My name is Karl Ludwig, and I donated my left kidney to my college instructor (now good friend and brother) Aaron on September 1, 2023. I am an avid rock climber, but my love for being active, especially in the outdoors, extends in many directions. Currently I like to run, hike, and play pickleball as well. In high school, I participated in rowing and track. I have been really active for my entire life, and I consider athletics to be central to my physical health, mental health, and enjoyment of life. Power and endurance sports like running and track gave me an appreciation for the thrill of pushing my body, but I fell in love with climbing for how it engages my entire body and mind, helping me grow on both fronts.
In Spring 2023, on a whim, I decided to sign up for an Eskrima (Filipino martial art) class in my last semester at Ohio State because I wanted to try something new, and past students raved about the instructor online. On the first day of class, the instructor, Aaron, shared with the class that he had End Stage Kidney Failure and was doing dialysis amid a packed teaching schedule. He was only 36 years old at the time. He joked that he was going to keep his phone on him in class in case he ever got a call that they had a kidney for him at the hospital. He said this all with a positivity, warmth, and peacefulness that left me slightly in awe.
Over the next several months of taking Aaron’s class, I got to see why he left such an impression on his students. He got to know every student on a very personal level and cared deeply about our wellbeing, taking time before and after class to talk to us about our lives. During class, he emphasized that he had no desire to teach people martial arts to fight violently; rather, he cared about helping develop good human beings that would share their goodness with the world.
A month or two into the semester, my sister, Grace, a PICU nurse at Cincinnati
Children’s Hospital, called to tell me about a patient she was taking care of at work. He was a teenager who wasn’t going to make it, and his family had decided to pursue organ donation. Having developed a close relationship with the family, she requested that she see his care through fully, remaining with him during organ harvesting. The family said knowing she was with him brought them comfort. It was a difficult and profound experience for her, and it made me stop and think about the many people to whom he had given the gift of life.
That week, as I walked home from class, I found myself looking up the Living Donor Testing Form on Aaron’s instagram, and I secretly began the testing process. I didn’t even know my own blood type, so I thought I would just find out quickly that I wasn’t a match, and that would be that.
Well, I was a match. I found out 3 days after graduating while on a post-grad solo trip in Europe. When I got back to the States, I got coffee with Aaron and shared the news with him. Telling him he was getting a new kidney was one of the coolest moments of my life.
I was very motivated to donate to Aaron once I knew I was a match, but the
decision wasn’t made blindly, either. As I’m sure any athlete would, I wanted to be absolutely sure that my decision wouldn’t limit my ability to pursue climbing and other sports I loved. I asked a lot of questions of the transplant team, and did a lot of research, which is also when I found KDA. Reading the stories of so many Kidney Donor Athletes not only calmed any worries I had, but also made me even more motivated to join a community of people who promote living organ donation through their active lifestyles.
Following the surgery, I received 6 weeks of paid time off from my job at The Ohio State University where I coordinate a leadership program for undergrads based around outdoor climbing and mountaineering trips. Everyone at my office was incredibly accommodating and supportive. I am really grateful for this time and space to recover since I know many people’s jobs and circumstances might not afford this.
I won’t lie: it was difficult for me to go from such an active lifestyle to having to hold myself back and slow down. At that point, I was going on daily walks around my neighborhood, but I missed climbing and being more active, and I was worried about how long it would take to make up lost ground. However, it helps to have people you can talk to who have shared your experience. Right around the time of my surgery, I found out via instagram that an IFMGA Mountain Guide I had climbed with in Colorado named Matt donated his kidney to his mom 3 years ago. We connected again on the phone during my recovery and I was so lucky to have his support and insight into the recovery process, especially from the perspective of a fellow climber. He urged me to be patient, but also reassured me that it wouldn’t take as long as I thought to feel strong again once I was back in the saddle. We also talked about the mental aspect of recovery, such as the lingering worry of reinjuring or herniating the incision even after it has healed and you are cleared. He was right, but knowing that someone else went through the same process of doubt and worry helped immensely when I experienced it myself.
At 4 weeks post-donation, I went to see my surgeon because I was having an odd searing sensation around my incision and was worried something was wrong. When I went in, he assured me that everything looked great and that what I was feeling was actually severed nerves coming back online. To my surprise, he actually took away my weight lifting restriction and told me to start slowly building back my strength and activity level. The nerve pain went away soon after. I actually had a similar recurrence of it at around 3 months post-donation, but I recognised what it felt like and it dissipated quickly. I’ve felt great ever since.
After being cleared, I started running, doing body weight exercises at home (modified at first), and going to my bouldering gym to do some easier routes. For a while, I stayed away from routes and moves that were more strenuous on my core muscles.
At exactly 6 weeks post-donation, I returned to work at Ohio State and immediately took a group of students on a climbing trip to Seneca Rocks, West Virginia. I was prepared to sit anything out if it felt like too much, but I ended up climbing with them every day, summiting Seneca Rocks twice. I wasn’t pushing it too hard, but it felt incredible to climb outdoors again.
About 3 months after donating is when I officially felt back to full power with zero inhibitions. My core felt strong, and I was climbing at the same grade or higher compared to pre-donation. Right now, I can say confidently that I am an even stronger climber than I was before donating. I like to joke that climbing is about strength-to-weight ratio, so I was happy to offload the extra kidney to become more agile.
Not much has changed in how I feel and train since fully healing from the transplant, but I have made some minor adjustments to what I consume. I didn’t drink much before, but it’s even less now. I don’t completely abstain from alcohol, but it is rare. The same thing goes for meat. I already enjoyed cooking and eating vegetarian options, but the science of plant-based protein and kidney health has motivated me to continue exploring and gravitating towards them. I love to cook, so this has been fun and easy for me. I’m not strictly vegetarian or vegan, but it has been quite a while since I have purchased meat from the store. Lastly, I am generally more conscious about hydration, especially when I am active or am aware that I’ve consumed a lot of sodium. I take big water bottles with me everywhere and try to avoid getting to the point where I feel really thirsty. I don’t set a lot of hard and fast rules, but I do try to consistently make choices that will support my long-term kidney and overall health.
The best part about being a living kidney donor is the bond I now have with my recipient, Aaron. Not everyone has a directed donation with someone they know, but I’m so grateful for the relationship I have been able to have with him. He and his wife Gretchen have embraced me as an honorary member of their family, and my parents and siblings have done the same for them. We call each other and hang out all the time, and we spent the holidays and my birthday together this year. What an amazing addition to my life.
Aaron is doing wonderfully with the new kidney. He says he feels like he wants to run a marathon with all of the newfound energy he has. His recovery journey is longer than mine, but as soon as he’s cleared to, we plan to do a race together. I cannot think of a better way to celebrate our health and the gift of being alive.
