fatigue and tired doing CAPD

[honeysuckle417]

I have a question for someone on PD, CAPD to be exact.
My husband has been doing this now for about 3 weeks, he's dizzy during draining and his blood pressure is lower. He's tired and lathargic most of the time. Is this true with anyone else? The PD nurse doesn't seem to concerned about it, but I sure am.
Anyyhing?

[okarol]

Was he on blood pressure meds before he started CAPD? He may need them reduced or eliminated.
Are you only doing yellow bags? How much fill quantity is he doing? He may be pulling too much fluid which will cause him to crash.
How many exchanges a day does he do?
I cannot understand why the nurse isn't concerned. 

[Charlie B53]

I currently use one 5 liter bag of green, one five liter bag of yellow, and one two liter bag of icoo that remains in me all day.  This conbination takes off about three pounds of water.  If I see a larger weight gain at my evening weigh-in or I see and feel a little more swelling in my ankles then I may switch to both green bags to take off that extra pound, maybe a small amount more.  My blood pressures stay pretty fair but over the last two years we have totally removed three BP meds and now that the weather is warming and I am getting outside we are making further adjustments to a BP med to reduce the lightheadedness that I had been getting when I bend over to pick anything up.  My pressure would drop and on three occasions I actually passed out for a second or two.  Just long enough that I ended up on the ground, slightly dazed and confused at how quickloy it happens.

If your Husband is using red bags and taking off a LOT of fluid then I would expect that to shock his system and could cause BP drops.

Are you keeping a good chart of his morning and evening weights?  How much is he taking off ever night?  If more than just a few pounds then check to see what his fluid intake is, perhaps he needs to limit his intake just a bit so as to reduce how much he needs to pull off each night.  3 pounds as a good number for me.

If his BP's are consistently running a hair on the low side then maybe contact his Dr and ask if his BP meds need adjusting.

[honeysuckle417]

Thank you all for the info. He doesn't use a machine, he does 4 manual exchanges.
I was wondering if , to someone who uses a cycler,do you have to dwell during the day as,well as when you're sleeping?
That info wasn't giver and Google doesn't seem to give me answers.
Thanks!

[jeannea]

I used the cycler. Overnight I had five cycles of fill, dwell, drain I believe for a total of 9 hours. My fill was 1500 mL. After the last drain, before the machine turned off, I got another 1500 mL to keep all day. Most people have an amount for the day. However, if you have a need to lift heavy items every day, you can talk to the nurse about being empty.

[Joe]

When i was on the cycler I did 5 2L exchanges through the night and a final fill in the morning. I drained the last fill 3 hours after I came off the cycler and was empty during the day. I agree that your husband may be taking off too much too fast if his BP is dropping too much. I'd press the nurse to make sure, and ask her why she is not concerned. IF you have questions about what is going on, press the nurses or doc until you are satisfied. You are your own best advocate.

[Seaweed]

Hello honey
When I  started on pd  , remember I was getting dizzy  , so my blood pressure was dropping , I had to stop taking my bp meds. Your pulling fluid out

I can't stress this enough in order for you two to enjoy your life , you both need to get healthy .

Many people who  start  out on this journey  are over weight , no exercise, we drink to much fluid , I've been on pd for a year now , I'm a lot better off now
But I still struggle with diet and fluid intake. As a care giver just be patient read everything and ask questions

[Charlie B53]

I did 4 manuals daily for over a year before starting with the cycler.  My first month I took off at least 40 POUNDS of water.  My blood pressure dropped so much I was dizzy all the time until the Dr's had me stop taking TWO of my BP Meds.  Over the next year I have taken off another 50 pounds, maybe half of that fat as with 2 liters in me all the time pressing on my stomach I got full quite rapidly and I do not eat near as much as I used to.  I may want more, but I can only really eat what I need.  This isn't a bad thing.  But with the additional fluid and weight loss my BP Meds had to be reduced as well.

Even doing manuals your Husband needs to keep track of his weight and blood pressure.  Even a 10 pound drop in weight can be cause for BP Med adjustment.

You know the old saying, "Document, Document, DOCUMENT!"  When the Dr sees your record of daily weights and BP's then he will have the information to make a decision.

Having done manuals for over a year before starting with the Cycler makes a big difference.  Where I had 4 alarms set to remind me, drop whatever I was doing in the yard, barn, garden, and extremely limiting distance I traveled on errands, now I am FREE ALL DAY!  Whoo Hoo!  No more stopping in the middle of everything, washing up VERY clean cause I do NOT want the risk of an infection from dirty hands.  I now only connect ONCE, in the evening, and stay connected til morning.  Sure, it cuts my evening a bit shorter.  But the 3 prong casseette hoses are a LOT longer than those on the 4 prong cassette, plus, I have an extension hose that gives me run of half the house, with my machine in the bedroom.  I've thought about locating my Cycler in the middle of the house and I'd be able to go anywhere in the house.  I may do that yet as I have NOT smoked in the house for over 30 years.  I have insulated the garage so I can still have a cigarette in my underwear, in the Winter.  Still haven't put A/C out there, for 20 years, but there is a fan and an exhaust vent in the ceiling so it still isn't that hot in there mid-Summer.

I very highly recommend the Cycler as a serious consideration for your Husband.  I has made a great difference for me.

Take Care,

Charlie B