It is an extraordinary act of kindness to consider offering the gift of kidney donation. Today I am asking for your kindness on behalf of my husband, Alberto.

Sometimes it is hard to tell what’s going on inside of someone’s body just by looking at them. You may not know this, but Alberto’s kidneys are failing. His kidneys are no longer able to sift out waste products and extra water that are normally removed through the urine. Diseased kidneys are unable to help control blood pressure, keep bones healthy, and make red blood cells.

One of the treatment options for kidney disease is dialysis. During dialysis, the blood is filtered through a machine for several hours at a time. In Alberto’s case, he does dialysis every night for 9 hours. Dialysis has complications and requires a strict diet and limiting schedule. Dialysis patients often feel very poorly after treatment and may experience few days where they feel good. That means that during a large percentage of the time, they feel weak, making it difficult to do the everyday things we take for granted.

Another option is a kidney transplant. Patients often wait many years to receive a kidney from a deceased donor. That’s one reason that living donation is a better option. With a living donor, transplant can be a planned event, sometimes done early enough to prevent dialysis. Kidneys from living donors work better and last longer than deceased donor kidneys.

(nightly dialysis set-up)

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Alberto is my husband, father of my children, my best friend and my biggest support person. I’ve known him for 9 years now and we have been married for 6. We share a home, two daughters and a dog together.

In 2015, we learned that his kidneys are failing. This happened after he was rushed to the ER and had to have an emergency life-saving operation. During that hospitalization, doctors discovered that he had poor kidney function. He has had tests to try to determine how this has happened, and the doctors really do not know. We suspect that this may have been caused by an environmental factor back when he was a kid in Mexico.

Alberto takes multiple medications in order to manage his condition and help keep him functioning. He is a good guy and a hard worker. He loves his family. He loves to travel, study history, watch documentaries, and go on walks when he’s feeling well. He enjoys cars, trucks and trying new foods. Lately, however, he hasn’t been feeling his best. Nonetheless, he continues to work full-time as a truck driver, and he really does his best to contribute to the household and be a present father and husband.

He is the love of my life, and he is a man who deserves a chance to live a long, healthy and meaningful life. Our youngest daughter will be 2 years old next week.

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Alberto is blood type O+. Now being type O, he can only receive a kidney from an individual who has blood type O. So far, all of his loved ones who are willing to donate are not a compatible match. Thus, we have turned to social media in hopes that we can find him a match faster.

There is no obligation to learn more about donation. But if you are interested in learning more about becoming a living kidney donor or want to learn how to begin the donor process, please visit http://transplant.ucdavis.edu.

The donor evaluation begins with the completion of a health questionnaire. Donors undergo medical and psychosocial evaluations to ensure the safety of the donor. If you wish to complete the donor health evaluation, click on the blue button that says, “Be A Donor.”

Even if you are unable to donate, it would mean so much to our family if you can please pass this information on to other healthy individuals in your life. Feel free to share this within your social community.

Words cannot describe what it feels like to watch your loved one go through an experience such as kidney disease and dialysis. Words cannot explain the everyday worry and fear present in our hearts.

Thank you so much for considering a live kidney donation. You have the power to make someone’s life better.