A New Experience

[JScott1753]

Greetings, everyone!

Tomorrow, after weeks of unsuccessful "education" of the techs/nurses about my grafts, and how they are next to each other, etc., I will learn how to put in my needles. Final straw was a week ago, when it took a tech and a nurse 10-15 minutes to get my arterial in. No one has wanted to pay attention to the arterial being fairly shadow, don't stick the "curve," since the new graft is under the old one, and the veinous is deeper than the arterial. I knew I was in trouble when, the first or second time after the new graft was put in, the nurse, after digging around for one or two minutes, with surprise in her voice, said"Oh! You said the venous was deeper, didn't you?"--this, not even three minutes after I took a long time to explain what was different. Sigh...

So, now, if I have any problems, I will have no one to blame but myself!

Thanks, everyone, and Happy Thanksgiving!
Jon

[fearless]

I am interested to hear about you learning to stick yourself.  I want to do that for myself too.  Right now I'm sitting here with a left arm that's almost 2x the size of the right one, and covered elbow to wrist with an assortment of red, purple and blackish-blue swatches - very extensive, and PAINFUL! (after 3 days still)  So far since i started: 2 tries and 2 fails.  And my fistula is not complicated at all like yours!  What the heck?!

[HILINE]

if it took a tech or nurse 10-15 I would not allow them to stick me

[JScott1753]

Well, last week was not the first time something like that happened.

Actually, it went better than I expected, although the tech for my area seemed upset that I wanted to do it myself. He said," if nurses and techs couldn't do it, what makes you think you can do it?"

The arterial went pretty easily, but due to the fact I have to hold my hand at a weird angle, the venous was more difficult. I had help available, so I'm sure with practice, I'll figure it out.

And, surprisingly, there was much less discomfort than I expected. Perhaps because *I* did it, huh?

Anyway, I'm looking forward to Friday(we're on special holiday schedule), which should be my next attempt.
Jon

[tbarrett2533]

I wish when I was doing in-center that they would have let me do my own needles!!!

i think it would have saved me EVERY single one of my those MANY infiltrations that they just so happed to ALWAYS blame on me!!!!!

good luck to you and you know what I say its your body, your health so I commend you for taking charge of it!!! good for you!!!!