LaLa Strong

04/22/2026

Just a small update. I’ve been put on the cancellation list for surgery so I can hopefully get an earlier date. They said only one person was ahead of me. I’ve been in more constant pain lately and am ready for some relief.

04/01/2026

Usually I keep this page about me but I feel like this year, today needs to highlight someone that I cherish with my every fiber.
We didn’t know it 3 years ago that I’d never get to have my own babies. I’d never know what a tiny human feels like to grow inside me. Never be called mama. Never get to experience all the pregnant mama things.
I get to be Godmama to a very special girl. Not just that tho, her mama let me be involved in EVERYTHING I could be.
I was one of the first to know Kennedie and Xavier were expecting. Always got ultrasound pictures. Updates from every appointment. Kept posted when anything happened. Was at the 4d scan. Gender reveal. Baby shower. And have been involved ever since. Laney girl is loved beyond words. I am FOREVER thankful for Kennedie and Xavier letting me be so involved. No, Laney girl isn’t mine but I’d do ANYTHING for that precious girl.
So today this page is dedicated to wishing Kennedie the best birthday and trying to show her just how thankful I am for the person she is.

Take a trip from right before we found out Kennedie was pregnant to Laneys first trip to the lake where I met her (I had surgery the day before she was born so I didn’t meet her in the hospital)!

Happy birthday, Kennedie!!

03/25/2026

I don’t know when surgery is yet but the decision was made today that I will have a tubal ligation and we will remove one o***y. 💔

03/24/2026

Usually I pull up to the drs office for an appt, jump out, check in even if I’m early, and get it over with. Not today. Nope today I’m in my car in the silence watching people walk in and out of the building and carrying on with their day. I’m shaking, crying, and trying to take deep breaths.

Nine years I’ve faced the reality of infertility (probably longer if we are being real honest). Not a single step in this process has been easy. None. Of. It.

I used to think about all my nieces and nephews and how being their Lala was absolutely my favorite thing. A part of me always dreamt about giving them a cousin or two to add to the bunch. In reality being a mom was always so much more of a dream and goal than being a wife.

Today is my first of two appointments in making the decision about which surgery I’ll have to deal with a couple of things that I have going on.

03/23/2026

Tuesday and Wednesday this week are bringing big appointments. My anxiety is through the roof and I’m not handling any of it well. Some extra prayers and thoughts would be extremely appreciated this week.

03/12/2026

Today!!

Ask all the kidney questions you have! Let’s talk!

Be a donor!

03/10/2026

Peritoneal dialysis.
I tried this method first in 2015. This is an at home dialysis option. A catheter is placed in the abdomen, with the use of fluids toxins are pulled out of the body that the kidneys can’t get rid of themselves.
This method takes dedication and discipline. It is easier to travel while on this type of dialysis. The catheter hung from my abdomen about 2ft. I’d either have to tape it up or eventually I found a belt specially designed to hold the tubing when not in use.
Peritoneal dialysis comes with a machine, an overwhelming amount of supplies, frustration, alarms, depression, and loneliness.
Another treatment.
Not a cure.
Donate life.
You only need one.

Fun fact-the surgeon that placed and removed this catheter only had one eye. They don’t warn you of that before your consultation with him.

*These photos were taken on a cheap phone in 2015-not the best quality.

03/08/2026

“Emergency Dialysis”
That’s what they told me May 2, 2022. I didn’t know what that meant. The first time around I knew dialysis was coming. I had a fistula placed and there was a plan. Not this time. This time it was a tube placed in the jugular while I was awake talking to the nurses and surgeon. Holding my breath when told. Ultrasound guided. I saw the screen. I watched it cm by cm until it was in the right spot. And straight to dialysis for a treatment. I couldn’t shower with that catheter hanging from my chest. Six months other people washed my hair for me. Six months of tape and gauze and blisters. The tube inside occasionally stabbing my jaw from the inside when I’d eat or talk. It was miserable. Awake again when it was removed. Oh the pressure! Now a scar that often itches. Covered in one of my most cherished tattoos. My life motto from when I started dialysis. “Live Happy”. The second time through dialysis I lived up to that motto with intention. Oh I HATED those tubes but I never let them stop me. I wore outfits that showed them and saw the looks. Answered questions when people would ask.
Dialysis. A life saving treatment. Not a cure. Pain. Depression. Beeping. Blood. Nurses. Fellow warriors.
Be a living donor.
Choose to be a deceased donor.
Donate life.

03/07/2026

03/05/2026

Your strong isn’t my strong and my strong isn’t yours. Don’t compare our journeys they aren’t the same.
I’ve had to be strong because my own kidneys fought against me. I’ve had to be strong because I didn’t get a fair chance. If you’ve had to be strong for any reason, I’m proud of you! Keep going!

03/05/2026

I missed yesterday so I’ll post something later too.
Just getting the word out about kidney health, kidney disease, and all other things kidney.

03/03/2026

They don’t want to get sick so they want the sick to stay home. I don’t want to die so I figured out how to keep myself safe knowing sick people don’t stay home. We are not the same!

This is reality for someone that takes medication to eliminate their immune system so that their body lets them keep their transplanted organ. Transplant is NOT a cure. Transplant IS a treatment. A simple cold could send me into rejection. If I lived in fear of getting sick or blamed others for me getting sick, I’d never leave my house. I learned what I had to do to keep myself from getting sick. Don’t get me wrong, I haven’t been able to keep myself from every germ that’s gone around but I’ve avoided most bugs over the years!

Fun fact: I’ve been more sick and shown more flu like symptoms from a UTI than any bug that’s gone around-stomach or respiratory.

Kidney disease takes a toll on the ENTIRE body. Kidney transplant only gets you off the machine, you’re still sick. Protect your kidneys.