A mum with chronic kidney disease has issued a desperate plea for an organ donor on social media – so that she can see her little boy grow up.
Mandy O’Connor, 43, was diagnosed with stage four kidney disease three years ago and although she is not currently on the transplant list, her doctors have promised her she will go on it soon.
But determined to take matters in to her own hands, Mandy, mum to four-year-old Aidan, has taken to Facebook to plea for a donor.
Mandy wrote: “If you or anyone you know could help me, please email me. Please can you post this around to your friends and groups. It’s not just me who needs a transplant but thousands of others.”
And she said that since her post ten people have come forward, offering to be tested to see if they are a match.
Mandy, of Stanley, Co. Durham, said: “The gift of life will mean I can see my four year old grow up. I’ve got no energy. I should be running around with my four year old and doing all the things that mums should be doing.
“It’s debilitating. It’s very depressing because you don’t know what the future holds.”
Mandy, who also lives with partner Graeme Whitworth, spoke of the effect her illness has had on Aidan.
She said: “He will say ‘come play, come play with me’ and I will feel so selfish that I can’t actually get out there and do things with him.
“I don’t know whether I am going to be around to see him grow up. I have got so many fears.”
“The gift of life is a gift for Aidan. I gave him life and and I just want to be there for him growing up.”
There are currently 5000 people on the kidney transplant list, and on average one person dies every day whilst waiting for a transplant.
Mandy is determined to raise awareness of the organ donor register. She said: “If it happens, it happens. Maybe I can’t be helped, but maybe somebody else can be helped.”
Anyone who wants to help Mandy can contact her on mand.oconnor@yahoo.co.uk.
