HEALTH
Fierce Faces of disappointment: Organ Recipients' Inner World
North AmericaThu Jan 30 2025
They say, it is always the ones waiting the longest
who are the most grateful when they finally get what
they've been waiting for. You might expect transplant
recipients to be excited, full of joy and forever thankful.
But it's not that simple. Often, patients feel disappointment
when they first start thinking about a transplant.
Battles are there long before any surgery. There's a big
line between a time when you need a new organ, and
when you need it badly but cannot get it. Difficult discussions begin about whether a person needs an organ badly enough. And all while showing they can take the rough experience.
Imagine living with a body that is failing you and thinking you’re marked with a giant “X– Spit Out".
But you need to think like doctors too, the doctors have
to be cautious who they choose, nobody wants to give their organs to people who die instantly after procedure.
To have a good shot at survival after a transplant might seem a positive thing, But lots of mixed feelings come with it. There are stories about rebirth and the gift of life that paint a very clear picture.
But reality can prove different.
In a situation like this, you might be disappointed because you have checked all the boxes, acted all grateful, and yet your body is just not ready to accept a new part. People who have to wait and keep hoping are never just joyful or thankful.
Also,
Many real transplant stories often overlook the small parade of frustrations. Waiting and hoping in the middle of the night. The problem with this is that it leaves people feeling boxed in. They can’t express disappointment or frustration—it’s like trying to yell when your face is inside a water balloon. It’s not that reactions. It's not that emotions like anger can't happen. It's not that doctors don't care that they do.
Instead they have a huge trade of conversations about this all the time.
This happens mainly in the US. People talk to each other about whether anger is safe nowadays. What's the best way to deal with it? Can you express it? Is it okay to do so? Who will understand?
From the perspective of disability studies, arguing with unhidden emotions reflects on their process.
What they need are productive ways to sort
What are the next steps to making this better?
Fears about attachments. In this situation, maybe it's actually good to think about it be it. What holds such strong feelings?
Their ideas help to challenge negative feelings, direct their investigation better
in direction where one learn more from something.
We can clear the road for a more open journey.
Their eyes are wide open now-Not fear of unknowns lurk in the dark corners.
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questions
Is it possible to thank your organ donor via a cool dance off?
How do the metaphors of 'rebirth' and the 'gift of life' influence the way transplant recipients understand their own experiences?
What are the consequences of suppressing negative emotions like anger among transplant recipients?
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