My Story

I’m writing this to share my experiences having a liver transplant. I became extremely sick over the course of about a month, had no idea what was wrong with me, and had no earlier signs of liver failure. Since my transplant I’ve been fascinated by what happens to your mind and body before and after a transplant, and how recovery works. The idea of a liver transplant had never entered my mind until my friend, a doctor, told me I was jaundiced and that all of the possible reasons why were bad news. Even now, several months out from my LT, I’m not straight on everything that happened during my two months in the hospital. I still find little scars that I don’t remember.

I write about my physical health, what’s going on with me mentally, and memories I have from my stay in the hospital.

Brian Baker 3/30/25 Brian Baker 3/30/25

Research

I’ve been putting together a list of the research and writing about liver transplantation that has helped me the most. It’s very short so far, but I’ll keep adding to it as I see new things of interest. I would love recommendations.

Brian Baker 3/25/25 Brian Baker 3/25/25

Ups and Downs

I’m still feeling better, though some days are better than others. Yesterday I was feeling a bit better and drove down the hill to Staples to buy some bubble wrap. I wanted to get my car washed, but the line was long enough that I didn’t stop.

Brian Baker 3/21/25 Brian Baker 3/21/25

Better?

I’ve been home from the hospital for about a week now, and I’m finally starting to feel a little better. I was there for about a week, and had four rounds of thymoglobulin to treat the kidney rejection. Each round was either six hours or eight hours…

Brian Baker 3/9/25 Brian Baker 3/9/25

Kidney Progress

I’m home from having a kidney transplant. Everything went as well as possible, and the new kidney is doing great. My numbers are all coming into place, and most are already in the normal range. My creatinine is…

Brian Baker 6/5/24 Brian Baker 6/5/24

Journal Entries III

I’m now about nine months out from my transplant, and while I thought I’d be much jauntier by now, I’m still hobbling around. My recovery has been slow and all over the place.

Brian Baker 5/8/24 Brian Baker 5/8/24

Journal Entries II

I had a lot of hallucinations and saw a lot of things that probably weren’t there when I was sick. When I first got to the hospital in Santa Barbara I was feeling okay. My stomach bothered me off and on, but I mostly just had yellow skin, and otherwise felt and acted normal.

Brian Baker 4/24/24 Brian Baker 4/24/24

Journal Entries I

Yesterday I had trouble getting around. Everything hurt—my legs, my hips, my ankles, wrists. We went to my aunt and uncle’s for a graduation party for my cousin about two hours south. It was great—I just didn’t feel good.

Brian Baker 4/10/24 Brian Baker 4/10/24

Getting Sick

A few days before Christmas my older sister and her two kids came to visit from up north. The night she stayed with me she launched into me after her kids went to bed: “You need to see a doctor! Right away!” I had no idea what she was talking about.

Brian Baker 3/28/24 Brian Baker 3/28/24

Where Things Started

I’m 45, and I rarely thought about having a serious illness before my liver issues. I’ve known for a long time that something will eventually get me—that happens to all of us, hopefully in old age—but I didn’t see anything affecting me in the near future.