Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
- A mother from Harvest, Alabama, donated a kidney to her daughter.
- The daughter, De'Azya Blake, had kidney issues since birth and needed help.
- Both now advocate for kidney donations, encouraging others to consider donating.
HARVEST, Ala. — Mothers and daughters are naturally very close, but for one particular duo from Harvest, there's an extra-special bond.
Before she was even born, De'Azya Blake was already having kidney issues. At 6 months old, doctors removed her polycystic kidney. Then, at 5 years old, she had a biopsy.
"And that's when they realized that my kidney, the one that I still had, which was my left kidney, started failing a little bit," Blake said.
And so, her journey started. She took monthly trips and celebrated birthdays at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. She also took eight to 10 pills a day to regulate her levels. It wasn't easy for Blake or her mother, Dimeccia Ford.
"You never knew how it would be until you get to the point where, OK, it's getting worse," Ford said. "You know, we got to decide what we're going to do."
That point came when Blake was 21. Dialysis? Not an option.
"Trying to have conversations with her about dialysis was like talking to this wall," Ford added. "She did not want that at all."
So, they put Blake on the transplant list, and they had family tested for compatibility.
"My mom was like 'Oh, I'll get tested,' " Blake said. "I was like 'Girl, please. Don't do that.' You know, just like what am I supposed to do? You know, all I have is my Mom."
But her Mom was a match. They not only moved forward with Ford donating a kidney to her daughter, but it was also a huge success.
"You wouldn't believe that they had to quiet me down because like an hour or two, after the anesthesia wore off and I was in the back room, I was screaming, and want to get up," Blake said. "It was exciting to me, and it was changing to me, like I feel like a whole new person."
Four years later, Blake is still checking in at Vanderbilt, and her mother still teases her.
"Don't ask for any more Christmas, birthday, any more gifts because that was a major gift," Ford said, with her daughter giggling next to her.
Now, the two spread the word about kidney donations. Their message to anyone considering donating a kidney?
"Think of someone else who could possibly benefit from that, who could live to see another day, who could live and try to be on the journey that you're on, the inspiration you can create for someone else," Blake said.
