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My name is VaSean and I am a thirty-one year old hemodialysis patient from Washington, D.C. I was first diagnosed with kidney disease when I was eighteen years old. One of my kidneys was leaking protein and my creatine level was rising. From that point until I was twenty-five, I led a destructive lifestyle. At that point I started to comply with my doctors orders. Then over the next few years I thought I was fine. The end of August in 2003 my kidneys failed as a result of high blood pressure. I never thought that would ever happen to me because I was young and feeling well.

While in the hospital I refused to any type of surgery done to me. I did not want to be on dialysis. At that moment I had just wanted to die. In just in a matter of a day or two my life was completely changed. From Monday night in the emergency room to Thursday morning getting a graft inserted in my arm. My mom, family and doctor talked me into getting the operation. The next day I was released from the hospital. Over the next few days my arm was very sore. Also I did leave my apartment for almost a week. My arm was swollen and I hated the way it looked. Everywhere I went people was asking me about my arm. Most people thought I had been shot and the bullet was stuck in my arm. I really did not like to discuss the situation. So I began to wear long sleeve shirts to cover the graft. A few months had gone past and I got use to graft. The reality of dialysis still had not really got to me yet.

In November of 2003 my doctor told I was going to start dialysis. Then I began to think of ways of getting out of going. November 10, 2003 was my first day of dialysis. I am afraid of needles so I figured it would be the worst day of my life. It was to bad after getting stuck. My doctor and the techs in the hospital were there to comfort me. The first few treatments in the hospital were not as horrible as I thought. After being released from the hospital I started at my first unit. The first treatment at the unit was terrible because I cramped. The worst feeling I have ever felt. Everyone in the unit came to help me. People were rubbing my legs and holding my hand to assure me everything was all right. Over the next six months or so my body began to adjust to the treatments. During those months I had the worst time during my entire illness.

I had to completely change my diet. I was use to eating a lot of fruit and vegetables. Drank a lot of water and juice. Now there were all these food and liquid restrictions. The thing that made this the worst time was my financial situation. I had no money or job but still had rent and bills to pay. My application for social security had been submitted but the process took a few months. While waiting I applied for different types of assistance. Most of the people at the different agencies were not too polite. They act if a person is trying to steal from them. Thankfully my family and friends helped me with the things I needed. Now there was no lower point in my life. For that reason I figured things could not get any worst.

By the spring of 2004 things started to turn for the better. Now I had some income but not a lot. My body and mind had adjusted to the lifestyle of having end stage renal disease. I became more open about my situation. Did not have any more issues talking dialysis or kidney disease. Went back to college to finish getting my bachelors degree. My outlook on the circumstances made me more optimistic at my future. I was able to get listed on a transplant list. Established a great support group. Found out some people have it worst than me that are not sick. Last summer I was accepted to graduate school in New Hampshire. Over the last couple years of dialysis I have gained a lot of weight. I had been putting it to the side. I kept saying I am going to make a goal to lose weight. This past October I went to a Kidney Foundation seminar. The seminar was great and very informative. Shad Ireland was the guest speaker. He was amazing. Mr. Ireland told his life story. I could relate to his story. Also in October I was making plans to go to New Hampshire to visit the graduate school and do a little skiing.

Once I say the video of Shad in Lake Placid I was ever more amazed. Seeing that tape gave me the motivation to start an exercise program. I joined a gym a few days before Thanksgiving. The gym I joined provided a free fitness assessment from a personal trainer. I now go three times a week for an hour to an hour and a half. My exercise routine is cardio, stretching, and resistance exercises. I monitor my pulse and blood pressure while exercising. Since I started exercising my metabolism has changed. I do retain a lot of fluid between treatments. There has not been a lot of weight but I have more energy and sleep better.

Finally, I have accepted my situation for what it has done for me. Now I have broader perspective of life. For the first time in my life I am not rushing. I take everything one step at a time. This condition has made me closer with my mother and family. I now try to accomplish as much as time will allow me. Just will not allow my condition to hinder my life.

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Many times during my life I have taken things for granted. Growing up, I was fortunate to have the encouragement of my parents who were always pushing me to go further. For a child living on the south side of Chicago, this was a luxury. As I sat down to write this essay, I started to realize the importance of their support. The older I became, and the more my neighborhood changed, I began to realize that in order to succeed I would have to be responsible for my own encouragement. I quickly came to understand what sacrifice, leadership, and ambition truly meant.

Over the course of time, I have made many sacrifices in order to place myself in the position I am in today – a law school applicant. The greatest of these sacrifices was my family. I grew up with the majority of my family no more than ten minutes away. As a child, I had a close bond with all of my cousins. As a young adult, I had to sever that bond. My cousins took for granted the greatest blessing in life – opportunity. Instead, they fell victim to the streets of Chicago. I could look around me, to my left and to my right, and see my family wasting their opportunities. I realized that in order to prevent myself from going down the same road, I would have to limit my contact with my family. At the time, this was a hard decision to make. Today, of all my male cousins, I am the only one with a college degree.

To fill the void left by my limited interactions with my cousins, I turned to music. I became an active member of my high school band program. Little did I know that music would become the source of some of my most challenging leadership roles. I was able to attend Howard University through a band scholarship. Because of my dedication and love of music, I was selected as the leader of the drum section, and Public Relations Advisor for the Howard University Marching Band. As the drum section leader, I was responsible for teaching new music, marching routines, as well as being a mentor for younger members. The position of Public Relations advisor taught me how to think critically and evaluate the needs and wants of the band and surrounding community.

This lead to programs that aided the community, and brought financial gains to the band. After a successful tenure as leader of the drum section, I wanted more. I became a member of Kappa Kappa Psi National Honorary Band Fraternity, Incorporated, Eta Omega Chapter. I am respected throughout my chapter for a feat that few have tried and even fewer have accomplished – I was elected as chapter president for three consecutive years. The responsibilities were as mind boggling as the skills I received. I was able to sharpen my writing skills by reconstructing the fraternity’s district constitution. While I was always comfortable with public speaking, I began representing my chapter at national conventions. These experiences increased my desire to study law.

While I was an intern with the United States Department of Treasury Office of Enforcement, I began researching the different careers available in law. I remember telling a colleague that I wanted to one day become a lawyer. While she didn’t discourage me, she suggested that I spend some time with a real lawyer before settling on a career choice. I took her advice. I spent some time with several general counsel members to see what their daily schedule entailed. After spending some time with actual lawyers I understood why my colleague made the suggestion. The lawyers I encountered were not like the lawyers you see in television dramas or read about in books, yet, the experience only increased my desire and ambition. My success as an intern with the United States Department of Treasury lead to a job offer when I graduated from Howard University in the summer of 2001. After working another year as a Research Assistant for the Office of Enforcement, I accepted another job working for the U.S. Customs Service as a Management and Program Analyst. I felt as if the path for my future was beginning to become clear. My plan was to work for a few years and then transition to law school. However, life does not always happen as we plan.

In the summer of 2002 I was diagnosed with kidney failure. My doctors told me that if I had waited one week longer before coming to the hospital, I would have died. I spent months at the hospital in a daze, wondering “why me” and “where did I go wrong.” I found no answers. Initially I thought life I dreamed of, the path I had built, was over. But, somewhere between waking up at 4:30 A.M. three days a week for dialysis treatment and holding down a full-time job, I realized that my life was not over. For the past three and a half years I have been waiting on a kidney transplant. For the past three and a half years I have been on dialysis. For the past three and a half years I have attended district and national conferences for Kappa Kappa Psi National Honorary Band Fraternity, and I have given back to the Howard University community by continuing to teach and mentor new band members. Recently, with the inspiration and help of Shad Ireland and the National Kidney Foundation, I have been able to restart my love for physical fitness by gaining unlimited access working out in Gold’s Gym. I have seen no limitations in the things I can do, including traveling this great nation of ours. My life, my biography, is far from over – I am ready to write the next chapter.

By obtaining a law degree I will finally be able to achieve my life long ambition with a career in the legal profession. I feel that I can use this achievement as a source of inspiration for others living with disabilities like myself. There is no hurdle that can’t be cleared and no goal that can’t be reached. I am ready to claim my future.