Hello and welcome to the gifted life podcast where we have conversations about organ tissue and eye donation and transplantation You can always find us at the gifted life dot org. I'm where you steal. I'm Sarah Blake warm and I'm Susanna Roddick. That's new.
Wow To the live podcast No, it's not my first trip with you, but it is my first time in this amazing studio We are so glad that you're here. We have a great episode coming up all about eye donation month You know a little bit about that. Yes, I actually worked in the eye of banking industry before moving to low pot couple months ago So she moved to low, but we got her. Yeah, we're so excited to have you.
Thank you I'm glad to be part of this big family. All right, so we'll explore that on this episode Sarah, what are you talking about? So you're gonna talk about how to take care of ourselves through emotional first aid emotional first I like that I like those words together. All right, all that more right here on the gift of life.
You guys ready? Yeah, let's do it Here on the gifted life podcast. We are talking about eye donation month, which is why miss Susanna Roddick has joined us of Lopa How are you? I'm great.
How are you guys doing today? Good. I heard about her background on this era. Yeah, where'd you work?
Before you worked at Lopa. I was at Southern I-Banc. That's the one of three I-Banc's in the city Louisiana But we managed the Greater New Orleans area and now I'm with the Lopa team. Yes, I'm so passionate about donation in general and when we talked about eye donation month We thought how perfect and then you have a connection to our guest which is which is even great So we have lots to get to we want to introduce you to our newest friends But you want to take the reins and tell us?
Absolutely. So today we have the pleasure of having Kevin Cochran on the phone with us He is the president and CEO of EBA. That stands for the I-Banc Association of America. Kevin.
How are you today? I am just great Susanna. I'm great. That's such a pleasure to be able to discuss eye donation month with you So tell us a little bit about eye donation month.
Sure. Thank you We have been celebrating eye donation month since 1983 It is a commemoration that was recognized by President Ronald Reagan And it is our opportunity to bring more attention to the work that is done by eye bankers and by physicians to recover prepare and then Transplant corneal tissue to provide to restore sites people who are either blind or initially impaired because of diseases or injuries for their cornea Well, we love the plans that you guys have have come up with and the new theme like we were just sitting here and it led to a Conversation about this is this is right like we think you guys are right on track So the new theme is a community of compassion and I kind of want you to delve into that a little bit and tell us why you chose that And why it's so important to be at the forefront with that message The eye-making world is like any major undertaking there are a lot of people that are involved in the process and we didn't want to Leave anybody out the fact is that from the very beginning the process starts because either an individual who's died or their family members says Yes, we want to donate this morning We want to provide the tissue in order to restore the site and then their countless F who work within the eye banks Recover this issue to evaluate it and to then prepare it for the surgeon the surgeon performs the surgery So there's an entire surgical team for that and then all the other people are involved in them in the broader community Folks within the eye banking with a return in organizations and tissue banks who raise awareness So that individuals know that there is the opportunity to donate people within the hospitals where we're doing the recovery of corneal tissue Oh who will sometimes be sometimes the first people introduce the idea of being a cornea donor or an organ and tissue donor as well To the family, so there's a lot more than just moving it at that issue from a donor to a recipe We wanted to recognize everybody and so that's where the community part comes in the compassion part comes in is the fact that this is all an altruistic gift This is we're gonna be hearing the story of Nia and her daughter Zoe Aolani who was her donor aolani and her family didn't know goey But when their daughter died when a lot of cuts away they made the decision to make this kind of make this donation And it is all this altruistic gift and it comes out of compassion and the sense that we are all together And it's important to be able to share whatever we can to improve the lives of those around us Yeah And you mentioned I mean it truly is a gift of compassion and you know a lot of people don't think about how critical it is Our eyesight and so we have a mom on the line with us. We're gonna introduce Miss Nia who is Zoe's mom And she's gonna tell us how important the gift of sight truly is hi Nia. Hi.
How are you guys? We're doing good. How you doing? I'm doing good.
Thank you Nia We are looking at this picture of this super sweet Zoe with this I can't help it smile when you're looking at this baby And I'm so excited to learn just her her milestones where we are now And then where your family was with donation when you learned that this was gonna be your path. Yes, she's actually doing incredible She started pre-k this year. Yeah, she was excited to start I don't think she really understood what that meant But when she really got into the groove of it She's excited to come home and tell me about her friend and all her teachers and she actually is also playing T ball I can see that. I mean that is amazing.
Yeah, so it's a lot of fun It's really neat to see just how well she is doing and you can't help but to think about all this when she is playing that if she Never received that amazing donation from a along family where she would be today So tell me Nia what was Zoe's disease that made her need a corneal transplant So Zoe was born with something called a peters anomaly which apparently to Describe to me. It was that her cornea just fully wasn't formed in the womb when I delivered her. Wow, that's that's Unheard of I don't think many of us have heard of that. So Nia how was Zoe diagnosed with peters anomaly?
So about a week after we left the hospital after she was delivered we got in contact with Dr. Bowman through Zoe's nutrition and we saw him about a week and half after her appointment her first Check appointment and to him. He had seen so many of her cases from within the hour that we were there He was able to diagnose her and fully explain what was going on and how it happened and what he thought our next step should be So you as a mom you have this beautiful baby. What's going through your mind?
Did you know about donation? Were you familiar with it? Was it a positive for you? Oh my gosh a thousand things It I was I was positive in the sense of knowing that Dr.
Bowman was very confident in telling me what he thought we should do and how How well she would do but I honestly I was very scared knowing that she was going to have to go through a transplant surgery I mean before Zoe nobody and you know We are my headless side had ever had to have this type of surgery So we were both kind of just blindsided and didn't really know what to think we just wanted to do what was best for Zoe But dr. Bowman really really helped us take comfortable and confident through the whole thing So there's a little bit of fear but a lot more confidence through it all Yep, and so she received her gift of sight received her coronal transplant and you met the donor's family correct? Yes We did we did that was a very emotional very much. Don't we get and how did that process get started?
So I actually received a letter from the I Bank from Mr. William Timmons Explaining to be what was going on explaining that the donor's mother just wanted to send me a letter and kind of tell me her backstory about her family and her daughter And so once I said that was okay. I received a letter from her I believe a couple days after and then started the process of if we were okay with meeting them and if they're okay with meeting us And once everybody agreed it was about it's probably about a month and a half later that we all got to get together in four weeks Oh my goodness I'm looking at a Elani's picture as well Kevin I know that that you're still with us I donation month that word is like a one-stop shop is that where they can see these photos as well You guys have to see these photos if you're listening to this story Exactly I donation month that work is our website It has a number of tools that we provide to our I banks and the hospitals and others to use during the month of November But it also has a video that we put together telling Zoe story and a lot of men is a lot as a me and also Sorry in the video about meeting Rosie who was a one-piece mom and how there was this kind of immediate connection between two of them So we've done these videos for I have donation month in the past But this is the one that everybody tears up just seeing this you know four-year-old girl who's reading a book Is ready to go to school and you can just see how how this transforms her life and gave her the opportunity that Had she not got the transplant she died at a pen Such great story great campaign me I can hear the love and your voice and gratefulness as a mom so a Elani or meeting the family tell me kind of what's going through Your mind what's going through your heart and then what do you know? What do you want us to know about a Elani from your perspective?
Honestly when I first walked out to her all I wanted to do was hug her because even though it's such a good thing for me It just crumpled me to remember my daughter received the donation But it took another mom losing her baby to get me there and that is something that I always keep with me And just always it just it just aches at my heart So I want the first day I saw her I just wanted to hug her But I wanted to give her I guess appropriate space so that she didn't she wasn't overwhelmed or didn't feel uncomfortable So I kind of just let her come to the but it was really really sweet to see how instantly Zoe took to her mom She just let her hold her to the whole ceremony and it was sweet because her Elani's mom Rosie just sat and stared at though with a whole time and I couldn't help but think she just was you know Missing her daughter and seeing her through Zoe and it was it was a really really heartwarming experience And she shared beautiful stories about her daughter and how she loves a place for and play with her brothers And she sent me lots of pictures and she was a really really sweet girl What a powerful story donation has this beautiful Ability to bring families together that may have never known each other if it wasn't for donation Kevin I have a question for you. How many trans men take place in any given year give or take? So in 2019 we provided over 50,000 Cornias are transplanting in the United States and that's 100% of the demand so they we're fortunate that we have a adequate supply of corneal tissue here in the United States We don't have waiting for so they have for organ just because organs are recovered under different circumstances There are a lot fewer people that are eligible to be organized pretty much everybody's eligible to be a cornea donor And in fact after fulfilling the demand here in the United States We provided over 28,000 tissues for transplant overseas most of the rest of the world doesn't have the same capacity that we have So they do have shortages and we provide tissue whenever we can to help out in other countries I love this story I don't a Shmoop.org for more Kevin I want to talk to you a community of compassion when you film that story when you see these two families together I mean that's got to inspire you your staff just the community. I mean look what's happening Nowhere else you get to go to a job where when people ask you what you do you can say well I you know I work at an association and my members make blind people see and that's the local stuff.
So it really does Make us all very clear on the value of the work that we do and helps us You know work harder at it because you know that you're making such a significant impact on the lives of the people that you serve Right and Miss Mia, how are you involved in the community of compassion? You know I try to I actually went to those school about a week ago and they were having a Assembly through you know learning their bodies and different things going on and her teacher actually asked me to come in and talk about Zoe guys And so we need to get to share the story with the staff members and how important it is You know it's for the kids to always stay healthy and you know taking and eating the correct things in order to keep their You know their bodies moving and growing in the right direction So we need to get to share that and teach how Zoe came up and got what she got and helping if anybody had any questions to be able to provide them You know people for them to get in contact with for things in that direction So you've really taken this as an opportunity to to share your experience and impact have an impact about donation in your community Yes, absolutely. Thank you. We need we need more people like you Another question for you since we are living in the year that we are now how is a covid affecting eye donation and transportation?
We were hit very hard at the beginning of covid When we we've asked our items and we have them on the regular basis of how they are coping with with COVID-19 And what we found is that in March April when they transplant activity was one to five percent of what it had been prior to the virus basically all elective surgeries were shut down and because In many cases cornea transplants are considered elective surgeries the only time we were doing transplants were for emergencies Somebody had an accident or anything else where their cornea was injured We have since recovered and we're pretty much at full capacity now Maybe a little bit off maybe like 10% off while where we ordinarily would be But that means that there are a lot of people that have been waiting longer than they ordinarily would to get their site restored And one of the challenges we have with corneas is that we can hold the cornea for all we can keep the cornea for about two weeks from the time We recover them from the time we played so while there have been donors available It's not this is not a cornea's or something that we can just inventory and you know recover them in June and know that we're gonna need to transplant October so we have to use them fairly quickly or else they're no longer viable so we have had a significant impact but we are I guess that Getting back up to normal and are able to serve our communities with that You talk about that community of compassion we've heard from our volunteers her grateful that our staff through COVID is able to still function and still want to do it And still have that passion that drives so that's kind of what I hear from you to Neo while we have you if you had to describe eye donation to someone how would you do it? Oh gosh? I don't feel like there's a perfect word for it There's so many but if I had to pick one I would say everlasting You know as far as as far as the transplant itself to getting to meet the donor family I mean something that you want to forever and every time so we learn something new or she said something new or she does something You it grows it grows my heart into my answer because I know that because of the I make association and because it belongs family So we at a point in her life today because of all of those people and I'm so grateful We just love you Nia. I love this little story.
All right So is Nia is Zoe Red Sox fan? Musicia is a red Sox jersey what's going on? Dad is a huge red Sox fan and right now she's in the state of my key theme like you Never one day Oh my goodness, she absolutely loves it. Well, we love it.
We love the story. Kevin. We love the campaign a community of compassion building hope restoring site changing lives I donation month org Kevin any final words for those who may be out there and thinking about I don't nation But haven't registered just yet. I think I mean I think Nia and and Zoe are absolutely the best Catalyst for causing people to register to be a donor or if they find themselves in the situation with a family member where they're at To authorize the donation that they want to do so It is such a tremendous opportunity to change the lives of other people and it because you're making the donation after you've passed away It costs you nothing.
It takes no effort except to simply say you want to give a piece of yourself for someone else and know that Honestly Nia use the word beautifully that ever last and you can never laugh get the transform from else's life Beautiful guys if you haven't I donation month.org you've got to see these pictures These are precious folks that really speak to restoring site and the jobs that we do try to make life happen So check that out I donation month dot org. Thanks Kevin. Thanks Nia Here on the gifted life we take a moment for mental health So Sarah what are we gonna talk about today? All right today?
We are gonna talk about a really interesting topic that was brought up by guy When she was a psychologist So guys what do you do when your kid falls down and gets a scratch and it's like freaks out next what do you do to help him? Number one I shriek and say are you okay? Are you okay? Just a media panic run?
Yes, Susanna What do you do? I actually have the opposite reaction because I have a toddler so I know that if I say calm she says calm Yeah, so my reactions take a deep breath and then deal with it Yeah, and so how you deal with it is you clean you bandage it you do basic first aid on your kid We know how to deal with physical injuries in this country right in this world really do we know how to deal with our psychological injuries? Well, you just heard I do not yes So this is this is more of a conversation to say we know what to do when you break a leg You go to the doctor they have a treatment But why don't we talk about what happens when we sustain psychological injuries? Why isn't that as important as physical injuries good because the truth is it is and we have so much research that backs that Sustaining the psychological issue if you don't treat it it will linger and get worse It will create other problems in your life So we need to start focusing more on how to respond to our psychological injuries.
So with that being said I like what you did there I like this you like it. Yeah, this is a really good topic and you know It's not actually new literature, but I'm really excited to talk about it today because it's very very Needed right now So what are some psychological injuries failure loss guilt rumination? These are all things that are injuries to our psyche that are treatable and that are manageable and we can cope with them and if we Recognize them first and foremost then we can deal with them and that's the main point I want to talk about is recognizing when you're feeling a huge stress Recognizing when you are rejected and that hurts you and how to handle it because knowing that it's just as important as if you break Your arm is the first step well I think it'll self reflect. Yes, give me a checklist Yes, so what does failure do to us?
What kind of psychological injury? So what it really does all of these really is it changes our perception of the way we see the world and how the world sees us in our own minds So you know if you fail at something you begin if you don't treat that failure in that psychological injury What'll happen is you'll begin to take less chances underperform on purpose loaded confidence Yeah, it's a blow to confidence But if you instead recognize that failure happens sometimes and take it as a learning moment That's treating your psychological injury so that you will challenge yourself and succeed and not be afraid to try new things The next one which is I think very relevant especially right now is loneliness loneliness is a very very hard thing to deal with and it's a very Big blow on your psychological self-esteem What it does is it makes you afraid to reach out to people it makes you think nobody cares about me nobody wants to talk to me So I'm not going I'm a burden and actually loneliness research shows that people who experience loneliness and don't treat their loneliness Have a higher chance of an early death through high-clutch all hypertension Yeah, and you aren't treating your loneliness you aren't recognizing that sign that hey I'm lonely and I need to you know do some coping mechanisms I need to reach out to my friends because the negative thought is nobody cares about me and that's not true Mm-hmm. We all know and so when you say like treat it to me That's like medical that could just be leaning on your friends could it be just having a talk like or what's the treatment? Right, so the treatment we think medical right by treating psychological injuries are those coping mechanisms.
It's reaching out It's rejecting negative thoughts rejecting building up your resilience building up your self-esteem knowing that you're not alone Relying on your support systems. Yeah, you wonder how many people live with these problems and don't realize that have no way of assessing whether they're in that situation Or not right because loneliness can happen when you're in a room full of people Mm-hmm And that's why it's so scary because you don't realize you're alone or you're feeling lonely and that psychological injury doesn't impact you until later So you have to recognize it and go with it and pick up those coping skills. We know how to do it We just need to be able to recognize these psychological injuries. I like that.
I'm learning. I love it All right, maybe you have a topic you'd like Sarah to cover you can email us info at the gifted life dot org It's question and answer time here on the gifted life Suzanne. We're gonna pull you in knowing your background So here's a question we received. How does eye donation affect an open casket viewing out of funeral?
So eye donation does not affect an open casket funeral you can have an open casket funeral if you donate eyes Usually they actually place after they've done the recovery the recovery tech at the eye bank will place a eye cap prosthetic Underneath the eyes so you'd never know that the patient had been a donor and same with organ tissue donation your donation will not affect Your funeral arrangements at all so it's good to know and you can have any kind of funeral arrangement you would like yeah We love these questions come in and that people are talking about this because facts education it's really key So thanks for that question. Yeah, and if you'll have a question for us You want answered on the podcast give us a call at 504 648 3477 and every episode of the gifted life We honor a hero today. We learn about a Elani from her family Elani was 10 years old when she was tragically killed in a car accident not long before death Elani had a company Her mother Rosie on a trip to the DMV to renew Rosie's driver's license Rosie explained to Elani that she was registering as an organ donor So she could help other people and give the gift of life and sight to others Elani nodded an agreement and said that she too thought organ donation was the right thing to do because it could save lives Because of this conversation Rosie was fully confident in her decision to donate Elani's organs after her passing as a donor hero Elani contributed both her corneas and her heart is a true testament to her generous spirit and commitment to help others Elani will forever be remembered as a vibrant and outgoing young girl always inquisitive She was on staff at her school's newspaper and enjoyed asking her fellow students questions and reporting on the activities going on throughout the year Her duties also included announcing school events and daily birthdays on the in-school network announcements Elani was also very creative and enjoyed doing arts and crafts She loved to make bracelets and kept a notebook for sketching out ideas and drawings making notes about the world around her And how she could make it better She loved coming up with ideas for inventions to create when she was older her legacy of generosity lives on in Zoe and the other recipients She helped and now we pause and give thanks to Elani for the gift of life Another episode of the gifted life has come to a close that's episode 147 Thanks for listening everyone Please spread the word we are a team and remember you can register anytime as an organ tissue and eye donor at register me And I'd also like to thank Kevin and Nia for coming on the show today and sharing with us more information about eye donation Eye donation months and a community of compassion the best place to find us guys is our website the gifted life Dot org where you can listen to any of our episodes You can also listen on Apple podcast Google podcast Spotify or wherever you like to listen to your podcasts If you do listen on Apple go ahead and give us a five-star reading so that others can find our podcast good on social media We know you're out there. We know you're scrolling like our page Please Facebook where the gifted like podcast Twitter and Instagram were at gifted life pod.
Thanks for listening Please spread the word. Let's make life happen together. We can do it Our ask is that you go out and do something you would normally do to help us make life happen until next time This is a production of Lopa or the Louisiana organ procurement agency the gifted life is hosted by Lori Steele Joey Boudreau and Sarah Blake Moore our executive producer is Kirsten Heis producer Ishelan Caraway Intern is Rebecca random and we are recorded engineered and mixed in our Covington Louisiana studio by Troy Perez