In 2006, Andy Sandness felt so lost and depressed, he tried to take his own life.
Sadly, this changed his life forever, as it did not end it, but instead forced him to live differently after disfiguring his face.
When police arrived, an officer who was also a friend held Andy. "Please, please don't let me die!" Andy cried. "I don't want to die!"
Thankfully he did not die, but instead spent the next 10 years on a very rare medical journey. He was rushed from his home in Wyoming to the Mayo Clinic. There he met with a man he'd spend the next decade working with, Dr. Samir Mardini.
Dr. Mardini, along with many other doctors and surgeons at the Mayo Clinic, worked to recover what they could for Andy. They reconstructed his face as best they could. But he had no nose and had to wear a prosthetic. His mouth was only an inch wide, so he could not chew food.
For years Andy lived like this until Dr. Mardini told him that the Mayo Clinic would finally begin trials for face transplants, a very rare surgery. He thought Andy would be an ideal candidate.
It took some time for a donor match to come into the system for Andy, and that is where another sad story comes into this: Another man tried to take his life. Calen "Rudy" Ross was tragically successful.
Calen's family, including his pregnant fiancée, had to make a choice, since Calen was an organ donor. They had to choose if they wanted to donate his face. When Lilly consulted with Calen's best friend, she agreed that the donation was a good idea.
After years of waiting, Andy was finally going to get the surgery. Even though doctors warned him that there were many risks, he remained positive and did not rush them into surgery. He was ready to go at their pace.
In the video below, you can see Andy finally get a second chance at life and his reaction to his new face. He had one thing to say after seeing it: "Far exceeded my expectations."
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