ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA) \u2013 For most of us, Jan. 9 was just another day on the calendar. But, for a young man from Safety Harbor, that day was THE day to celebrate life.<\/p>\n
TJ Redding said goodbye on Jan. 9, a bittersweet farewell to a lifetime of struggle, which would ultimately become a shining success story.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a day I\u2019ll tell my kids about, my last treatment,\u201d said the young man.<\/p>\n At the tender age of 21-years-old, TJ has been a warrior, fighting since birth to stay alive after being diagnosed with a rare immune disorder as a newborn<\/p>\n He doesn\u2019t produce the antibodies needed to stay healthy, so he\u2019s had to get infusions every three weeks for the last two decades and because his body can\u2019t fight infection, he\u2019s been receiving life-saving treatment since the day he was born at Johns Hopkins All Children\u2019s Hospital in downtown St. Petersburg.<\/p>\n The nurses and staff are now family. <\/p>\n He says they\u2019ve gotten him through the darkest of times, which he admits were so bad, he thought about taking his own life.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen they told me the tumor was eroding my skull, that\u2019s when I thought I was going to die. I thought, why would I want to live through that? Why don\u2019t I just end it myself,\u201d TJ told 8 on your Side. <\/p>\n He says the one thing that stopped him? The love and support from his mom, as well as the nurses who have cared for him like a son. <\/p>\n \u201cThe people I surround myself with, without them, I would have did it. I swear. That\u2019s why I\u2019m so thankful in life. I don\u2019t take nothing for granted. They saved my life, they really did,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n On his last day of treatment, the nurses formed a conga line, dancing and celebrating in the hospital with their favorite patient, TJ, who led the crowd through the hospital.<\/p>\n This young man, filled with goodness and hope, had another reason to celebrate that day. On that last day of treatment, he turned 21. He couldn\u2019t stop smiling as he hugged the staff who helped raise him, healing him in the very place he grew up \u2013 where he won the biggest battle of his life.<\/p>\n He\u2019s alive.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you get sick, you\u2019ve got to fight, that\u2019s what I\u2019ve always learned. Don\u2019t give up. Even when you feel like you\u2019re beat, keep going. You always win with that type of mindset,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.wfla.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/71\/2020\/02\/TJ-ONE.jpg?w=900\")
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