two weeks to the day starts my PD experience!

[tbarrett2533]

Hello everyone 

On June 8, 2011 I will get my cath for PD! (Baxter supplies)
then its a week to heal, then about 2-3 weeks of training then........... NO MORE IN-CENTER HEMO FOR ME!!!!  yea that's right its see ya later in-center hemo I sure will not miss you!! buh-bye 

I am scared sh**tless about the unknown (which really is not that much I feel like I am almost a pro with CAPD already by what I have read about it)

a few worries.....
1. INFECTION!!
2. watching the clock to be sure that I do my exchanges "on time"
3. Calculating how many supplies I will need to pack when I want to go ANYWHERE for more than I few hours
(and no I do not want to do nocturnal b/c there are "other things" I like to be doing at night 

well wish me luck and hope & pray for me that I fall in love with it!!!! (I sure hope I do) 

[willowtreewren]

 

Aleta

[Des]

Please post in detail what your experiences are like.... day by day.

I will following in your footsteps shortly (maybe) (hoping) I am just as tired of HD.


Good luck!!!

[chook]

All the best. Hope your PD experience is a good one!

[HouseOfDialysis]

Good luck! I enjoy PD myself. I find I could do a manual exchange in 30 minutes, start to finish.  if I was really in a rush, I would put the IV pole up as high as possible, then sit on the floor. It would fill QUITE quickly. I still get a kick at when I drain in the morning after my cycler run and pull off 3700-4000ml... That's over a GALLON of liquid in the body.. Holy hell, that just impresses me.

[Willis]

I'm halfway through my Baxter training. This first week has been learning manual exchanges. Next week will be with the cycler. I'm getting my first shipment of supplies tomorrow and will be doing manual exchanges solo this weekend. It's easy...they give you a large poster with step-by-step instructions you can pin to the wall until you have it down pat. (I'm still relying on the poster so I don't forget any steps!  )

I'd say if you are only going to be learning manual exchanges that one week of training will be enough. As for watching the clock, I bought a $4 digital timer at the drug store...set the time for the dwell and quit watching the clock.

One week between your surgery and starting PD will be pushing it. I know you are anxious to get started but I'd recommend 2 weeks. I had 10 days between surgery and my first PD session and I was just barely healed. The exit site for the catheter is still not quite healed and it's been 16 days since surgery. If I hadn't been so sick and missing so much work I think waiting one more week would have been better and I generally have a pretty high pain threshold.

 

[tbarrett2533]

I'm halfway through my Baxter training. This first week has been learning manual exchanges. Next week will be with the cycler. I'm getting my first shipment of supplies tomorrow and will be doing manual exchanges solo this weekend. It's easy...they give you a large poster with step-by-step instructions you can pin to the wall until you have it down pat. (I'm still relying on the poster so I don't forget any steps!  )

I'd say if you are only going to be learning manual exchanges that one week of training will be enough. As for watching the clock, I bought a $4 digital timer at the drug store...set the time for the dwell and quit watching the clock.

One week between your surgery and starting PD will be pushing it. I know you are anxious to get started but I'd recommend 2 weeks. I had 10 days between surgery and my first PD session and I was just barely healed. The exit site for the catheter is still not quite healed and it's been 16 days since surgery. If I hadn't been so sick and missing so much work I think waiting one more week would have been better and I generally have a pretty high pain threshold.

 

Nah,
Italked to the PD nurse and the week after surgery we will do "all the paperwork" training, I know that it will be several weeks before I can use it.....  the surgeon as well as the PD nurse told me the average person waits 3 weeks  before using it

I CANT'T WAIT!!!!   

[tbarrett2533]

Please post in detail what your experiences are like.... day by day.

I will following in your footsteps shortly (maybe) (hoping) I am just as tired of HD.


Good luck!!!

and i planned  on doing this anyway to help people like me who were on the fence about doin PD or not, hopefully I can help someone else make the choice by sharring my day to day experience with it!!

[Willis]

I CANT'T WAIT!!!!   

I know what you mean...I was ready to get on with it too! The training materials are pretty much designed for anyone over the age of 10 who hasn't ever heard of PD. It's likely that you will find most of the training a real snooze fest. Bring a book and/or a pillow.

 

...oh wait, I'm not supposed to drink beer anymore... 

 

[tbarrett2533]

hahahaha 

the PD nurse says to me, "I don't know what I am going to do with a person on PD who is smart enough to know what they are doing."

at least she has some confidence in me 

and i drink shots...... annnnnd, IDC i am going to live my life regardless of kidney failure, I say you wanna beer, you have it!!!  everything is fine in moderation 

 
[/quote]

[Willis]

Maybe this should go in the "what they didn't tell you about PD" thread, but Baxter makes you take a test after every lesson! Don't say I didn't warn you. Are you smarter than a 5th grader? 

 

[Marina]

Hello everyone 

On June 8, 2011 I will get my cath for PD! (Baxter supplies)
then its a week to heal, then about 2-3 weeks of training then........... NO MORE IN-CENTER HEMO FOR ME!!!!  yea that's right its see ya later in-center hemo I sure will not miss you!! buh-bye 

I am scared sh**tless about the unknown (which really is not that much I feel like I am almost a pro with CAPD already by what I have read about it)

a few worries.....
1. INFECTION!!
2. watching the clock to be sure that I do my exchanges "on time"
3. Calculating how many supplies I will need to pack when I want to go ANYWHERE for more than I few hours
(and no I do not want to do nocturnal b/c there are "other things" I like to be doing at night 

well wish me luck and hope & pray for me that I fall in love with it!!!! (I sure hope I do) 

PD  is  an  excellent choice.  I did  CAPD  (manual  exchanges)  for  6 ½  yrs.  Piece of  cake.
Since I  had  plenty of time  between the  time I  had  my  cath  placed  and when I  needed to  start  treatment, I   had  training  1-2  days/week,  and  no  more  than  2hrs  at  a time.
I didn't  start  dialysis  for  6 weeks  after  surgery,  so  my  cath  was  fully  healed.   It's  better  if  you can  wait  a  little  longer,  because  if you  start  too soon, you  increase the chances of a hernia.

As  far  as  infections  go,  just  follow  the  close  all doors, wash and  sanitize your  hands  AND  wear  a  mask  protocols  and  you  should  be  good.
In  my time  on  CAPD  I  never had  peritionitis.  I  had  a minor  infection  on  the  exit  site.  According  to  the  culture  taken, it  was   a  "water  infection"  meaning  I  didn't  dry  the  exit  site  completely  before  putting a new  dressing  on  it.   I learned  my  lesson!!!!

At  first,  ordering  supplies  was  such a  chore I didn't  like  one  bit.       But  after  a while you  get used  to  it.

I  never had  a   schedule  to  do  my  exchanges.           well in  the  beginning I  did.    The  nurse  who  trained  me  said  every  4hrs. I  hated  to  have to stop  what  I  was  doing  to   run  home  to  do an d exchange.          But,  then   when I  had  my next  clinic  visit, the  nurse  in  charge  of  unit  was  there....  She  changed my   exchange  schedule  to NO  SCHEDULE  at  all.                 She  told  me  "I  want you  fit dialysis around your  life  and  not  live your life  around  dialysis"           I  was  told   that  as long  as I  had  my 4  exchanges/treatments  in  a  24hr  period,  and no  less  than  2hr  dwell time,  I would   be  just  fine.
That's  exactly  what  I  did.  My  Kt/V   numbers  were  always  great!!
By no  means  am I    suggesting  you  guys  to  do  the  same, not  without  first  checking  with  your nurses.                 The  reason I  was  allowed  to go  without  a  schedule is  because  I  was  a  Med-high  transporter.      A  medium-high transporter  can  go  long hours  (in  dwell/dializing)  without  re-absorbing the  solution.
You''ll  do  great  tbarrett2533!!!!

[Marina]

Maybe this should go in the "what they didn't tell you about PD" thread, but Baxter makes you take a test after every lesson! Don't say I didn't warn you. Are you smarter than a 5th grader? 

I  had  a quiz  after  each  lesson,  which  was  discussed  with  nurse  afterwards.   
Nothing  to  worry about!