Two area patients receive transplants
By Holly Neumann
As of March 29 of this year, 106,253 patients were on the waiting list for a transplant in the United States. Of those, 1,424 live in Wisconsin.
With April recognized at National Donate Life Month, Ryan Poppy, of Manawa, and Laura Karolus, of Iola, share their stories on receiving transplants, and how the generosity of someone they never knew, has changed their lives.
Poppy received a pancreas 10 years ago.
Diagnosed with diabetes at the age of 8, he struggled with low blood sugar levels, which made life difficult.
He was placed on the transplant list in March 2012.
“I got the call on July 2,” he said. “I have to admit it caught me a little off guard. You ask yourself over and over again, ‘Is this really happening?’ You get prepped for the transplant knowing that there is still a chance you will have to go home. They put an IV in and you wait. The thoughts that go through your head in that moment are indescribable.”
The only thing that he knew about the donor was that they were 22 years old and that five organs were harvested from them.
“I have asked myself, ‘Why was I the lucky one to receive one of these organs?’” he said. “Probably for the next year I had those thoughts. Then you remember, this was their wish. The donor wanted others to have a fulfilled life.”
He feels that his transplant has changed him forever.
“I was in a bad place, prior to my transplant,” Poppy said. “Getting the transplant opened up many doors for me. I finally found a job I really like. I work with people, and train them how to use our equipment. If I was still diabetic, I may not have had that opportunity. I even became an elder in my church. There is a reason that transplant happened.”
For Poppy, saying thank you has never seemed like enough.
“They lost a loved one,” he said. “But they also gain someone too. He or she lives on inside of me. They are happy and they are free.”
Karolus received a pancreas and kidney 18 years ago. She, too, had juvenile diabetes.
“My kidneys had been failing for quite a few years,” she said. “And of course my pancreas stopped working when I was 11.”
When she had her transplant, the process was meeting the criteria of levels of “bad enough” organ failure, getting a referral, the financial aspect, the hospital that you will go to, and then getting on a list.
Waiting
“I was fortunate enough to only wait 11 months with no dialysis,” she said.
Her donor was a 30-year-old male who passed away from muscular dystrophy.
“It was hard knowing that someone’s life was gone and that I received his organs to save my life,” she said. “There is a lot of thought of guilt, confusion and faith that all comes together.”
Karolus had a lot of negative feelings until she got the letters from her donor’s mother.
“She was a wonderful lady to talk to and we shared a lot of emotions,” Karolus said. “It helped that I got to tell her how much my life had changed because of her son and how much I had appreciated the gift.”
Before her transplant all Karolus would do is go to work and go to sleep. She had absolutely no energy.
“I had to really watch my intake of salt and water. I was very swollen from my kidneys not functioning properly,” she said. “My dad always woke me up early in the morning to make sure that I would eat breakfast because that is the time that my blood sugar would hit rock bottom. I had so many low blood sugars before the transplant it came to the point that I wouldn’t know that I even needed sugar anymore.”
Since her transplant, Karolus is thriving at life, without the need for insulin, or struggling with low blood sugar levels.
“Everything has gone well,” she said. “I have never had a rejection. All the medications you take have a lot of side effects, but on the other side things would have been a lot worse.”
According to the United Network for Organ Sharing, over 40,000 lifesaving organ transplants were done in 2021.
Twenty people die each day waiting for a transplant.
“There is so much sadness in the world,” said Poppy. “Why wouldn’t you want to donate? It is such a beautiful gift and you have the ability to help so many people.”
Go to bit.ly/36VCUHd to add your name to the Wisconsin Donor Registry.