Wilson's Disease changed my life....

In a matter of a few weeks I went from a normal 19 year old college student to a gravely ill girl. I first started feeling ill when i went home for my spring break march 7-15, 2009. Im, normally a morning person and found myself sleeping in til around 10:30-11:00 everyday. I went on with my every day life just assuming i was tired from exams and stress. The next week i went back to school and still felt really tired all the time. I found myself taking hard-core naps inbetween classes and still feeling tired when i'd wake up. I also started waking up 3 or 4 times in the middle of the night having to pee- and i notice that my pee was very concentrated. Being a track athlete i assumed this meant i was dehydrated and needed to make sure i was drinking more. The next symptom i experienced was loss of appetite. I noticed i wasnt eating as much as normal and alot of foods were making me sick to my stomach..i eventually got to the point that i was really only eating fruits, vegetables, cereal, and drinking white soda to settle my stomach. Wednesday March 25, 2009 i went to our school nurse worried I maybe had Mono. My test for mono and strep came back negative and the nurse became worried i had hepatisis A possibly from eating out at resturaunts at track meets. She did a metabolic scan and called me the next day concerned because some of my liver levels were slightly elevated. She forwarded my results to my doctor at home who then requested I come in right away that day. They did more blood test and concluded that i had all the symptoms of Hepatsis A. They said to drink lots of fluid and get rest and if it got worse to go to the hospital. Over the next 3 days i became more and more tired, my stomach hurt all the time and i started turning more and more yellow. I barely left my dorm bed the whole weekend besides to go to the bathroom. On Monday March 30, 2009 i got up to go to my 8 am class and while walking down the hallway i felt extremely dizzy saw little black dots everywhere and my ears plugged up like i was on a airplane. Scared and sick i went back to bed and called my mom. Worried she came to school to take me to the hospital. I was admitted that evening to the hospital and the doctors were unsure what was wrong with me but they knew it was something more then Hepatsis A. After much blood work the next day i was transfered to Froedtert Hospital because a liver doctor was fairly certain I had Wilson's disease and would need a liver transplant. On April 1st, 2009 i was officially put on the transplant list and given status 1 putting me at the top of the list. I had none of the neurological symptoms of WD which is very rare but the doctors were worried that at any moment i could become neurologically affect. Our only option a transplant and to hope that one came quickly before my illness became worse. Our prayers were thankfully answered and on April 6th,2009 we were informed of a possible liver match. On April 7, 2009 at 6 am a nurse came into my room and informed us the liver was a match and i was to be taken to the OR right away. The surgery was a success- an operation that is expected to take 8-10 hours only took 4 1/2 and i only needed 2 things of blood. I spend about another week and 1/2 in the hospital but everything is going smoothly. My levels were all coming down and within days i was able to get up and walk around. I am now at home on the road to recovery. I take about 20 pills in the morning and 9 at night. My whole life has changed but i am greatful to be alive. I did not include all the details of the hospital but if you would like more please visit my caring bridge website. My family made it for me while i was in the hospital and it tells everything i went through while in the hospital.