Life and Hope
The Impact of Organ Transplantation on the Human Experience
by
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My illness had made me socially invisible and physically conspicuous. I remember very succinctly walking around my fifth grade playground alone on the cold winter days prior to the spring of 1983. The playground equipment and the adjacent fields were full of cries of children who were screaming and laughing. I was completely detached from that psychotic joy. I could not relate to it on any level. I lived my life in the mental cave that I had created. There was an inexplicable and hopeless futility to it all. The mere act of living had become a chore.. I hated life at school. I hated life at home. I was lonely. I was afraid. I have heard emotionally distraught people be described on more than one occasion and by more than one person as being “broken”. It is far from an insult. I feel that it is an accurate description of the way a person feels to the core of who they are when life has simply become too much. Meaning in life becomes an abstract concept rather than an intrinsic motivator to accomplish and move forward. Having a meaning in life diminishes and dissipates. There is a very deep spiritual connotation to that. Our spirits become broken through unrelenting forces beating down upon us over time and over which there is no perceived control. Our will to move forward in life ceases to exist while our hope evaporates into the vacuous spaces of uncertainty and fear. My illness had alienated me from the enjoyment of life.
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About the Book
At the age of eleven, Mark Greene nearly died. Neither he nor his parents knew that Mark suffered from end stage renal disease; he would need a kidney transplant to survive. Now, more than twenty-six years after his successful transplant operation, Greene tells the story of his survival following that operation.
Currently, there are approximately 170,000 organ transplant recipients in the United States, each with unique stories but sharing the commonality of improved quality of life. In Life and Hope, Greene discusses important principles that will not only contribute to the longevity of organ transplants, but also help recipients continue to improve their overall well-being. He blends personal experience and academic research to both teach and enlighten in a way that brings meaning to organ transplantation.
Greene shares a very personal story about his ordeal with a misdiagnosed illness that nearly took his life and nearly destroyed his family. His story is one of transformation, as he moves from the brink of death to a life full of meaning—a unique story and real-life experience that demonstrates how the organ transplant experience so eloquently contributes to the human experience.
About the Author
Mark A. Greene, an organ transplant survivor, earned a master’s degree in human services and wrote his thesis on medication adherence issues in the transplant population. He lives in central Illinois with his wife, Juli, and their three children.