CJ’s Medical Journey

CJ’s kidney disease runs from the consequences of her earlier crisis through decades of dialysis, transplantation, and a final choice to stop treatment.

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Kidney Damage

Long-Term Consequences A Crisis Survived CJ survives hospitalization after taking medication laced with antifreeze, but her kidneys are severely damaged. Her survival brings an enduring medical burden. Life Changes The illness influences her plans and relationships for years. Trent’s support becomes part of how she manages the consequences.

Years on Dialysis

Treatment Becomes Routine Repeated Care CJ begins dialysis and lives with recurring appointments, sickness, and fatigue. The treatment sustains her while limiting what her body can do. A Life Beyond Treatment She works, marries Trent, and builds a life with Max. Illness shapes her days without fully defining her identity.

A Kidney Transplant

A New Period of Health A Donor Organ CJ receives a kidney from a deceased donor, giving her more than two decades before chronic rejection causes the organ to fail. Gratitude and Restraint Later, she declines another transplant because she believes others are more deserving. The decision reflects her moral reasoning, though it also carries self-blame.

Stopping Treatment

Choosing Hospice Exhaustion CJ faces increasing pain, illness, and the prospect of another stroke. She stops dialysis and asks to enter hospice rather than prolong a life she no longer wants. A Difficult Decision Friends worry that she may be giving up too soon. CJ insists the choice is considered and grounded in her understanding of her quality of life.

A Peaceful End

Receiving Care Friends Stay Near Toby and hospice staff remain with CJ as her strength fails. Her earlier role as counselor shifts into that of a patient receiving support. Final Release CJ dies with Fran beside her and Toby near her bed. The long medical journey ends in company, not isolation.

After CJ’s antifreeze poisoning

CJ’s adult life after hospitalization

When CJ is in her thirties

After Gloria’s death

CJ’s last weeks at the hospice