son and he was about seven years old, I went into full kidney failure. My husband ended up going to get his blood checked to give to the Red Cross, and he found out I was his blood match. I was in a coma for three days, came out of it, and he told me that I was his blood match. Went and got tested at Emory, and [he] donated his kidney to me in 2007.
What do you think people should know about transplants and organ donors?
I think for the African American community, the first thing we need to know is to get rid of the fear. Just because different things have happened during the course of time with us, we can have that fear of doing it, but you’re saving people’s lives. My husband, by donating, has given me a chance to become a grandmother, to see my baby get married, and to do so many things. These hospitals are so good at educating you about what the process is from beginning to end, and you have somebody to walk you all the way through it. I know it can be a little bit scary, but you are giving people life, and they’re also taking care of you because you’re giving this gift away.
Why is Black health important?
We weren’t brought up to be educated about our health. We actually can sometimes make jokes about it: “I have the sugar”; “I have high blood pressure,” but high blood pressure and sugar, that is the number one killer of Black people. Heart disease and diabetes affect our kidneys and then we have kidney failure. It’s very important for us to be educated by that so we can educate our children. It’s so important they know about nutrition, exercise, and drinking clean water because this is going to help our kids be more educated so that they can educate their kids and generations to come.
