Fluid Restriction

[bhall777]

How do you fend off being thirsty with the fluid restriction during the day?

Im on in center Hemodialysis and I only weigh about 46.5kg and because of this my Max fluid pull per treatment is only 2.1kg.

Because of this my max fluid intake or fluid restriction is 12oz or less per day.

Needless to say im ALWAYS extremely thirsty during the day and keeping fluids to 12oz or less per day is EXTREMELY difficult for me. But when I dont i just drift further and further away from my dry weight..

Any pointers?

[kristina]

How do you fend off being thirsty with the fluid restriction during the day?

Im on in center Hemodialysis and I only weigh about 46.5kg and because of this my Max fluid pull per treatment is only 2.1kg.

Because of this my max fluid intake or fluid restriction is 12oz or less per day.

Needless to say im ALWAYS extremely thirsty during the day and keeping fluids to 12oz or less per day is EXTREMELY difficult for me. But when I dont i just drift further and further away from my dry weight..

Any pointers?

Hello bhall, I do remember this problem very well and it is indeed a very difficult one, especially in the beginning...
But there are interesting ways to deal with it and find your own way. I first started by examining and questioning everything I was going to eat, in order to make sure, that my food is as bland as possible (without salt or any spices) and to make it as interesting as possible, i.e. nice "garnishing" with a little salad-leaf here etc., i.e. brown rice cooked with a few vegetables (make sure to watch your potassium etc.)...
Another important point for me was from the start to avoid at all costs any ready-made-foods, because ready-made-food is often "garnished" with lots of sugar (watch your weight) and lots of salt (makes you very, very thirsty indeed)etc.
Another point is to buy your vegetables as fresh as possible to eat as healthy as is possible etc.
That is all I can offer as ideas and hopefully you'll notice the individual taste of each food-intake after a little while  ... and I also use a bread-baking machine to bake salt-less bread, which is very healthy and tasty indeed ... Good luck and best wishes from Kristina.
P.S. I am a vegetarian and every month I asked the nurses for a print-out of my blood-tests and could check-up on my potassium etc. to get my diet more and more refined ... and I noticed, that the more I kept strictly to my diet, the better I felt and the more I could do ... Good Luck !!

[cassandra]

Hi hall, also use ice-cubes in cold drinks, and small cups.


Good luck, Cas

[UkrainianTracksuit]

I agree with cassandra about small cups! It is a bit of mental training to sip that small cup to ensure the drink lasts longer, than a big gulp, and looking for the next drink so soon.

Ice cubes in drinks, yes, but also have some to suck/spit out in a cup/sink or whatnot. Your mouth gets wets, but the fluid is minimal. Many people love frozen grapes for a similar reason and they are lower in potassium.

The mouthwash Biotene is somewhat helpful if you don't mind minty taste. It prevents dry mouth so it helped for me when I brushed my teeth to get rid of the dry feeling overnight and for a lot of the morning (brushed again). It is suggested to those on chemo and radiation too.

[PrimeTimer]

My husband sucks on ice cubes. He also likes popsicles and sometimes those Outshine Fruit Bars, particularly the lemon flavored. At the store I found mini cans of 7.5 ounces of Canada Dry Ginger Ale, he loves those. And for fun (not really), I got him glass beer mugs that I frost in the freezer and pour his Ginger Ale in. We call it his "special beer". You can also look for Ritz "Hint of Salt" crackers or saltine crackers with "unsalted tops" or even unsalted tortilla chips. They're a bit bland but hey, they're good for snacking.