“I…look forward to spending more time with my children and my husband. I would be perpetually grateful and appreciative if you could donate a kidney to help me.“

Shifana Rifan

In Need of a Kidney Donor

My name is Shifana Rifan, and I am asking for your help to save my life.

I am a mother of two delightful children, a transplant would provide me with the energy to continue the activity that I cherish most: raising my children, who are 15 and 19, with my husband, who is my heart. Additionally, it would provide me with greater freedom and improved health. Over time, I developed chronic kidney disease, which has squeezed out my healthy kidney function, causing my kidneys not to work well enough to keep me alive on their own much longer. This is what I am facing, and my treatment options are limited to dialysis or a kidney transplant. I am in the process of being tested to be placed on a kidney transplant list. I tend not to talk about my health challenges very often, as it is not a happy topic, and I don’t like to give negative things a lot of focus. I am also not comfortable asking for help. As it turns out, my kidneys show very little interest in where my personal boundaries begin or end. Therefore, I utilize the written word.

My doctors have communicated that widening my search to the general public greatly improves my chances of finding a living donor match. I am an excellent candidate for a kidney transplant in that I am active, healthy, relatively young, and the disease I have will not attack a new kidney. As a young mother of two lovely children, a transplant would offer me better health, more freedom, and the energy to continue to do what I love most: raising my children, ages 15 and 19, with my husband (who is my heart). Living kidney transplants offer advantages over a deceased donor transplant. A kidney from a living donor can last almost twice as long as a deceased donor kidney and provides a lower risk of complications. With over 100,000 people on a waiting list for a deceased donor kidney, the wait will be 6 years or more, and sadly, time is not on my side. After the transplant, I look forward to designing apparel and learning more about sewing and embroidery. I also look forward to spending more time with my children and my husband. I would be perpetually grateful and appreciative if you could donate a kidney to help me.

 
 

I am looking for a living donor. I am asking this of people in all my circles. Living donor transplants generally have better outcomes and can be arranged at a time convenient for both parties. I am compatible with blood type O+. Even if you do not have the same blood type, you can donate as part of a paired exchange program.

The most difficult part of waiting for a transplant is not knowing what the future holds. I hope to live a normal, healthy life and spend more time with my kids and husband. The first step is to contact my transplant center using the information in the box above. The entire process is strictly confidential, and medical costs are covered by my insurance.

Please review existing Living Donor Benefits/Rights to determine which apply to you.

Thank you for considering saving my life.  

With deep gratitude,

Shifana Rifan