Getting Back to Normal
Along a secluded hiking trail traversing Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park on Christmas Eve in 2008, Michelle Widmann’s life changed. The normally athletic young woman strained to catch her breathe. She soon convinced her family that it was just a momentary occurrence, encouraging them toward the scenic vistas overlooking Monterey Bay. Two weeks later on another hike with her friends near Donner Pass, Widmann could no longer ignore her condition. Her friends rushed her to the nearest hospital.
“It was an intervention as much as a rescue,” Widmann began, as she recently shared her story with eighth and ninth graders at Hillsboro Big Picture School. “The sickness came on slowly and I tried to hide it, but in the hospital the doctors knew right away.”
Upon arrival at the Tahoe Forest Hospital in Truckee, California, the doctors quickly discovered what was wrong. As soon as the initial tests came back, the medical team started Widmann on dialysis. What she and her family had presumed might be pneumonia, was actually Berger’s disease. The kidney disease, IgA nephropathy, results in inflammation caused by an antibody, immunoglobulin A. If undiagnosed, it decreases the functions of the kidneys to filter waste.
“They immediately hooked me up to a machine that looked like it made slushies,” says Widmann. She told the youth that the machine was vital to flushing out all the toxins in her blood —a process that is normally performed by human kidneys. During the initial treatments, Widmann revealed the difficulty in adjusting to her new circumstances. While the dialysis was keeping Widmann alive, the side effects came as a shock. She endured migraine headaches and weight fluctuations as much as 10 pounds each week as she attempted to gain back some control of her body.
Widmann’s mother, Bobbi, watching her once dynamic daughter struggling to adapt, responded by building a support network. Bobbi contacted everyone she knew, then expanded her effort to reach others in hopes of finding a living kidney donor. Within seven months, Lenora, an old family friend, found that she was a perfect match and volunteered to donate a kidney to Widmann.
“My mom was a hero,” says Widmann. “She got hold of everyone to help. I’m so thankful for her and my living donor, Lenora.”
Widmann’s doctors scheduled the transplant operation near her home in Sacramento. Everyone began eagerly preparing for the next stage in Widmann’s transformation. Yet, just two weeks before the operation, Widmann’s blood pressure spiked so rapidly that she suffered a seizure.
She told the youth that she still has a scar on her tongue from the incident.
Fortunately, the setback did not deter Widmann. She underwent a kidney transplant on August 8, 2008. Widmann told the youth that some complications forced her back on dialysis for four weeks, but after that, she was no longer tethered to a machine.
Family and friends rallied around her during her recovery. First her mom then her sisters, Jess and Kristi, helped Widmann regain her strength. Reflecting on how the experience had challenged her, Widmann wanted to share her struggles and successes with others. One of her great achievements included serving as a team captain for the Denver Kidney Walk of the National Kidney Foundation in 2015, and encouraging others by speaking at the opening ceremony.
During her recovery, Widmann realized she could no longer practice her career as a cosmetologist. While working, she attended classes, first at the City College of San Francisco, then graduating with an Associate’s degree in business from Front Range Community College in Colorado.
As she grew stronger, Widmann’s perspective on health expanded into both her personal life and work. She began working, taking on increased responsibilities in support of employees and customers.
Widmann’s desire to volunteer also increased. She took on efforts with a micro-loan organization countering poverty, and a foundation that encourages kids to eat healthier.
While Widmann’s work and marriage to husband Bryan would relocate her in the Portland area, she looked for new ways to volunteer. She said finding MIKE “spoke to her heart.”
“MIKE’s mentoring youth program to reach high schoolers is both valuable and important,” says Widmann. She serves on MIKE’s Marketing and Fund Development Committee, as well as volunteering as a guest speaker to share her experiences with MIKE’s youth.
She described to the youth how her diet changed on dialysis and again with her new kidney, hoping to inspire them toward healthier choices. Widmann said she hopes to show others how life’s circumstances can change, yet don’t have to define the individual.
“If someone finds themselves in a similar situation, I hope they will see that there’s light at the end of the tunnel, even if you can’t see past the next day,” says Widmann.
Widmann encouraged the youth to see that her experience didn’t dictate her outcomes and to appreciate the people around who can help.
“I want to share how important your support community is,” she says. “And, even how you can get back to a pretty normal life.”