Nate Robinson Tells a Powerful Story That Helped Him During His Health Crisis originally appeared in NBC Sports Chicago
Former Bulls guard Nate Robinson has been battling kidney failure since 2018. He has also been on dialysis for years to help treat it.
He recently told the Daily Mail that doesn’t “have long to live” if he doesn’t receive a kidney transplant.
“I know I won’t have much time if I don’t get a kidney,” Robinson said. Jake Nisse of the Daily Mail. “I know I won’t have long to live. So I just want to make the most of it as much as I can.
Robinson undergoes dialysis three days a week. Each session lasts four hours. He said he usually sleeps, reads or watches a movie during treatment.
But the depression he faced at the start of dialysis was crippling. He lived through some dark days.
“I lost control for a while in the early years when I was on dialysis,” Robinson said in “OGs Podcast with Udonis Haslem and Mike Miller.” “I haven’t picked up a basketball in a while, man. I was depressed. I was very tired, I wasn’t doing anything, I was in the dark a lot.”
The demands of consistent treatment combined with the fear of not knowing whether you will receive a transplant or whether you will see another day are brutal. Robinson also said he has formed relationships with people at his treatment center who have died despite receiving treatment.
At his treatment center, he learned to have a stronger, more positive mindset. Robinson has a greater appreciation for life, knowing that some people are going through worse times than he is. And he shared a powerful story on the podcast about what helped him achieve this mindset.
“When I go to dialysis and get hooked up, they clean out my toxins and clean out my blood, and I’m going through the entire dialysis treatment,” Robinson said. “There are different types of people sitting next to me who are going through the same thing. And every morning, I go into dialysis at 5:30 or something like that. and sits with her, and she is blind.
“So she’s blind and has kidney failure. So it’s like how can I be depressed or discouraged about what I’m going through? She can’t even see and she’s going through what I’m going through. … I’m humble. I’m grateful for the things I have. I can see, I can taste, I can feel, I can walk. There are a lot of things that so many people go through that don’t get the chance to do any of those things. I take my time to really thank God for every opportunity.
Robinson told “Player” podcast that he discovered he would end up facing kidney failure later in life due to high blood pressure when he was with the New York Knicks in 2006.
The warning didn’t stop Robinson from captivating NBA fans with an electric career.
Robinson, 39, played 11 seasons in the NBA for eight different teams, including a season with the Bulls in 2012-13. That year, he played in all 82 games and averaged 13.1 points, 4.4 assists, 2.2 rebounds and shot 40.5% from three-point range.
Prior to his time in Chicago, Robinson made a name for himself as a member of the Knicks when he became the first player in history to win the Slam Dunk Contest three times.
He has also ventured into other fruitful areas outside of basketball. In 2014, Robinson released a book called “Heart over Height.” That same year, he opened a chicken and waffles restaurant in his hometown of Seattle.
In 2016, he played for the Seattle Seahawks practice squad. In the podcast mentioned above, he wore a Seahawks chain. And in 2020, he trained in boxing, fighting Jake Paul on the undercard of the friendly match Mike Tyson vs. Roy Jones Jr. He lost in the second round by knockout.
Robinson had an incredible life. And despite going through a life-changing kidney disease, he found a positive light to stay faithful to during his treatments.
“I was like, man, this is not who I am,” Robinson said of his depression. “I’m very positive. I’m a very positive person. I’ve got too much life in me to be depressed like that. I’ve never felt that before – being depressed. It was hard, bro. It was it was really hard the first few years.”
