When Spencer Ellis first learned that he would need dialysis for his kidney disease, he started crying.

“I thought I was here today, gone tomorrow,” Spencer says. “I was depressed for a while — until I realized that [the diagnosis] wasn’t a death sentence, it was a life sentence.”

Exercise gave Spencer the energy to act and start searching for what to do next.

“I started exercising. I just wanted to do anything to get out of the house,” Spencer says. “It was hard on my wife for me to be around all the time. Everything was falling on her. I wanted to help my family, so I decided to apply for a job at the library as a security guard.”

Spencer’s work keeps his mind on something other than his illness and makes him feel better about himself.

“Working has helped me stop thinking that [dialysis] is all I have to do every day,” Spencer says. “It gives me something else to focus on.”

The job has made his family more financially secure, but more importantly, it has given them all an emotional boost.

“When they see me happy, it helps them. If I’m feeling good, it helps them to feel good,” Spencer says. “I play basketball with my son. I’m not any good at it, but its fun to be out there with him and he appreciates it.”

Spencer has words of encouragement for other kidney patients who often feel depressed or overwhelmed with their disease. He urges them to remember that it’s not what great things you accomplish, but it’s what you try.

“Everybody’s got different problems,” Spencer says. “But that doesn’t mean you can’t do something. Walk around the block. Focus on doing something you can do. Life is about what’s possible. Don’t let yourself be defined by what you can’t do.”