by Jessica Howard
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| Photo by Neil Brake | Kim Hedden gave life to her son, Parker, twice. Not only did she give birth to him, she also gave him a kidney last summer. Parker, now 12, was born with a very rare disease, Prune Belly Syndrome (also known as Eagle Barret), and had only one functioning kidney. The family knew that eventually Parker would require a kidney to survive.
Parker and his mom were both patients at the Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt when the transplant was performed. Kim's room was just two doors down from her son's - adult donors to pediatric recipients stay in Children's Hospital. The pair was hospitalized for less than a week.
"It was wonderful, it was perfect," says Kim, from their northern Alabama home. "I don't think we could have done any better. It's been a drastic change. The burden of the worry is over after 12 years. His energy level is up, he feels so much better and he's eating really well."
Parker, who just returned from a fun-filled week at kidney camp, loves to golf and swim. He'll be a sixth grader at Meridianville Middle School this fall.
"I think it was really cool that my mom gave me her kidney, and it was really nice of her," Parker says. "I have a lot of respect for her."
Adds Kim, "He told his friend that he was very lucky and will always have a piece of me with him. We did everything together, so he didn't feel like he was all alone. It really bonded us in a way most people don't understand."
Kim says her family and friends all have become organ donors because of Parker's experience. Kim's husband, Dale, also matched to donate his kidney to Parker but his blood pressure was too high to donate. After the transplant, he made a fish pond for Kim in the shape of a kidney, to thank her for the gift she gave their son.
"It's so strange how it affected our entire family and our extended family. We have a totally different attitude on everything," she says. |
