A Special Message to the Appliance Industry from Bermuda Bob
Submitted by advisor on Thu, 09/10/2009 - 8:58pm.
Note from Advisor: Frequent contributor to, and friend of, ApplianceAdvisor.com, Bermuda Bob has requested the opportunity to speak to our industry.
ORGAN DONATION: The Gift of Life That Brought Me Back From the Brink !!!
As some might have noticed, I have been away from Appliance Advisor for a few months without explanation ... well, here it is:
Last April I began to have symptoms of what was eventually diagnosed in October as NASH ... a form of liver disease which affects only 2% - 5% of the population ... here's an excerpt to define the condition:
NonAlcoholic SteatoHepatitis or NASH is a common, often “silent” liver disease. It resembles alcoholic liver disease, but occurs in people who drink little or no alcohol. The major feature in NASH is fat in the liver, along with inflammation and damage. Most people with NASH feel well and are not aware that they have a liver problem. Nevertheless, NASH can be severe and in which time the liver is permanently damaged, scarred, and no longer able to work properly. NASH affects 2 to 5 percent of Americans.
There is no "treatment" remediation and it is eventually fatal unless a transplant can be had !!! In January I was introduced to UPenn for that purpose ... eventually evaluated as a good candidate, and put on the "waiting list" ...
Unfortunately, my condition got worse ... faster than they expected ... and ... in July, during a "maintenance" procedure under general anesthesia @ our local hospital by my GI Doc, I fell into a coma and remained there until being transferred to UPenn, where I was put to the top of the list ... a few days later, on 7-17-2009, out of the coma, I received a liver from a donor and a few weeks later was sent home well on the mend ...
Since then my recuperation has gone well and I’m now feeling well enough to try and get back to a modicum of my former activity in my home office. I have asked for this space to try to explain that which was explained to me ... that without that transplant ... without that donor ... I was on my way to that big appliance showroom in the sky !!!
That donor gave me the most wonderful gift anyone could ever give to a fellow human being ... the gift of life !!!
I will be forever grateful to the donor and wanted to use this forum to try and bring the cause of Organ Donation to the forefront of public consciousness!!!
Think of it ... when you’re finished with your organs you too can give life to someone else ... all you need do is register on your Driver’s License, tell friends and loved ones of your wish to donate your organs when you’re finished with them ... the rest will fall into place !!!
Cheers & Ciao !!!
Bermuda Bob
My DL has been stamped
My DL has been stamped "Donor" since I was 16. My daughter has had hers done too. I have known many many people, especially KIDS to benefit from this.
Make sure your friends and loved ones know you want to donate....generally someone still needs to consent.
Glad to hear everything is working out for the best for you!
Good News for You
Bermuda Bob...I am personally so happy for you and your successful journey. It is one in a million. You have much to be thankful for and we rejoice in your new found liver and health.I wish you happiness and good health. You have some unfinished business that the man upstairs must want you to complete. God bless you. God bless the person who gave you life.
Not knowing you Bob I am
Not knowing you Bob I am touched by the story I just read and would like to add this. My daughter received her drivers license about 3 weeks ago and for most of us who can't remember they ask you a question before your done and it is would you like to be an organ donar? My daughter looked at me and said I would like to help someone if something happened to me do you mind dad. As a father I was tremdously proud of her for saying that. Just thought I would share.
Welcome back
The gift of life
Bob, words cannot explain how happy we all are to hear that all is well with you and thankful that the liver donor had the foresight to donate his/ her organs. I am blessed with 4 children and each time they went for their first drivers license, I discussed the benefits of filling our the organ donor portion of their license. being teenagers, particularly the 3 boys, they have a feeling of invincibility and probably would not have filled it out had we not taken the time to talk about it. Stories like yours have to told by the rest of us to encourage people to do as your donor did. SPREAD THE WORD PEOPLE.
Fans of Bob
We reached out to Bob this week when we realized his wisdom has been missing from these pages for several months. Yes, it’s an unfortunate story, but it comes with a happy ending, and just the kind of story we can all use about now. Thanks for sharing your adventures in medicine, and putting all of our petty concerns in perspective.
Bob, we look forward to getting you back to 100%. (though 92% might be OK, when you don’t agree with us.)
As for the rest of you, NOW!!! is about the right time to act on your organ donation plans.