Trenton's Kidney Journey

12/28/2025

Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! Last few days of the year we will be seeing the neurologist to try to figure out something with our seizure medication and I think we’re going to order shirts to try to bring awareness to searching for Trenton’s kidney donor!

10/28/2025

Well the past few weeks have been a bit of a roller coaster. Trenton had to have two surgeries back to back to shrink his fistula for dialysis as it had grown too large and was messing up his pressures during dialysis. We are still trying to work out the last few issues with that but hopefully things will start moving forward smoothly again soon. As for his case it appears we will not be going to trial as the man who caused this has agreed to a plea deal. I won’t be saying a lot about this yet since it hasn’t been completed just know at this moment we will not be going through the criminal trial. Please keep praying for us!

09/23/2025

I first want to introduce myself, My name is Jamie Thibodeaux and I would like to share my sons story…
This may or may not be your first time hearing this but in October 2023, Trenton Thibodeaux was the victim of an auto pedestrian hit and run that changed our lives forever. He was drug while walking by a truck roughly 75 feet before being left in the ditch. Luckily someone saw him and called 911. Since that date his list of diagnosis has grown quickly. He has an acquired brain injury, multiple plates and screws reforming his pelvis, a seizure disorder and worst of all it crushed his renal arteries resulting in end stage kidney failure. This means he only has about 10% kidney function. Trenton is currently doing home dialysis with his mom as his care partner. His treatment schedule currently is 4 times per week for 3 ½ hours per session. This all happened three days before he was to leave for school. And that is when this nightmare began.
For people like Trenton, a kidney transplant can increase the chances of living a longer, healthier life as his only other option is to continue on dialysis for the rest of his life. Dialysis can only do a fraction of what your healthy kidneys do for your body every day. The most recent diagnosis is metabolic bone disease from his imbalances in his body due to kidney failure which make his bones brittle. Trenton recently fell and compression fractured 4 vertebrae in his spine.
Trenton is currently on the national deceased donor waiting list. The average wait time is five years. The only other way to shorten the wait time is to get a transplant from a living donor. Even though most of us are born with two kidneys, we only need one healthy kidney to survive. That means you or someone else you know could save a life by choosing to be a living donor. Kidneys from living donors can even last almost twice as long as kidneys from deceased donors. Of course, a kidney transplant is a major surgery for Trenton and his donor, so it does have risks. However, transplant surgery is generally safe and often successful.
There is no telling when Trenton will get that call from the transplant center that a kidney is available. So, while he waits, we are searching for a living donor on our own. It is not easy but I am reaching out to people closest to me for help. Please share Trenton’s story with others you know. You never know who may be able to help him a find a donor. Please us me know if you would like to learn more about the living donor process and what it takes to become a living kidney donor for me or someone else. You can also contact my transplant center at https://www.houstonmethodist.org/transplant/living-donor-center/kidney/. Or we set up a page just for Trenton’s Kidney Journey https://www.facebook.com/TrentonKidney
Thank you!
Jamie Thibodeaux
832-738-9034

Fighting for Trenton to have a long healthy life!

09/23/2025

Well, quick update... Trial has been postponed until November and we are searching for a place to have an anesthetic MRI done for Trenton's head and back as he is struggling alot more with his balance. Also having his head done around the eye muscles to make sure there is no deterioration so that we can reschedule the eye surgery. We have a letter I am starting to send out that I will post next so please share it as much as possible. Thank you guys for all the thoughts!!

08/21/2025

It is official! We have scheduled Trenton’s eye surgery for the end of next month. He has to have an MRI and some clearance but finally getting close to hopefully getting his vision back!

08/20/2025

Trial is coming up very soon for Trenton’s case. There are lots of things happening and we are just hoping for the best outcome possible!

08/01/2025

Hearing the words your donor has been disqualified is heartbreaking... We have been through two different living donors now and both have been eliminated as possible living donor due to medical reasons. We cannot thank them enough for taking the time to attempt to become a living donor!! I am going to start sending out letters to different places that have newsletters to spread the word about living donors so please share this page we really need to get more views to try to find Trenton a living kidney donor! Thank you everyone! If anyone is intersted please feel free to reach out to Jamie at 832-738-9034 or https://www.houstonmethodist.org/transplant/living-donor-center/kidney/ for more information.

Finding a kidney transplant donor is the best treatment for kidney failure. Learn more about the kidney donor center and transplant process at Houston Methodist. Call us today!

07/28/2025

So I know we haven’t done an update in quite a bit so I am trying to catch up. Trenton has been struggling a bit with falling and coordination. We have been working with the nephrologist and neurologist and have determined he is having absent seizures. We have changed his seizure meds and will keep a close eye on how things are going from here. Unfortunately during one of his most recent falls he has compression fractures 4 of his vertebrae. He is now wearing a brace to help with discomfort and we are safeguarding everything we can think of to keep him from falling. So fingers crossed this will start improving soon. Otherwise we are still doing home dialysis and starting a new excercize program to try to gain a little more strength. Have a great week every one!

04/29/2025

Well, there have been a lot of changes in Trenton‘s world lately. We recently have completed the six week training course for him to be able to do dialysis at home, which has made a huge difference for his anxiety, especially during treatments. It is a little scary as his mom to be doing his Dialysis, but I have a great team behind me And the huge difference that it makes in him makes it all worth it. Also today at the status conference at the courthouse, we finally have moved forward and have trial date set for this September! This will be the criminal trial and hopefully the beginning of some closure. Thank you all for praying for us. We still need all the help we can get we have not gotten any closer to finding a kidney for Trenton yet… have an amazing week!

03/12/2025

Well, sorry for the late night post but I am finally getting a break and having time to sit down and write this. There has been a lot of things happening since Trenton‘s last hospitalization. While his anxiety did slightly improve and the new sleep meds are helping him sleep at night. The dialysis team and myself have decided that his anxiety is so extreme still doing dialysis in the center that I would need to stay with him during his treatments. After a few of these the center nurse approached me and asked if I had ever considered doing home dialysis. After a visit with the training team and a home visit Trenton and I have started training for Me to be able to be his dialysis nurse and move the machine to the house. He already has had huge improvement during his sessions at the training center since we are in a room by ourselves and it is more like being at home. Today was the first day that I actually started him on his dialysis and we still have several weeks of training left, but I feel good about the direction. This is taking us. Unfortunately, that’s the only happy news. We still have no trial date and we are still trying to live on Trenton’s disability alone. Things are very tight right now as much as I would love to go back to work. I know it’s not possible. I did finally get to the top of the waiting list so hopefully in the next month or so I will become Trenton’s paid caregiver full-time. Thanks to everyone that is still praying for us. Our battle is not over. We still have a long ways to go, but we are not quitting! Have a good night.

02/11/2025

Well, this week has not gotten off to a great start. Trenton has been struggling lately with severe what we thought were ticks so we reached out to his nephrologist and his neurologist to determine if this was something based on his seizure activity in the past or if this was a medication related reaction. We made the very hard decision to hospitalize Trenton yesterday and do some hard changes on his medication’s, which will require him to be in the hospital for a few days at least to monitor him and to make sure he stays safe. He is really having a rough time right now and has not been sleeping at all hardly. He stays very upset and has even started getting very agitated lately. He has told me on multiple occasions that he wishes he could just be normal again and not hurt all the time. So please pray for us at this time. This is not easy watching your child go through this. I talked with the psychiatrist and the neurologist team at the hospital this morning and they have began the medication changes which are really not easy on his body and I just keep praying that he will be comfortable soon.