Tammy’s Kidney
Click here for more on this story in the Federal Way Mirror December 31, 2008
http://www.pnwlocalnews.com/south_king/fwm/lifestyle/36853614.html
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My name is Tammy (Dalke) Aegerter. My family includes a great husband and
seven precious children, a wonderful family that loves me very much I am in total kidney failure and in need of a second
kidney transplant after the one my brother lovingly and selflessly gave me
almost 18 years ago. I have less than 10% kidney function left and need a
transplant now. Thank you for reading my story and if you have any
interest in transplantation you can follow the link on this website or call
one of the numbers listed for confidential information. Any information
or tests preformed are confidential and no one will know of your inquiry,
including me, due to HIPPA law. Tammy’s transplant will take place at the University
of Washington Medical Center. Tammy is a candidate for the UWMC living donor
program. Those interested in the live
donor program can anonymously contact the hospital at 206-598-3627. For more information you can click on this link: UWMC
Living Donor Program You can email Tammy at:
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A Mom, a Sister, a Fighter
Kate Brewster
Dishes
clatter in the sink while two boys argue about whose turn it is to load the
dishwasher. “Just remember, everyone’s stuck in the kitchen till it’s done,”
shouts Tammy Aegerter, a referee and mother of seven kids. Like most moms,
Tammy’s typical day is filled with rowdy children, running errands and putting
dinner on the table by five, just like normal. Waking up at 7am every morning,
she makes breakfast, wakes the kids, and starts them on their homework. Her lawn
is littered with toys and most days, the carpet doesn’t get vacuumed. “It can
get frustrating,” she says “I don’t always have the energy to clean.” These
could be the words of any mom, but Tammy is a little different. She has kidney
disease. Some of her “normal” days include the unexpected trip to the hospital
or the surprise visit to the ER.
Tammy Aegerter, a mom and a teacher, has an unusual illness known as
rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis (RPGN), a disease affecting the kidneys’
ability to function at normal capacity, creating the need for a transplant. Her
first transplant kidney was donated by her brother after she lost both of hers
to the disease at age 17. While kidney disease itself is common, “The incidence
of rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis is 7 reported cases per 1 million
persons per year” , so Tammy is rather a special patient. The disease affects
males and females at an equal rate and tends to affect Caucasians more often
than other races. While the reason for this remains unknown, it holds little
comfort for families like Tammy’s. RPGN prevents her kidneys from filtering
waste at a sufficient rate.
Ironically, the story begins in college. Attending Washington State
University at the age of 17, Tammy woke up with a high fever and general
squeamishness the morning after a party. “I thought maybe it was a hangover,”
she says, “But then my boyfriend told me hangovers don’t usually come with a
fever.” After a quick trip to the emergency room the hospital called to tell
her that her creatinine levels were incredibly high, reflecting the toxins
running rampant through her body. “That’s when I flew home.”
Not long after her return, it was clear Tammy would need a transplant,
but where to find one? Finding matching donors for a kidney can be incredibly
difficult, requiring more than just matching blood type. Fortunately, Tammy’s
brother Eric never had any doubts. “We always shared everything else,” says
Tammy, “We played tea party, and I would call him ‘Tuttins’.” Tammy says she’ll
never forget the moment her brother offered her his gift. “I remember it
exactly,” she says, “He was only 15. He came in and said, ‘I already talked to
Mom and Dad. God gave me two good kidneys so I could give you one.’ And that
was it.” That was January of 1991. Less than a year later, the siblings lay on
the operating table. Just before they went in, Eric turned to his sister and
said with a smile on his face, “I’ll see there or in the air.” They went
through the transplant the way they’ve been through everything else: together.
Since then, Eric and Tammy have only grown closer. Living about thirty
miles apart, they see each other when their hectic schedules allow. Being
homeschooling parents with jobs and spouses makes it difficult but fun
nonetheless. “We’ve always been close, even today,” says Eric. They share two long, curving scars,
testimonies of their commitment. Both of
them continue to lead normal lives, having kids, getting jobs, and eating
hamburgers…. until now.
In December of 2006 Tammy gave birth to her youngest son, Haakon.
“[That] was when we started to notice things weren’t right,” she said, “We’ve
been looking [for a kidney] since then.” This is where the struggle really
begins. After Haakon was born, glomerulonephritis returned with a vengeance. In
desperate need of a transplant Tammy’s one kidney is at less than 12%
functionality. The idea is to keep it
there. If it gets much lower, increased blood pressure and raised creatinine
levels will become a danger. “One the scariest times,” Tammy recalls, “was when
I couldn’t control my core body temperature. Your blood pressure spirals up and
down. It can be very frightening.” As a natural result of kidney disease and
the strain of waiting, Tammy constantly battles low energy and depression.
“That’s probably the hardest part. You can’t control it and you start to
worry.”
Thankfully, for a mom like Tammy, her children give her little time for
fear and self pity. Having chosen to home school, Tammy teaches three grades
and tries to run her house at the same time, a daunting task for any
woman. The inability to get out of bed
on any given day only makes it more difficult. “On a good day, I get up at
seven and take of the kids,” she says. Then come what Tammy calls her “sick
days.” Although the handful of drugs she takes does slow it down, these days of
low energy and short patience are getting more frequent. “It comes in cycles,”
she smiles, “sometimes I feel great, but then I’m too sick to function.” Often,
she forgets to eat. “It’s hard to remember when you’re throwing up,” she says,
laughing.
It’s moments like this when the kids jump in to help. Tammy says she
puts all the clothes in piles then everyone helps fold them. “Hannah’s good at
folding,” Tammy says, referring to her ten year old, an exuberant girl with
golden hair matching her mother’s. All
the kids are expected to help with the mundane tasks that generally fall to
Mom. “I have to clean the bathroom a lot more,” says Max, a thirteen year old and
the eldest of the kids still living at home, “she used to help me clean my
room, but now I clean it.” Inside the small brown house, everyone pitches in,
vacuuming the halls and cleaning the kitchen so Tammy doesn’t have to. “We help
clean Mommy’s room too because she can’t do it by herself,” Hannah explains.
For Tammy and the rest of her family, it’s the little things that
matter. When asked what they wanted to do when their mom got better, the
Aegerter kids picked basic, everyday activities. Noah, a twelve year old boy
with a strong personality, just wants to go swimming. “I pray every night, “he
says with hope in his voice. While most children wish for Disneyland and
ponies, these kids just want their mom to be healthy. “Maybe when Mom gets
better, we can all go rock climbing!” says Max.
