We’re opening our Lung Transplant Series with Stuart’s double lung transplant story—co-hosted with Bethany. From the ICU moment of “We can’t save your lungs”, through a recovery “close plan” (yes, the sock test), to a late-night message from his donor’s mother, this is our most personal episode yet.
Released during the Lung Transplant Foundation’s National Lung Transplant Awareness Week and National Lung Transplant Awareness Day (October 9, 2025), we share what organ donation makes possible—and how families and teams can lead with grace when life hits hard.
You’ll hear about:
• The call that changed everything—and the mindset pivot from despair to plan
• The “close plan” for recovery (walk, walk, walk) and the legendary sock test
• Bethany’s perspective: balancing family, sales leadership, and grief
• Grace at work: how teammates and managers can actually help
• A message from the donor’s mother—and honoring the gift
• Practical ways to protect the immunocompromised in your life
Timestamps:
00:00 Welcome & Awareness Week/Day
01:30 Gratitude to Vanderbilt & donor families
06:35 Diagnosis → rapid decline → ICU
15:03 “We can’t save your lungs.” (mindset pivot)
20:48 A match is found & surgery day
24:30 Recovery begins: walk, walk, walk
28:52 The “close plan” & the sock test
32:05 Bethany’s side: family, work, coping
35:00 Grace at work: leadership lessons
38:00 Donor letter - connecting with grief
42:00 How to help + CTAs
44:30 Outro
Listen if you want to: hear a real-world transplant journey, learn how to support loved ones (and colleagues) through crisis, and understand why registering as an organ donor truly changes families on both sides.
Support the show:
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Resources & Links Mentioned:
Lung Transplant Foundation:
🔗https://lungtransplantfoundation.org/
US —Register as an organ donor:
🔗 https://www.organdonor.gov/
UK — NHS Organ Donor Register: 🔗https://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/register-your-decision/
Vanderbilt University Medical Center — Lung Transplant Program: 🔗https://www.vanderbilthealth.com/program/lung-transplant
Haverin Substack
Breathing Forward: A timeline of resilience:
🔗https://haverin.substack.com/p/breathing-forward-a-timeline-of-resilience?r=2vmx1l
Where are we with Lung Transplants in 2025?:
🔗https://haverin.substack.com/p/where-we-are-with-lung-transplants?r=2vmx1l
Tacro, Tacro, Tacro! (Explaining our antirejection drugs):
🔗https://haverin.substack.com/p/tacro-tacro-tacro?r=2vmx1l
Jenny McFarland’s transplant podcast (Stuart’s guest episode): 🔗https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/if-youre-going-through-hell-just-keep-going-with/id1486712428?i=1000639375812