In my last two articles I’ve stepped away from sharing different aspects of my journey with chronic kidney disease and dialysis. I felt we all needed a break from the topic for a while *smile*
That’s not to say that nothing has been happening on that front. On the contrary, I have so much to share with you that I’m somewhat perplexed about where to start. Which makes it a tough job to know how to structure today’s update.
I’ve been continuing to receive dialysis three days each week. Generally all has been going well, and the dialysis team and my kidney specialist are happy with my response to the treatments.
Well, mostly happy. It seems my iron levels and my hemoglobin are both low. I will be starting on regular iron infusions to correct the problem. At least, when we can get hold of the medication, which appears to be in short supply in Cape Town at present. At least, that’s the only reason I can think of for the delay in starting this additional treatment when everything has been approved by my medical team and my medical aid.
I’ve also started on a series of Hepatitis B vaccinations. This appears to be usual for patients receiving dialysis. I’ve had two of the vaccinations so far, with the final one due in three months or so.
As I said, things have been going well generally with my dialysis. Guide dog Normandy and I go to the medical centre, settle in, receive the treatment, and then carry on with our lives.
Except for the day I was connected to the machine and nothing happened. It was something of a shock. I got ready, made myself comfortable on the medical bed, and the sister came and connected me to the dialysis machine as usual. With absolutely no result.
The dialysis team told me that it looked like the graft in my arm had become blocked as no blood was coming into the system. As a result, they wouldn’t be able to dialyse me until it had been cleared. They immediately informed my doctor, who arranged for me to see my vascular surgeon the following morning. I was told that I’d require minor surgery to clear the blockage and would probably need to be in hospital overnight once the surgery had been done.
Which is what happened. Essentially, as the vascular surgeon informed me, this is a common occurrence with a graft and is part of the typical maintenance that is required to keep everything working smoothly. So, while it was a little scary for me at the time, there was no need to panic.
Apart from that day and night spent in hospital, my treatments have been happening regularly as clockwork since I last updated you. And all is going well.
At the same time, I’ve been actively pursuing the medical requirements to see if I can receive a kidney transplant. But more on that next time.
