A former paratrooper reckons jumping out of planes was much scarier than receiving a heart transplant.
Joe Scott was lucky enough to receive a heart within the past year after living with cardiomyopathy for 25 years.
The Irvine military man was so happy the transplant was successful he broke down when he got home and found he could climb the stairs without any issues.
The 61-year-old said: "Before my transplant I was gasping for breath climbing the one flight of stairs in my house. Going to bed each night was a really horrible time, I had to build myself up to going up the stairs.
“When I got home after my transplant I knew those stairs were going to be my test so I just walked straight up them and straight back down again and it was the most wonderful feeling in the world.
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“It was even quite emotional, I actually broke down after it because struggling up those stairs and gasping for breath had been my normal for so long.
“That’s when I knew that something really special had happened. To this day, I cannot find the correct words of gratitude to the individual and the family who agreed to give me their heart."
Joe, who was part of the British Parachute Regiment, is one of the few fortunate patients to receive the remarkable donation.
The life-changing procedure was carried out at the NHS Golden Jubilee in Glasgow, where doctors have carried out 189 heart surgeries since 2008.
And Joe believes his military training helped prepare him for the daunting surgery after four years of waiting on the transplant list.
He added: "One of the mottos on the RAF badge is ‘Knowledge Dispels Fear’. That stuck with me over the years and it 100 per cent helped me through my transplant process.
“I never had any negative thoughts about getting a new heart. Everyone who had been caring for me from the pre-transplant team over the four years I was on the transplant list was just so positive that it took away my fears.
“They just instilled a real confidence in me from the care, knowledge and information they were giving me. That same language that dispelled my fears is the same wording the RAF used when you’re training or jumping out of a plane for the first time.
“So when the big day arrived, everything is like clockwork, the process is slick, so wonderful, everyone just being calm, talking away to me and I never had one negative thought. I had so much faith in all the team."
There are 50,000 people living today with a transplant in the UK, with a further 7,000 people currently waiting for a life-saving transplant.
Joe says there are no words that could ever sum up how thankful he is after receiving the donation.
He said: “When you’re a transplant recipient, words like gratitude, elation and joy mean so much more than they did before. This feeling of elation and thankfulness is on a different stratosphere.
“For someone to be so gracious in their passing to allow someone like me to live, there are just no words of gratitude worthy enough to show my feelings towards this person and their family.”
NHS Golden Jubilee consultant cardiologist and clinical lead for transplantation, Dr Jonathan Dalzell, who was part of Joe’s care team, said: “Being able to look after our patients, like Joe, and see how their lives immeasurably improve after a transplant is an absolute privilege for our team.
“However, we are all aware that it is the donors and their families who are the true heroes of transplantation, which is entirely dependent upon their remarkable generosity and altruism whilst in the face of deep, personal tragedy. Such selflessness is an example to us all and is sincerely and indescribably appreciated by patients and transplant teams alike.”
For more information on organ donation, visit: www.organdonation.nhs.uk
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