Family Planning: Tools, Success Stories, and Coping Strategies

After discussing the family planning options available to people with kidney disease and the self-care strategies to support you, it’s time to focus on how to plan your journey with confidence and support.

Join us for the second webinar in our family planning series to learn insights from healthcare professionals who can help you on your kidney journey. Hear inspiring stories from individuals who have navigated family planning with kidney disease, providing real-life perspectives on their successes and challenges. Engage in an interactive Q&A session and leave with practical tools and knowledge to help you move forward with your family planning goals.
 

Presenters

Sandra Dumanski

Dr Sandra Dumanski is a nephrologist (kidney doctor) and scientist at the University of Calgary. Her program of research endeavors to understand the complex relationships between reproductive health, cardiovascular health and kidney disease, and is funded by the Kidney Foundation. Dr. Dumanski’s clinical interests involve addressing reproductive health issues in individuals living with chronic kidney disease. She sits on the Canadian Women's Heart Health Alliance and is the Central Lead for ‘Wear Red Canada’, celebrated annually to raise awareness of women’s heart health.

Nada Khan

Nada’s kidney journey started, when she was diagnosed with FSGS at the age of 19. With medication and yearly checkups with her nephrologis, she was able to keep herself off of dialysis. Nada got married in 2015 and a few months later she was asked to start dialysis. A month later Nada was pregnant with her first child, a boy. Unfortunately due to being born premature and other complications he passed away 6 months after he was born. Under her watchful eye and many consultations later with her doctor, Nada conceived her second child in May of 2016. she was asked to be on dialysis 6 days a week for 6 hours a day until she gave birth to her daughter Anaya at 36 week gestational. Nada didn’t have an easy journey, but she says “I would do it all over again if I had too!”

Wendy Narh

Wendy was first diagnosed with Lupus in 2009 when she was 26 years old. As a young adult, learning that she had lupus was challenging. She had many concerns about her future, especially around whether she could continue working, travel, and start a family. Just a month after her lupus diagnosis, Wendy was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease. Not knowing anything about CKD, her first thoughts were, " Am I going to die." With the support from her family, doctors and the peer support program at the Kidney Foundation, Wendy not only adapted to life on peritoneal dialysis (PD) but also thrived. In 2018, she received a life-saving kidney transplant from a deceased donor. Her new kidney has been going strong ever since, and, to her joy, she was able to naturally conceive two beautiful daughters—her first in 2021 and her second in 2023.

Manuel Escoto

Manuel Escoto is a 16-year kidney transplant recipient. He received a transplant from his mom in 2007 after nearly two years on dialysis. In February 2022, he and his wife welcomed their first child, and in Feb 2024, they welcomed their second. As a kidney transplant recipient, he’s developed a passion for kidney & organ donation health education and supporting other patients to become partners in their care.

The Kidney Foundation would like to thank our sponsors for making the 2024 Kidney Foundation Webinar Series possible.