Amari and his mom are ready to move forward with the kidney transplant. They are currently looking for a donor. It’s a crucial moment for Amari’s well-being, and his mom’s strength is truly inspiring. The second opinion in Cincinnati really helped mom feel at ease & understand the process a lot better. The doctors there were patient, explaining every detail thoroughly. It’s been determined he will keep his native kidney & they will be adding one in.

With Amari’s liver being enlarged the liver doctor wants to do more testing because it could all be from the medication/dialysis. They want to dig deeper to see if that is the actual cause. The urology doctor wants to do more testing as well. They need to determine how large his bladder is. Since Amari hasn’t urinated in over a year, the muscles have shrunk so there is a concern for post transplant & being able to control his bladder. They went over how that would be treated if it is a problem

Next was the appointment with the heart doctor. They switched the broviac he had and inserted to a medport, which is a central IV line that goes directly to his heart. This can be used if they needs to draw blood, to give meds, or if he needed to be on a IV. This stops him from having to be poked all over. Mom requested that he have regular echo exams. Amari had a blood clot on his heart. The heart doctor wants further testing to understand the root cause, whether it’s medication-related or something else.

Thursday they met with nephrology. The nephrology appointments brought clarity, answering mom’s biggest concern about where the surgery will take place and post-op care. There will be a 4-6 week stay after surgery. Amari will need to be under their care for at least a year. She was concerned if something went wrong while they were home how would they get care. Driving from Cleveland to Cincinnati is a 4 hour drive. They explained the process to her which relieved her concern. Next week there will be a meeting with all the doctors to determine if they think there will be any problems with the transplant and how it will go after the transplant. Friday was filled with all the additional testing’s that the doctors wanted done.

After a long week of appointments and tests, coming home was a relief. Amari’s stuffed animals and family welcomed him with open arms and threw him a welcome home party filled with love. Back in his element, he dove into his toys, books, and even played his favorite game of “the floor is lava.”

Mom took Amari & his sister to the trampoline park where Amari worked on his jump shot. Amari had a blast hunting for Easter eggs, especially those filled with quarters! He was also able to play all the games he wanted.

Amari’s journey isn’t over yet, but with love and support, he’s facing each day with courage and resilience. Let’s continue to cheer him on as he takes each step forward.

Their journey wouldn’t be possible without the support of loved ones and the generosity of organizations like COTA. To learn more about how you can support COTA for Amari’s Journey as he awaits his kidney transplant, please visit: https://cota.org/cotaforamarisjourney/

Join Amari’s journey on Facebook to stay updated on his day-to-day life and continue showing your support. Follow this link to his Facebook profile: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556251717859