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Studying for a Masters while waiting over a year on the list…. Hallo, I’m Robyn Tainty and I am 22 years old. I have been a student all my life, and am currently studying for a Masters Degree in Gender Studies at the University of Sussex. I am also on the waiting list for a double lung transplant, due to having the lung function of a small rodent. I was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at birth, and had my first surgery at around the same time. I have always had ‘moderate – severe’ lung disease (doctor’s words, not mine!) but it got really bad in my first year of uni. My lung collapsed and I had a terrible experience at the local hospital which did more harm than good. By the end of it all, I was six stone and dreading getting dressed in the morning because it made me so out of breath. Things started to get better when I changed hospitals, though. They got my weight and lung function up, but despite this my lungs were still severely damaged. So in February 2005 I went on the transplant list. It wasn’t a hard decision – I’d had many years to come to terms with how ill I was, and if anything, the thought of things changing made my illness easier to deal with. While all this was going on, somehow I managed to get a 2:1 in my degree. I have always liked reading and writing, and as my lungs aren’t up to much, it is the one thing I can do as well as anyone else. Even when I am in hospital, I can still happily write essays, as long as I am not too poorly. I was doing my dissertation when I went on the list, and although it was a bit stressful being assessed both mentally and physically (!) doing my dissertation gave me something to focus on other than my ill health. Now, I have been on the list for a year and three months. After
my degree, I started a Masters. I am doing this part time, as
I don’t want to put too much pressure on my health before my transplant.
So far it is going well - I really enjoy it, although getting
around campus can be a bit of an effort. Luckily I only go in
once a week for two hours (typical student I hear you say!). I recently
won a CF Achievers Award in the academic category. So it is not
all doom and gloom on the transplant list – although I think
about the transplant every day, and if I didn’t worry about it
I wouldn’t be human.
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