In August 2016, Dawn Muhammad’s father was diagnosed with stage four kidney failure.
Her dad, Lucious Daniels, began receiving dialysis treatment twice a week and his name was added to a 5-year-long kidney transplant waiting list. The procedure was his only chance of survival.
Muhammad was devastated but determined to do everything in her power to help save her dad’s life. Soon after the diagnosis, she found out that her blood type was compatible with her dad’s, but that her BMI (Body mass index) was too elevated for her to be able to donate her kidney.
Driven by love
She was not a suitable candidate, and while the news came as painful blow, she wasn’t backing down and never lost sight of her goal.
"I looked at myself in the mirror and I said, 'Let's try this, let's try this, let’s really try and commit to it,” Muhammad told “Good Morning America”. "We told my father, 'This isn’t the end, this can’t be the end.’”
She decided to lose weight in order to give her dad a second chance at life.
Without telling Daniels about her plan, the wife and mother of two embarked on a 16-month long weight loss journey.
In December that same year, she hired a personal trainer and began making changes to her diet, which included cutting out sugar altogether.
A life-saving commitment
Her efforts paid off and Muhammad lost 55 pounds. She was now eligible to be a match for her father’s transplant and in April 2018, she broke the news to him.
“"I said, 'Dad … can I tell you a secret? I have been losing this weight not just for me, but for you!'" she remembered. "'This weight loss has been for you, I need you to give me that paperwork, I need to be that donor for you.'"
Last July, she got the phone call that she’d been praying for and worked hard towards: she was a perfect match.
The surgeries are scheduled for August 30 and Muhammad couldn’t be more proud. She encourages other potential organ donors to practice compassion and follow suit.
“"Just do it," she said. "It's a selfless act. It's an act of love, not an act of sacrifice...I was blessed enough to help my father and I'm praying that someone else can do the same for their loved one."”
