My Solution to PD Drain Pain

[BrandyChloe]

I started PD a couple of weeks ago and started having really bad drain pain the second day. After a couple of days of that, I knew there was no way I would be able to do PD. I would start getting anxious around 8 pm knowing I had to hook up in a couple of hours and actually had tears in my eyes one night knowing what was coming.

In researching painful PD drain pain, I found that gas could make it worse. I have been (and still am) having problems with gas pains so in researching how to help get rid of gas, I found that sodium bicarb makes gas worse. Well, my neph had me taking sodium bicarb tabs to keep the acid in my body in check. Based on what I read, I quit taking the bicarb tablets and my drain pain went away.

I now take Gas-X  and extra strength Tylenol and that seems to keep the gas from getting to the point where I have the drain pain.

Don't know if that will help anyone but wanted to put it out there just in case.

[jennyc]

Hi,
Also has anyone noticed the increase of Gas in relation to how much ice they chew? I mean when water freezes it traps air into the ice.

[peleroja]

Ok, what am I not understanding here?  Doesn't SODIUM bicarbonate contain sodium, and sodium of any kind is bad for us, yes?  So, why would a doctor prescribe something with sodium in it?    Somebody please 'splain to me!

[Marsh]

Don't know but I take it twice a day!

[KICKSTART]

Sodium bicarbonate can be used for indigestion (it makes you get rid of the wind) but as a dialysis patient we are supposed to avoid it like the plague ! As for drain pain , lots of people get that , for some it goes away with time , for others it doesnt. It is not directly related to wind but more commonly when you reach the end of the drain out, the catheter keeps sucking if you will , hence the pain, if you notice as soon as it switches from drain to fill the pain stops! From your post it looks like you are on a cycler? The easiest way to stop drain pain on a cycler is to set it to TIDAL , ask your pd nurse about doing this , it stops the drain pain ,as it just stops short of draining all the fluid out , hence you dont get that pinch 

[*kana*]

Bravo!  I am happy you found a solution to your pain.  The clinic nurses just laugh at me when I tell them I get drain pain toward the end.  The ones calls me a wimp and I think he is half serious.   


Since I have been on PD, I hardly ever toot.  I thought that was where the air came from in my effluent bag.   

[BrandyChloe]

I wondered the same thing too about the bicarb tablets but didn't seem to affect BP or anything. Have taken them for years. (Up to recently.)

My drain pain seems to be coming from gas pains. Haven't had any pain for about a week until I ate at Chili's yesterday for lunch and got bad indigestion so had drain pain last night.

Guess I will see tonight if it's gone.

[Lillupie]

peleroja
Alright I will try to explain this. I learned a little bit more in Chemistry last semester.
 First of all, lets talk Ph. Ph is on the scale of 1-14. Its acidic and basic. A stubstance, thing, or an item is acidic on the scale of 1-almost 7. the lower the number the more acidic it is, like pepsi, or lemon. 7 is a neutral, so if it measures 7 it is not an acidic or a base. Base are the things that are way less acidic.
 Our body, our kidneys keeps it in check or as neutral as possible. When you have stomach problems and/ or especially kidney failure, our body can no longer keep our blood in check. In time of being in stages 1-4 of kidney disease, we begin to lose the ability to get rid of the acid in our body. The toxins built up in our blood causes our blood to be very acidic. Giving us sodium bicarbonate helps to balance out the Ph, making  our blood close to neutral, not too acidic. The gas, i believe that our farts and burps is from the sodium bicarbonate working to get rid of the acid in our blood. Think of baking soda, and how it neutralizes something, like the reason why you put it in your freezer or fridge.
 I had sodium bicarbonate at stage 4 kidney disease, and i too, if i took it correctly had a lot of gas, and boy it sure smelled! That is the reason why. From reading what you put in my questionaire for my book, I see why you dont know this. You really didnt know until the very end that you needed dialysis. Many patients just starting dialysis or before dialysis, will have to take Sodium bicarbonate. After awhile of being on dialysis, you no longer need it. If you were still on hemo, i would of told you to look at your machine. On the hemo machine, it is more obvious because the container with the white powery stuff is the bicarbonate.

If what i said didnt help you, check this website out
http://www.elmhurst.edu/~chm/vchembook/184ph.html

Hope this helps peleroja

Lisa

Ok, what am I not understanding here?  Doesn't SODIUM bicarbonate contain sodium, and sodium of any kind is bad for us, yes?  So, why would a doctor prescribe something with sodium in it?    Somebody please 'splain to me!

[sico]

Bravo!  I am happy you found a solution to your pain.  The clinic nurses just laugh at me when I tell them I get drain pain toward the end.  The ones calls me a wimp and I think he is half serious. 

How can they know without having a catheter inserted and letting it suck on their guts?
I reckon it's like the catheter is trying to stab me at times. Lucky though some nights pain free.

[loopywinks]

Bravo!  I am happy you found a solution to your pain.  The clinic nurses just laugh at me when I tell them I get drain pain toward the end.  The ones calls me a wimp and I think he is half serious. 

How can they know without having a catheter inserted and letting it suck on their guts?
I reckon it's like the catheter is trying to stab me at times. Lucky though some nights pain free.

I think my body is trying to figure out why this crazy foreign object is plugged into my belly.. it has only been two weeks, but I am still having stabbing cramps (at least it feels like it is stabbing).  I have only had my catheter flushed once and felt what I believe is the drain pain.  The nurses I was with just said that it is normal and I just thought.. well crap.

I can really see how someone could have intense anxiety about draining.  If it happens every day several times a day.. it can be like torture.  I think I would get ornery if a nurse told me I was a wimp!! Let them try to deal with these nasty intrusive procedures and the exhaustion and the nausea and the total lifestyle change and the other stuff that goes along with this disease.  Ok.. I will stop and be nice now   

I really hope that you are feeling better and your body is tolerating PD in a way that works for you.... soon.

All of my recent experiences and these posts remind me of a greeting card that my friend gave me years ago.... and I hope this is not offensive to anyone.....

Question:   What is a toot?


Answer:  The cry of an imprisoned turd.


Have a great weekend! 
Warmest Regards,

Tracy (aka Loopywinks)

[tinyspiko]

I know this was posted a while ago, but I wanted to answer the sodium bicarb question. My type of kidney disease is RTA Type 4, whic means Renal Tubular Acidosis and the Type 4 mean Potassium loading. In addition to the PH, sodium bicarb helps excrete potassium. Obviously, I do not have high blood pressure, actually runs low and now is normal in ESRD due to Addison's Disease. Without the Bicarb my CO2 drops to 12 (Yikes!) and Potassium will spike. Doc said when I go on PD, I will discontinue bicarb. Also, to cure the gas, take the bicarb on an empty stomach  a couple hours after last meal of day. Works like a charm!

[gloria]

Bravo!  I am happy you found a solution to your pain.  The clinic nurses just laugh at me when I tell them I get drain pain toward the end.  The ones calls me a wimp and I think he is half serious. 

How can they know without having a catheter inserted and letting it suck on their guts?
I reckon it's like the catheter is trying to stab me at times. Lucky though some nights pain free.

I think my body is trying to figure out why this crazy foreign object is plugged into my belly.. it has only been two weeks, but I am still having stabbing cramps (at least it feels like it is stabbing).  I have only had my catheter flushed once and felt what I believe is the drain pain.  The nurses I was with just said that it is normal and I just thought.. well crap.

I can really see how someone could have intense anxiety about draining.  If it happens every day several times a day.. it can be like torture.  I think I would get ornery if a nurse told me I was a wimp!! Let them try to deal with these nasty intrusive procedures and the exhaustion and the nausea and the total lifestyle change and the other stuff that goes along with this disease.  Ok.. I will stop and be nice now   

I really hope that you are feeling better and your body is tolerating PD in a way that works for you.... soon.

All of my recent experiences and these posts remind me of a greeting card that my friend gave me years ago.... and I hope this is not offensive to anyone.....

Question:   What is a toot?


Answer:  The cry of an imprisoned turd.


Have a great weekend! 
Warmest Regards,

Tracy (aka Loopywinks)