Even after battling heart issues for 18 years, Amanda and her husband, Barkley, now face one of their most challenging battles as her health has rapidly declined over the past 6 months. She went into rejection of her transplanted heart after an unfortunate course of events out of her control, in late summer of last year. This led her to seek frequent care in Houston from her transparent team. After two months in the hospital over the holidays, they eventually relocated to Houston in the spring. This move was to be closer to the hospital that was better suited to monitor her failing health. She has been hospitalized multiple times after her long admission, for the insurmountable fluid she began to retain from her now-failing heart. She was considered for another heart transplant by her team, but eventually denied because of the complexity of her case and prior multiple surgeries, further complicating things.

She was referred to two hospitals, one local and Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville, one of the nation's top heart transplant hospitals. The couple went to Tennessee to have Amanda evaluated for a second heart transplant as a backup plan. There was no way for them to relocate and maintain their ever-needed insurance. They returned to Texas with a plan to seek care at the hospital in Houston that had been referred. It was months before the hospital could evaluate her and consider her case. Amanda's heart failure only worsened, and she was hospitalized immediately upon returning to Texas. So, when Vanderbilt called with approval for her to be listed via their top transplant program, they were left with little choice but to transition her health care to Tennessee. Their approval for a second transplant came with a stipulation: Amanda was to return to Tennessee immediately to be admitted to the hospital until a new heart could be found.

The stay in Nashville will be determined not only by the wait for a new heart but by the new team’s requirements to stay local after the transplant, which has been advised to be from six months to a year. The wait for a new heart is difficult to determine. It will likely be months, given the high antibody levels from rejection, which significantly limits the selection of a new heart. Barkley has arranged with his employer to take a two-week on, two-week off continuous leave of absence, which will allow him to maintain some income and their all-important insurance benefits, as well as spend time with Amanda while she is hospitalized. This transition, over 1,000 miles away from their home, occurring shortly after a previous relocation, coupled with the loss of income and the need for another residence for upwards of a year, has put a tremendous financial strain and burden on them.

Amanda’s heart issues engulfed the majority of her twenties and thirties. Before Amanda’s transplant, Barkley blogged about her health issues for nearly ten years. After the transplant, they sought to take their followers with them in the good times, too. After the gift of life, she and Barkley set out to travel and make up for lost time; to take her new heart where it may have never been. Trying to make up for lost time, they began traveling the states and visiting many National Parks, and even took up hiking, an impossibility prior to the transplant. It was while on her fourth “heartiversary” trip that they received the devastating news of the rejection. As Amanda’s health issues arose again, Barkley journaled about the medical side of things once again. You can follow their journey on their website, UnabandonedHeart.com. If you would like a more in-depth overview of Amanda’s health journey, check this medical journal post out: From the Beginning to Change of Heart 2.0

Amanda and Barkley have faced their fair share of trials in life, and they would say that what got them through was God and their faith in Jesus. It is best summarized by Amanda's words via a requested letter from her pastor to share with her church family in a message on faith:

“Last Friday, I turned myself in - surrendering my freedom for a better chance at a new life. We had to put complete faith and trust in God to pick up and move over 1,000 miles away from everyone and everything that we know and love. We came to Nashville with a plan, and when we arrived things took a drastic turn. It has been a grueling week of testing, intense discussion, and more emotions than I can even begin to describe.

I have prayed more this last week than I have in a long time. I remember lying in a MRI machine and just kept pleading with God for them to be able to gather the information that they needed to allow us to move forward. I couldn’t understand why God would give us such a clear path with door after door being opened, just for us to arrive and be faced with such uncertainty. As the week went on, we continued to be challenged more and more - physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. On Friday morning, we sent out an urgent request to our prayer warriors - we didn’t know what to do other than pray and ask others to come alongside us. Within a couple of hours, our prayers were answered when I received a phone call saying that I was officially ready to be listed for a heart transplant.

I don’t know how people face times of turmoil without a relationship with Jesus Christ. I found myself so worked up over all of the challenges that we continued to face, that I had forgotten to just release it all to Him. I allowed fear to creep in. But we don’t have to live afraid, because we have a faithful God - a God whose faithfulness frees us from fearfulness. Psalm 116:7 says, “Let my soul be at rest again, for the Lord has been good to me.” When we find ourselves consumed with fear, we can reflect on the way He has been faithful to us in the past, and rest assured that He will be faithful again.”