In 2023, my life changed in a way I never saw coming.

I had an emergency C-section 5 weeks early after my body went into distress—what we didn’t know at the time was that my kidneys were already under extreme strain. During recovery, I wasn’t getting better, and after more testing, I was diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease at Stage 3.

Since then, it’s been a fight to keep going.

I returned to school after a year of testing and treatment and completed my Physical Therapist Assistant program while managing my health, working part-time, and raising my daughter without nearby family support. Along the way, I developed severe anemia and needed 10 iron infusions just to have the energy to get through daily life.

Today, I’m at Stage 4 kidney failure with only 28% function. My condition is progressing, and once I reach 20%, I’ll begin the process for a kidney transplant and start searching for a donor—likely within the next year.

After transplant, I’ll need to temporarily relocate near the hospital for close monitoring, which will bring significant financial strain on top of everything else.

This journey has taken me from running two Boston Marathons and completing an Ironman… to struggling through an 8-hour workday due to fatigue and pain from enlarged kidneys.

I’m sharing my story not just because it’s hard—but because it’s real. Polycystic kidney disease changes lives quietly, and many people don’t realize how serious it can be until it progresses.

If you’re able to support, share, or even just learn more about kidney disease, it means more than I can say.