A Different Way of Seeing. Helping You Make Sense of the Overwhelm
Browsing Category
Last week I told you about Matching Hope: A Kidney for Lois, my new Facebook group which I hope will help me find a kidney donor. I’ve been thrilled by the response to the group and am grateful to be part of such a caring community of people. It reinforces my belief in the goodness …
Massive news for those of you who have been following my journey of dialysis and chronic kidney disease is that I’m starting the process of searching for a possible kidney donor. My doctors and I have begun exploring the option of a kidney transplant, which is simultaneously both daunting and exciting for me to consider …
One of the hardest changes for me to accept since starting dialysis is a daily liquid restriction. It’s had a far bigger impact on my life than any of the other dietary adjustments that were recommended to me. There are days when I feel it is the thing that I’m struggling most with, as I …
As I’ve previously said, my first two dialysis sessions took place in hospital. After I was discharged, my doctor told me he had arranged for me to have my next session at one of the local dialysis treatment centres. And that centre would be my base for treatment from then. My first session at the …
Throughout the process of starting on dialysis I’ve been relieved to receive answers to my endless questions from different groups of people. The first group who I’ve been consulting on a continuous basis are my medical team. My doctors and the dialysis sisters who I’ve met have consistently been happy to answer my questions about …
The first person I ever met who was on dialysis was a woman named Carol. I was lying in a hospital bed recovering from the AV graft operation. Carol had struck up a conversation with Craig while I was being admitted, so knew a little of my situation. When I returned to the ward after …
I’ve been writing this series of articles for some time now, taking you through the various stages that have led up to my starting dialysis. In many ways we’ve come so far already. At least, it feels that way to me. However, in today’s article we finally reach the point where I start having dialysis. …
To pick up the story where I ended last week, I had just received positive feedback from my vascular surgeon at the follow-up appointment after my operation. However, that’s not the end of the story, and I need to go back a few weeks to explain. After my operation on 15 January 2025, I’d been …
I left off describing my dialysis journey late last year, at the point where I had consulted a renal dietitian and adjusted my diet and had also written about the various options for dialysis that I was researching. I have a lot more to share with you now. Late last year I met with a …
Since learning that I would be needing to start dialysis in the (perhaps near) future, I felt it would be a good idea to make some of the lifestyle changes that I will ultimately need to. My rationale was that starting dialysis will be enough of an adjustment and that needing to additionally adjust my …