Growing up, I always knew my grandfather to be an alcoholic. By the time I was in pharmacy school, my grandfather quickly deteriorated in health and passed away while awaiting a liver transplant. Substance use disorder (SUD) took my grandfather’s life. SUD is a mental disorder that affects a person’s brain and behaviors, leading to the inability to control the use of substances like alcohol. In my grandfather’s case, his mental disorder had persisted for so long, and his heavy drinking was so chronic that it had caused irreversible cirrhosis. Approximately 10 to 20 percent of regular heavy drinkers develop cirrhosis. The only effective treatment for liver disease patients that have become terminal and irreversible is transplantation. Unfortunately, my grandfather did not make it to this point. My grandfather’s death added depression and anxiety to an already closeted and depressed young adult, me. At the time of my grandfather’s death, I was in a long-term relationship with a woman but knew in my heart of hearts that I was gay. I had struggled with my sexual orientation in high school and throughout my undergraduate and his death allowed for further repression of my feelings. At the age of twenty-five, I was able to come out to my family, something they had known (or so they tell me); a statement that became almost frustrating to hear as I was nearly crippled with anxiety and depression about my sexual orientation my family knew the whole time. However, the ability to be “out” and not suppress feelings or hide who I felt was so liberating and allowed me to become a healthier person physically, emotionally, and mentally. As a result of my experiences, I have worked in various transplant centers and transplant patients. As a student pharmacist, I worked in pediatric transplantation, working with renal, liver, lung, and small bowel transplants. After pharmacy school during residency and as a practitioner, I have worked on adult transplant teams in heart, lung, kidney, and liver. As I enter public health school, I hope to work toward LGBTQ+ health rights and diversity and inclusion within the health care setting and research and health policy development on substance abuse disorders.

Happy Dog, Happy Dads! My partner and I acquired Gremlin (Grem) almost 3 years ago now. I say acquired because Grem showed up at our house. We brought him in gave him a flea bath and contemplated bringing him to a shelter or keeping him. Grem loves the beach (the sand, way more than the water), car rides, puppuccinos, and going to volleyball to cheer on his dads every week. We made the best decision ever of keeping him and loving him and accepting his love. He is the sweetest, goodest boy and we are so lucky HE found US.