Starting dialysis next Tuesday

[big777bill]

 I just got back and all went well . The Dr who did the catheter was really good. He kept me laughing throughout the procedure by telling me corny jokes. I'm a big fan of corny or stupid jokes. Oh yeah, there was barely any pain at all. I'm not a big fan of pain. When the catheter was installed we went to the dialysis center and started filling out a small mountain of paperwork. They hooked me up to the machine while I was reading and signing the papers. I looked to my right and they had the machine was  pumping blood I was losing my dialysis virginity! I didn't even know it was running! The staff were all very polite and professional. All in all a good day

[willowtreewren]

Great report! 

I'm so glad it went smoothly! Yeah, they have you sign your life away with that mountain of paperwork. And then they don't give YOU a copy!!! Ack!

I hope things keep on going well for you, Bill! 

Aleta

[boswife]

   Beautiful start    My hubby, Bo, had a great start and it continued that way.    Hoping this for you as well..  Im so happy that that the staff was good to ya (so was bo's  )  as this will be a part of your new family for a while and boyyyyyyyyy oh boy does it make a difference in your feelings about going there. (now doing home hemo w/nxstage but not because we didnt like the center) Bless you and thanks for checking in with us   Super good to know the 'first' is behind ya   

[MooseMom]

Oh, that is just outstanding news, it really is!  I know a lot of us fear dialysis so much, as Riverwhispering has noted, and it comes as such a relief to hear good news such as this.  Thanks so much for reporting back.

[galvo]

Congatulations, bill. Welcome to the club.

[Riverwhispering]

Bill thank you so much for sharing your first time.   You cracked me up with your "no longer a virgin" stuff 

Best of luck and my heart is with you

[MooseMom]

Congatulations, bill. Welcome to the club.

And just exactly what are the perks to this "club"?  (And DON'T say "staying alive".)

[lmunchkin]

Wonderful to hear Bill! Keep posting!

 
lmunchkin

[galvo]

I will indeed say 'staying alive'. Add to that the wonderful feeling of waking-up on a non dialysis day; the joy of a successful needling; the splendour of a limp hospital sandwich; the excitement of seeing a fellow sufferer crashing; seeing the terror in a newbie's eyes; the wonderment of fluctuating blood pressure.

I could go on but I might be late for D. And we can't let that happen.

Hoo-Roo

[MooseMom]

Nope...don't wanna be a member of THAT club.

[Whamo]

I'm green with envy.  My wife is a nurse supervisor, but she wants no part of being my care-giver.  She leaves it all in the big hospital where she's the Queen Bee.  I'd love to do "D" at home instead of the kidney center, but at least at the center you get professional help every time.  I've grown quite fond of all the nephro staff at my center.  They're really good people.

[amanda100wilson]

You could have a go at trying to educate her about the short-comings of  in-unit D. On long term health effects and life expectancy compared to home HD.  Maybe she doesn't know that there is a difference.  A care partner can be what they want to be, completely hands-on, or completely hands-off to the point where they are a care partner in name only, for fulfilling the requirements ofthe dialysis unit for you to have a care partner.  I expect that many care partners fall between the two.  I've been on NxStage since Thankgiving, and I have been gradually doing more for myself as time has gone on, just asking for help if I run into a problem, or there is something that I haven't worked out how to do myself yet.  Time consuming and onerous, yes, because I do short daily, and not nocturnal (although I hope that this will happen in the not too-distant future). Buti wouldn't choose any other dialysis modality because I feel so well since switching.

[Traveller1947]

Congratulations, big777bill!  I'm so glad things went well for you.  Hope you'll keep us posted on your continuing experiences.  All the best to you.

[wvgirl]

I am new here but would just like to say that this post is really helping me too.  My last labs were Creatnine 4.4 and gfr 10.85 so I will be joining you shortly too. I am scared to death, but I know I gotta do it. I am looking forward to reading more. Thanks!

[galvo]

wvgirl, you stick with us. We'll help you through the minefield!

[chook]

Bill, you made me  with the 'losing your dialysis virginity'! That kind of attitide will be a great help.

[big777bill]

  Good morning, last night my wife was admitted to the hospital with VERY high blood pressure(218/128). I'm off to D this morning by myself and I'm worried to death about her. I really need extra strength right now. Patty is my rock! I don't know what I would do if anything happened to her. Please keep her in your prayers today. I better start getting ready to go it's 6:10 and I've got a 50 mile ride one way to get to the center. God Bless Bill

[amanda100wilson]

Sorry to hear anout your wife's problems.  I hope that they sort it all out.  Thimking of you.

[Riverwhispering]

hope all is well with your wife Bill.  Keep us posted

[billybags]

Big bill, I hope your wife is OK, please let us know. Our thoughts are with you. 

[boswife]

Oh Bill, i wish i had seen this earlier.. I would have prayed all day..  Dear God please be with these dear ones.  Is there any news for us?  Please be ok.. 

[ToddB0130]

So sorry to hear about your wife.  I'm really hoping they've stablized her BP.  Is this a new development for her ?  It must be very scary.  I've been in that boat once.  When I went to see my nephro one time (he's a nice guy,  but i get REALLY anxious when I see him) .... he took my blood pressure and it was like 205/100 ..........and he said he had to send me to the emergency room.  Switched up my meds a bit and ws out of the hospital pretty quickly.  I saw him today and took a Xanax a half hour before the appointment.  BP was 130/70.   HA !!   My best to your wife.

[big777bill]

   Crazy day yesterday. Went to D, it's 47 miles from home. The traffic in South New Jersey around Cherry Hill is totally insane . It took me 1 hour 15 min. to get to clinic.This time I was scheduled for a 4 hour session. The first 2 hours went by quick. I slept. The 2nd 2 hours was a form of torture new to me. I thought I was gonna lose it. The clock began to run very slowly. My butt went totally numb. They had TV but there are only maybe 12 channels on them, all bad. Gonna have to take the laptop next time. The good news is they took off about a kilo of weight off. When I got home and was able to reach my wife her blood pressure was under control They are going to keep her at least 1 more day. They have her on a halter monitor and are doing a stress test. The stress test is a two day thing I never heard of one like that before. When I called her this morning she was acting like herself again. Worried about how I'm going to get to clinic(I had driven myself that day). Swearing she would be home to take me on Saturday. I told her to think about herself for now and get back on track. It's not easy but we'll make it one way or another. You guys are great! Thanks for your thoughts and prayers.   God Bless, Bill

[billybags]

Big bill, I am glad your wife is feeling a lot better. Your right about how time goes slow on hemo.Take your laptop or a book.
 My husband had a 2 day stress test last year. Here,s what happened : First day, they do what they call a slow test, they injected dye in his arm, he had to wait for 30min and then they connected him up to pads, similar to an ECG. The next day, same again , but they get the heart going faster.
She will be fine, so don't worry.

[big777bill]

  Billybags thanks for the info on the stress test. She did say they injected dye yesterday. I asked her about how fast they got her heart going and she said it wasn't too fast. I know when I had one done(mine was 1 day) they got my heart going so fast I thought it would jump right out of my chest. On the dialysis yesterday the only thing I noticed was that it made me really tired for the rest of the day. I got a great night of sleep for a change. God Bless, Bill