 I was really scared of the idea of having a transplant because of the immune suppressants and the long-term side effects. To be on prescriptions for the rest of my life seemed so alien to me at that point. I didn't know if my spirit could take it long-term. So for a long time, I thought, well, maybe I'll just let nature take its course and I'll die in my 50s. You know, that's the way it's going to be. I had a nephrologist who said I had about 10 years before I was facing end-stage renal failure.