From Pelvic Congestion to Nutcracker Syndrome: A Therapeutic Kidney Donation Journey

After a few years of progressing, odd symptoms, I finally got diagnosed with Pelvic Congestion Syndrome. From there, I was lucky to see an expert vascular surgeon right away. After a series of testing, I was diagnosed with Nutcracker syndrome as the root cause. I decided to take a couple of months to look at all of my treatment options, as my symptoms worsened. Nothing my vascular surgeon brought up felt right. I personally didn't want an auto-transplant, so I found one of the best NCS transplant surgeons I could find within a days drive of my home state. I traveled from Maine to NYC to meet my doctor, who allowed me to go through the rigorous testing process to donate my kidney. I'm one of the rare few who had the privilege of donating life while curing my own ailments. I hope my positive story and outcome can give others hope for their own recovery. I am back at work, able to be more social, and I can even stay up past 7pm now!