My Story

On July 20, 1995, I was born, (arguably the greatest day in history). Unfortunately, five days later, on July 25, 1995, my life got a bit messy. When my parents realized I had a fever, they raced to get me back to the hospital. There they received the news that I had Multi-cystic Dysplastic Kidney Disease, a condition where neither of my kidneys functioned properly. The doctors told my parents that I was going to need dialysis to survive.
The next year, on July 3, 1996, my mom, God bless her, donated her kidney to me. It was a life-saving gift, and I can only imagine the feels my dad would’ve felt during the surgery. With the transplant, I was given another shot at life. Though I had sooooooo many medications daily (I used to say that 20 pills a day keeps the doctor away), I was lucky to have a pretty normal childhood.
Alright so, fast forward to February 17, 2021, when I received not so great news. I was feeling AWFUL and had some bad test results. They told me to come in for a kidney biopsy. Drum roll please… acute kidney failure!! I was not a happy camper. The doctors tried steroids to bring back the kidney, but no luck. I didn’t even get way better at baseball. 😔 By February 22, 2021, it became clear that the medications weren’t cutting it, so I was put on hemodialysis.
Now, four years later, I’m still on dialysis. It’s no more fun than it was on day 1.

Throughout my journey, I have witnessed the faithfulness of God, knowing that countless individuals have prayed for me over the years. While some days really, really suck, and I know more challenges are coming; I’m still grateful for God’s grace and the support of my family and friends.
I really need a new kidney. It’s a life or death matter for me. It will make a huge difference in my day to day life. Please consider beginning the process to become a donor. Also pray for me as I navigate the stress, anxiety and complexity that comes along with transplantation.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.
– Josh Bostrom