So I am reaching my ten years being on dialysis... 

I've been a renal patient for twenty six years and I would say the majority of it was fine as I had transplants when I was young but sadly my second kidney transplant of five years failed when I was 21 what came as a shock at the time as I didn't believe my kidney had stopped working. I at the beginning was making the decision of not going to do dialysis what meant I would of died but I was in sound mind and happy with my decision but then my family came and pleeded I at least gave it a try and so I said yes. I done a year of dialysis in Glasgow what was pretty rocky as I was pretty ill. I eventually after a year had to move home as I was so unwell and home is where your family is and my family were living in North Wales and moving there I was transferred to Bangor hospital renal unit and as soon as I walked in the door I got asked did I want to do home haemodialysis, what I didn't know was an option. Training flyed by and sticking dialysis needles (pitch forks) in yourself takes a second to get your head around but being home meant I wasn't stuck going in to a unit three times a week. 

I got home but I was still extremely unwell mentally and physically and I was having to call an ambulance at least once every week at one point and I eventually was diagnosed with Encapsulated peritoneal sclerosis 2011 what is a rare condition of the sack what keeps all  your organs protected (peritoneal) was sticking to my bowl and twisting it up and the pain was unreal. I made the huge decision to go forward with the operation 2012 what had a 20% mortality rate done elective and 50% emergency but the idea of dying didn't bother me. It was a six hour enital operation what was a success. It was a six months in hospital and six operations in total over a two year recovery. 

Finally got back on my feet after all that and had a really big seizure 2014 what threw me back in to a bad place with health and wasn't till going to Australia 2016 as have family over there that I finally managed to get over my anxiety and severe depression and I remember the moment it was as I was doing a skydive and falling to the ground at speed what is Just incredible I seen how big the ground was and how small I was in it and why was I letting anxiety stop me from living and enjoying life as yes I'm still on dialysis but I'm traveling in Australia (I'd just been to the great barrier reef) and now I was falling out of a plane at speed and by the time we landed I had a new out look to life. I came back from Aus a new man and I climbed snowdon and done my first public speaking at an annual dialysis conference in Manchester and from there I met one of my good friends who had been on dialysis many years but you couldn't tell by her life and she done nocturnal dialysis. So eight hours dialysis slow over night and my unit had tried a good three years before and I wasn't having it as back then I wanted to do the bare minimum of dialysis so when I asked my team in Bangor about trying nocturnal it totally floored them. I started it and the difference you feel is incredible as actually having energy on dialysis is something I never thought possible. 

2017 I got totally Involved with the kidney world and started doing alot of volunteering and joined up with kidney Wales and they offered me the position of being the North Wales patient advocate. What I am now full time with the charity and want to raise money for them as I see the great things we can do to help renal patients in Wales. 

So ten years on dialysis what I never thought I was going to make as up to 2016 it was a very dark time and I had it in my mind that when I hit my ten year mark I was stopping dialysis as then no one could of said I didn't try as now I can see me living till I'm old and grey on dialysis as I'm no longer a prisoner of the machine and just existing I'm actually living and so well that I also made the huge decision to take myself off the transplant list as I don't want to take the gamble of going for a third kidney and being unwell with it as sadly that can happen and at this moment in time my health is great and I know we're I am with it. That's why I thought to do a wing walk as what shows that your living life more than to do something that can seem totally insane lol what sums me up perfectly. I'll be doing my Wing Walk in Oct and I can't wait as being strapped to the wings of a plane sounds incredible to me and also doing this means I don't need to do some crazy run to celebrate that I live life to the full.