Danielle Saltalamachia is a walking, talking miracle. But the “walking, talking” part of that statement was almost lost forever in the days following her double lung transplant in February, 2018.

“I coded, I actually died on the ER table two days after the operation. They tell me I was gone for about two-and-a-half minutes,” she says from her home in the Town of Newburgh. “Obviously, they were able to bring me back, but it was very traumatic for my husband and my family.”

“Today, people ask me ‘did you see the light?’ and I actually feel bad that I have to say no,” she says. “But I can tell you that your sense of hearing is the last to go.”

“I was in and out of consciousness as it was happening, but I could hear what was going on around me,” she says. “I felt an overwhelming sense of peace, but I could hear my husband yelling my name and my family talking to me before they ushered them out of the room.”

Danielle, 33, known as “Salty” to her friends, was born in Newburgh in 1986 with Cystic Fibrosis.

“They told my parents that I wouldn’t live to be a teenager,” she says. “But with advances in science and clinical drug trials, the age expectancy has gradually increased.”

She graduated from NFA in 1986 and Penn State in 2009 and today is a registered dietician about to begin a full-time job. But a lifetime of CF left her with a cornucopia of health issues from diabetes to sinusitis. There is an entire cart of medicines in her living room.

“She takes about 25 meds a day,” says her husband, John Nichtern.

“And I’m pretty strict with my regimen,” Danielle adds.

But the frequent lung infections from CF took a toll and for a while, before the transplant, she was strapped to a bottle of oxygen 24/7.

I take a guess, offering that there aren’t a whole lot of double lung transplants going on in the U.S.

“About 2,000 a year,” John says.

“That’s because first somebody has to die and their lungs have to be in good condition and they need to be a registered donor,” says Danielle. “And New York is one of the lowest organ donor states.”

So, not surprisingly, Danielle volunteers with LiveOnNY.org, a non-profit organ donor organization that spreads awareness.

“I feel great now, I feel better than I ever have,” she says. “I’ve really never been able to take a deep breath in my life but now I can and I can thank a donor for that.”

So, does she know who her lung donor was?

“I don’t, but I’ve drafted a letter to the family,” she says. “The letter has to go through the United Network of Organ Sharing and they will forward it. I don’t know if I will get a response, but I want to honor my donor’s memory by doing things they may have enjoyed.”

Danielle gets teary-eyed at this point and, really, who wouldn’t.

“I feel extremely grateful. I wasn’t sure if I would make it to this age and some of it is the science and medicine, but I also have an incredible support team,” she says. “My family and friends, my husband and my healthcare team have been amazing.”

“The experience has changed my entire perspective on everyday life,” Danielle says. “Trivial things don’t bother me anymore. I wake up and I’m thankful that I’m here and that someone was a donor.”

“I’m living on borrowed time,” she says.

John DeSanto is a freelance photojournalist. Find more of his 845LIFE stories, photos and videos at recordonline.com. Reach John at jjdesanto@gmail.com