Esperance woman Lawren Staunton has vowed to shine a light on the importance of organ donation as part of DonateLife Week, more than two decades after receiving a lifesaving liver transplant.
The annual initiative, held from July 28 to August 4, was established by the federal government's Organ and Tissue Authority in a bid to encourage people nationwide to register and increase donations.
At just a few months old, Miss Staunton was diagnosed with biliary atresia, a rare disease that affects the liver and bile ducts in infants.
Miss Staunton's parents, Larry and Anita, who were based in Zimbabwe at the time, were initially told that she would die and to take her home.
After sourcing a second opinion, Mr and Mrs Staunton were told she would need an urgent liver transplant and that the family would need to travel to Australia or the UK for treatment if Miss Staunton was to survive.
Within weeks, the family uprooted their lives and moved to Australia, assisted by close friends and family.
"From what I've been told, it was really hard for my parents," Miss Staunton said.
After a number of unsuccessful treatments, Miss Staunton's parents were told that Lawren had just weeks to live before a liver became available.
Miss Staunton says she remembers being reminded frequently of just how lucky she was, but she didn't come to understand the gravity of what that meant until much later.
"I've always been made aware," she said.
"The story has always been with me.
"My parents have always told me that I need to know that I am lucky.
"I don't think I realised the severity of it all until I was about nine-years-old, when I began taking notice of my scar and the fact that I had to take medication and that sort of thing.
"My parents have never mollycoddled me, I've never been wrapped in cotton wool, and I think that's helped me a great deal.
"Having been so young when this happened, everything else is normal for me.
"The regular visits to the hospital, the tests, the medication; that's normal for me.
"It's only when I talk to others that I'm reminded otherwise."
Despite having only been an infant when the transplant occurred, Miss Staunton attributes the experience and the ongoing medical treatment with having shaped her life.
More than 23 years on, Miss Staunton is now a qualified nurse, desperate to pay it forward for all those in the medical field that helped her as a child.
"The only reason I did nursing is because of all of this," she said.
"I knew I wanted to do nursing. Because I've grown up in hospital, and that's all I know, I felt I needed to pay something back.
"I felt I could do that by becoming a nurse and helping others."
Miss Staunton said she became involved in DonateLife Week because she had always wanted to do something to raise awareness and to prompt conversation among family and friends.
"I hoped that my story, if anything, would be a relatable link for people," she said.
"There is a far greater chance that you'll need an organ in your lifetime than you'll donate one, but it's not until it hits someone close that you think about it.
"It's important to just do it, just register.
"Talk to your family about what your wishes are.
"My donor is always in my memory, as is their family.
"I know that I speak for my family when I say that, too."
To register, or to find out more about organ and tissue donation, visit https://donatelife.gov.au/register-donor-today
