Ealesa Evers, 33, managed to lose a staggering 120lbs and said she was fuelled by “determination and grit” to help her mum who has lived with kidney issues for years
A daughter lost a third of her body weight for and incredible and selfless reason.
Ealesa Evers, 33, lost eight stone so she could donate a kidney to her mum Colleen Body, who has lived with chronic kidney disease from a young age. Before she had been able to start the donor process Ealesa was told by doctors she needed to lose weight in order to be considered for the transplant.
18 months later, Ealesa managed to lose more than 120lbs, and she said she was fuelled by “determination and grit” not only for herself but for her mum. She has undergone the process to become a living donor for her mum with an operation that will hopefully happen in the near future.
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The pair are also raising money for Kidney Research UK in the process. Ealesa, of Torpoint, Cornwall, said: “My mum has been through so much and she is the most encouraging person I know. One of the reasons I want to give her this transplant is because it will transform her life, giving her life and energy back.
“I weighed over 300 pounds before I went on my weight loss journey, and my knees and hips used to hurt a lot. Doctors told me to lose some weight and then come back and see if I was a match. So I just went out there and lost it – it was really hard, but mum supported me the whole time, she was so encouraging.
“When I started losing weight I was around 317lbs and I am now 195lbs. I don’t think I would have done it without mum getting sick, it was like doing it for myself wasn’t enough but doing it for my mum, the most important person, was the big push I needed. Mum didn’t even want to take her children’s kidneys at first – she is amazing.”
Her mum was diagnosed with type one diabetes at the age of 17 – but in reality she had the condition since birth. Colleen, 55, was put on insulin and informed by doctors the condition could cause issues with her kidneys. She was then diagnosed with chronic kidney disease not soon after and lost sight in one eye, with only 30 per cent vision in the other eye.
Colleen’s condition remained stable until 2020 – when Ealesa explained they sadly lost her granny from covid and her mum’s health took a serious decline. Ever since, Colleen has been on hemodialysis, and Ealesa moved back home to Cornwall to be by her mum’s side.
The grandmother-of-four has had to have treatment three times a week, on a machine in Plymouth for eight hours a day on Monday, Wednesdays and Fridays. Ealesa explained how this treatment has been physically and mentally taxing on her mum – and lead to the family’s exploration of living donations.
She said: “Mum gets more and more tired and is deteriorating more and more. That tends to be what happens with people who have chronic kidney failure. You either get a transplant or continue with dialysis until they pass away.”
Ealesa and her sister then went to get tested to see if they would be matches for their mum – which is when she was told she could not even be considered for a transplant due to her weight. She lost the weight from diet and exercise – explaining that she did not want to use a weight loss drug because of their undetermined health impacts. She even ran 100k in May this year – and raised £830 for Kidney Research UK.
After dropping 120 pounds, Ealesa was finally able to get tested in January 2023 – and it turned out she was a really close match. Ealesa has signed up to run the 2026 London marathon for her mum and Kidney Research UK and the pair are currently waiting for a date for the life-saving procedure.
She has been having all the essential tests, in what she described as a ‘full body MOT’ to ensure there are no other health issues; such as CT scans, blood tests, urine samples, x rays, ultrasounds and GFR blood tests. She added: “The healthier I am, the better recovery I will have and my mum, but the surgeon was more than happy with me so far. I’m so proud of my mum – she’s been through so much, we are so tight, and I want to finish this for her.”
You can donate to help Ealesa and her mum here.