YOU Are NOT Alone

We have all experienced it. Some, like you, perhaps more than others. Those moments in life ‎when the room feels very quiet - even when it’s full of people.‎

A diagnosis.

A hospital stay.

A late-night search for answers.

A question you don’t know how to ask out loud.‎

If you’ve ever been there, we want you to know something from the start:‎

YOU are not alone.‎

This blog - and the Kidney Kings Podcast - exist for one simple reason: to make sure people ‎facing kidney disease, caregiving, treatment decisions, and the unknown never feel like they are ‎navigating it by themselves because YOU are not alone. ‎

Why This Blog Exists

Kidney Kings was created from a deeply personal place.‎ My place.

I am Marie Yates, the heart behind this podcast, I am an end stage renal patient. I have always believed ‎that information becomes powerful when it is shared with compassion. With my Chronic Kidney ‎Disease, I am YOU. Like so many patients and caregivers, I have found myself asking questions that I wished ‎someone had already answered - questions about treatment options, nutrition, advocacy, ‎emotional health, and what life really looks like day to day.‎

Rather than keep those questions to myself, I chose to turn them outward. And help discover ‎answers for everyone.‎ For YOU.

This blog is an extension of that decision.‎

It’s a place where:‎

• Real experiences are respected

• Complex topics are explained clearly

• Hope is offered without false promises

• And no one is made to feel invisible

What You’ll Find Here

On my Kidney Kings blog, you’ll find content designed to inform, support, and remind you that ‎community matters.‎ For ALL of US.

Topics include:‎

• Patient stories — voices that deserve to be heard

• Education & resources — explained in plain language

• Nutrition & lifestyle guidance — practical, realistic, human

• Caregiver support — because caregivers need care too

• Advocacy & funding efforts — helping move the fight forward

Some posts will be clinical.

Some will be emotional.

Some will simply say, “We see you.”‎

All of them will honor one truth: no one should face an illness like kidney disease alone.‎

About the Kidney Kings Podcast

I have created the Kidney Kings Podcast with my loving husband Sam to bring conversations out of the shadows and into the ‎open - conversations with patients, caregivers, clinicians, advocates, and everyday people ‎navigating kidney health in real time.‎

The podcast and this blog work together:‎

• The podcast brings voices

• The blog brings reflection, resources, and continuity

Together, they form a place where learning and listening coexist.‎

An Invitation

If you’re reading this because you’re scared, exhausted, or searching for answers at 2 a.m., I'm ‎glad you’re here. YOU are not alone.‎ I have been here and am here with YOU.

If you’re a caregiver wondering how to help without losing yourself, you belong here. YOU are ‎not alone. ‎

If you’re simply trying to understand kidney health better - for yourself or someone you love - ‎you are welcome here.‎

And you don’t have to pretend to be strong every moment.‎ Just remember this forever, “Tears are the lifeboats every small memory climbs into to survive.”

YOU are NOT alone.‎

‎— Marie Yates,

Dialysis Voice of America