Life expectancy on dialysis.

[Ohio Buckeye]

I figure my time is in God's hands.

[kitkatz]

I was looking for the tread that had the graph of the dialysis patients lifespan over time. My daughter could use the graph for her presentation in a week.

[aharris2]

It's in "lifespan", 2nd page of Dialysis: General Discussion

[kitkatz]

Could you link me to it, please!

[okarol]

It's in "lifespan", 2nd page of Dialysis: General Discussion

Here's the thread, I didn't find the graph but have a look http://ihatedialysis.com/forum/index.php?topic=4730.0

[celtic warrior]

As my Wife (the one on Dialysis) would say " I am too busy getting on with life to worry about the end of it"  just about says it all don't you think?

[stauffenberg]

The whole propaganda about 'live just one day at a time' and 'don't worry about how long you have to live' just doesn't make sense in terms of the way people rather than animals live their lives.  Because we have a consciousness that looks not only to the present but also to the past and future, we are living in all three dimensions at once, so 'life' at any given moment for us includes what we can expect to have enough time to do in the future.  If you could really just live one moment at a time and enjoy a meaningful life that way, then you could have as much fun in the last hour while you were awaiting your turn to be called to the electric chair as you could on a long summer afternoon when you were 8 years old and didn't have a care in the world.

A good example to clarify the error of supposing that you can enjoy just one day at a time without thinking of what your future holds is this:  If someone could offer you the chance to have a billion dollars in the bank, perfect health, a  perfect lifemate, loving children, and fame, but with the catch that you would also have to be 98 years old to enjoy these benefits, no one would accept the offer.  Why?  Because your future life expectancy casts its shadow over every present moment you live and can utterly ruin every moment if you know it is too short to give your present projects any meaningful context.

[okarol]

Worry never robs tomorrow of its sorrow, it only saps today of its joy. ~ Leo Buscaglia

[Zach]

If someone could offer you the chance to have a billion dollars in the bank, perfect health, a  perfect lifemate, loving children, and fame, but with the catch that you would also have to be 98 years old to enjoy these benefits, no one would accept the offer.

Perfect health at 98?  What's not to like?

I believe many people would accept this offer.
And with a billion dollars to leave a perfect lifemate and loving children, why not accept?

[willieandwinnie]

I'm with you Zach. 

[monrein]

My future life expectancy has never cast its shadow over my present and many so-called meaningful projects of other people are in fact quite irrelevant in my eyes.  Climbing the corporate ladder is but one example and I mean no disrespect to anyone for whom that is the ultimate in meaning. Au contraire, the awareness that I might die younger than I might have under different circumstances has made the present by far the most important dimension for me.  As human beings we can get quite silly with an exaggerated sense of our own importance ( I think of my younger self so earnest about my academic pursuits that I sacrificed a few things that I shouldn't have) and the reality of our own relative insignificance in the world is truly humbling when we put it into the larger context.
Living one day at a time may not work for some, but for those who manage it there can be satisfaction, meaning and joy.

[KR Cincy]

I figure I had no real idea what my life expantcy really was before I got sick...I know it was very limited with two cancerous kidnesy...so whatever I get while on dialysis is OK by me. Though it does get tiresome hearing how dialysis won't kill me, but it's hell on my heart and that might give. Grrreat...thanks...

[Treasure]

Ah.  The last few job interviews I have gone on included the question, "Where do you see yourself in 5 years?"  I'm sure I'm supposed to say something to the effect "Working for you..."  But I really can't resist being honest and saying, " My life expectancy is less than 5 years, so I don't see myself working here." hehehe. For some reason, I don't ever get these jobs! hehehe  They don't realize that because I'm probably not going to be hanging around this world indefinitely, that if they employed me,  I'm going to  roll up my sleeves and do a blazingly fast, remarkable job-- because time is short.

I did the calculations when I first started dialysis, and they are my guiding force. I set my goals by those calculations...I compel others to get on the ball, by sharing that calculation with them. It would be super if there are treatments for my FSGS that would extend my life, but for now, my eye is on the prize of doing as much as I can for my family, and the world, in the probable time I have left.

[petey]

My Marvin (now a 13-year-and-2-month dialysis patient) has several answers about his life expectancy when people ask him how long he can live on dialysis.

Sometimes he says, "I'm going to live -- and really LIVE -- until I die."

Other times, he says, "I intend to live forever -- and so far, so good."

We live in the "today," and we enjoy each day (and have a very meaningful, happy, full "today" every day).  We also make plans for tomorrow, next week, next year, ten years from now, etc.

[Sunny]

I think the old "cliche" to live in the moment can be very useful and I try my best to abide by it.
However, I would be in complete denial if I tried to say my health problems weren't always
weighing on me. Most of the time I manage to push it underground into my subconsous, but it is always playing
in the back of my mind. I know my life has been cut short dramatically because of kidney disease. It's a difficult
fact to live with and one that others with no health problems could never understand. I always find things to
look forward to in the future many months down the road, otherwise life would really be tedious. So for me,
living just in the moment isn't enough. With the shortened life-span I have, I've got to think of all those people,
places, and things I want to see.

[flip]

I don't see my life span being shortened by dialysis more so than any other factors. There is one lady who posts on Davita that has been on dialysis for 38 years. Since I don't have any other medical issues, I can see myself living for a long time on dialysis.

[del]

Hubby doesn't have any other medical issues other than kidney failure either.  Life goes on .  He may never die from kidney disease/dialysis.  We are living life and making plans like we always have!! Life is too short tpo spend time thinking about dying and how long we have left in this world!!

[paris]

I agree with Sunny. You have to realize what is going on, deal with it, but I also look at it as a wake up call.  So I really am focusing on enjoying life and thinking of what I would like to do that I haven't done or seen.  I have been extremely busy my whole life working, mothering, volunteering,etc and didn't take time to accomplish some things I wanted to do. So I am a little more selfish now and my family not only accepts it, they push me to do and plan more.  One son wants me to train with him for a marathon----no way! --but he sees me as someone who can do anything now and I like that. My oldest daughter wants her two little ones to spend as much time with me as possible. Not because I am going to die tomorrow, but she realizes time is precious, no matter how much we have.   Two years ago, I didn't think this way. I was writing my will, planning my last wishes------I don't have time for that now!  There is Chicago and Vegas to plan for!!

[Bill Peckham]

Could you link me to it, please!

http://www.billpeckham.com/from_the_sharp_end_of_the/2008/03/dialysis-lifesp.html
This post includes a table from the USRDS

[kevno]

Started on Hemo at the age of ten 1977, had transplant 81, last till 88 been on dialysis ever since. Can not take one day at a time. To many bloody bills to pay, thing to do.

[fluffy]

Didnt realize how scared i was til i pondered the life expectancy question just now. Makes me wish i still had my xanax, then i wouldnt give a shit. sleep will be difficult tonight.

[monrein]

For me, the idea of living one day at a time does not mean that one doesn't make plans or do things like work etc.  It simply means being really attentive to the present as if that were all there is.  This "cliche" (the saying is a cliche, the philosophy behind it isn't) is central to much of buddhist thought, the notion that we need to be here now,to be truly present in the present and is as valid for people with illness as it is for everyone.  The hard part for me about this is that sometimes the present is not fun, it's tough times or painful or sad.  But these times need to be acknowledged and even honoured too.  When I'm dealing with feelings I'd prefer to sweep away I get through them better if I allow myself to feel them not push them down inside myself or ignore them until they get stronger and take over.  I'm not saying this is always entirely possible and it's not about dwelling on things either but for me one step at a time and trying to pay more attention to the present is helpful. 

[Zach]

Since I don't have any other medical issues, I can see myself living for a long time on dialysis.

 

[Sluff]

Good for you monrein.  I guess the real title should be, Life expectancy without dialysis.

[Roadrunner]

When we were in our 40s my husband had angina.  We loved wilderness camping.  Everyone said "How can you go into the woods when he may have a heart attack at any time?"  We worried about it for a while and then decided that we could continue doing what we love or sit home and wait for the heart attack.  Wilderness camping won.  He is now 74 and on dialysis and has never had a heart attack but did have a bypass.  We had 30 years of doing what we loved.  Now we can't go wilderness camping anymore but we still have a life and can do many other things.  We can still go to the wilderness but we stay in a cabin now and take day trips. 

Found this article that shows if you become involved in your care your survival chances go up.

The mortality rate during the first 90 days of dialysis is estimated to be at least 25%. The study by Wingard  et al. noted that hemodialysis patients selected for an early program of intervention and education (RightStart) had a better survival rate at 3 months, 6 months and 12 months and fewer days in hospital than did individuals who received 'usual care'. A 45% reduction in the risk of death during the first year of dialysis in patients without diabetes was noted in the RightStart cohort compared with the control group.

More information can be read here:  http://www.healthcentral.com/incontinence/news-193196-66.html