Product Description

No one ever wants to hear that they have a disease, especially one as fatal as severe pulmonary hypertension. This book takes readers through Shirley Jewett's experience, providing insight into the ways patients can take responsibility for their health and medical treatments. It is far more than a feel good book about one woman's journey to the other side of a death sentence. It is an instructional manual of survival.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #131029 in eBooks
• Published on: 2006-07-06
• Format: Kindle Book
• Number of items: 1

About the Author
Shirley Jewett can't stop talking about her lung transplant. That's pretty good for a woman who could barely catch her breath before her life-saving operation. This unstoppable lady has become the poster person for organ transplants. She brings the message of inspiration, healing and hope to people with life-threatening illness and their families. She dedicates her time to spreading the word about the importance of being an organ donor.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Chapter Nine: I Receive A Second Chance

Like a klieg light from heaven, a ray of brilliant sunlight beamed down from above, illuminating and filling the room with its radiance. I stared at the sunbeam a while, and then I saw her.

Halo glowing in the sunshine, an angel moved light-footed from point to point without hesitation. A rustling sound emanated from her golden wings. She had white hands and curly brown hair framed her small round head. Dark eyes glanced my way.

"Hi there," flowed from her mouthless face.

"How you doing, Mrs. Jewett?" she inquired and crossed the space between us.

She gently touched my face and swept a lock of hair from my forehead. I felt strangely comforted by her touch as though I needed the solace, but I didn't know why.

"Any pain?" she asked. Feeling none, I rocked my head slowly side to side.

"That's good." she responded as I closed my eyes.

I could hear the alarm. Beep. Beep. Beep. I awoke.

The sunlight still flowed from the ceiling. The angel sat in a far corner of the room with her back to me. Pale hands moved swiftly over a computer keyboard. Suddenly, she stood and walked in my direction, stopping just to my right. Quietly removing an empty bag hanging from a stainless steel pole, she discarded it into a trash receptacle. Without glancing my way, she replaced it with a new full bag of clear solution, and reset the alarm before returning to the computer. I drifted off again.

* * *

"Time to wake up, Mrs. Jewett," a faraway voice beckoned.

I opened my eyes and several golden paper-gowned angels surrounded me. They leaned close. Their strange halos glowed in the light. They seemed to know me. I felt as if they were pleased. Alabaster hands folded across their chests. None had mouths. How can they speak? I wondered and tried to ask.

"Don't try to talk just yet. We took the tube out, but your throat will be sore for a while," the tallest of them replied.

"You're doing great, go on back to sleep," he said. And I did.

The big hand was on the twelve and the little hand on the nine.

Without hesitation an angel, carrying a tray of supplies, passed under the clock, through the tapestry curtain. She deposited her load before she moved to my side.

"Nice to have you back, Mrs. Jewett, " she said. I tried unsuccessfully to touch her. "Sorry, they put restraints on every one, " she explained.

Suspended and frozen in the air, I could not move any part of my body. The angel passed a warm cloth over my face and down my neck. Gently, she brushed my hair back.

"You have very beautiful blue eyes, almost turquoise. Very pretty, " she noted.

Just like my father I tried to say, but the words stuck in my throat. A guttural sound was all I could muster.

"How about a sip of water?" The angel asked.

As she leaned over me, I realized that she wore latex gloves; a blue paper mask covered her face. She must have a mouth underneath it, I reasoned. That's why she can speak. I wondered why she covered her face. "I'm going to raise the head of the bed so you can sip this water. But I'll have to move it back down afterwards," she explained as she pushed a button I could not see.

Okay by me, I thought. Then, just as the head of the bed rose, a knife from nowhere entered my chest and right side simultaneously.

"Wow," I announced. The pain passed as quickly as it had come.

"If you want to say something, I'll get a pen and paper. The doctors don't want you to talk just yet, remember?" she advised as I sipped the water.

I nodded my head up and down, so the angel walked across the room, put down the paper cup of water and returned with a pad of paper and a pen.

With shaking hands, I block printed just one word: ALIVE?

"Alive? Of course you're alive. You are in the Surgical Intensive Care Unit of U.C. San Diego Hospital. My name is Lisa. I'm your nurse. I am taking care of you today. You had a single right lung transplant on Monday. Dr. Kriett did your surgery. Isn't she wonderful? Dr. Yung was here earlier this morning. He said that you're doing great. Your family's been waiting for you to wake up. Your daughter and husband have been here. They are so worried. Today is Tuesday. You slept all day yesterday. Don't you remember?" she explained.

I had a second chance.

Customer Reviews

Awesome book on the realities of transplantation
This is an awesome book and i highly recommend it to anyone wanting to know what it's like to be chronicaly ill.