My first thought was, if this story tanked, there is no hope for any of mine! I was hooked from the first word and cried at the end. It's possible, having worked as a pre-heart-transplant nurse and as a friend of a heart recipient, I may have a different level of interest than most, but I can't imagine this story not engaging readers. Perhaps, like others have said, the title needs to be different. (Maybe: "Survivor Guilt Motivates Me to Live My Best Life: Navigating life post lung-transplant is harder than most realize.")

Although I hesitate to suggest capitalizing in any way on the current pandemic, it might have helped to specify in the title that it was a lung transplant you received, as respiratory illnesses are a current issue.

I agree moving the paragraphs around a bit might provide a stronger introduction. And perhaps it was in the wrong publiction, being read by the wrong audience.

Thank you for sharing your story. I think you should consider submitting it to a publication beyond Medium.