09 November 2012

It has been twenty days since my last regular entry. Time to get caught up.

My Dialysis Weight Numbers:

20 Oct 2012
Starting Weight:  106.0 Kg
Water Removed:  3.10 Kg
Ending Weight:  102.9 Kg

22 Oct 2012
Starting Weight:  105.4 Kg
Water Removed:  2.50 Kg
Ending Weight:  102.9 Kg

25 Oct 2012
Starting Weight:  104.5 Kg
Water Removed:  1.30 Kg
Ending Weight:  103.4 Kg

27 Oct 2012
Starting Weight:  105.2 Kg
Water Removed:  1.80 Kg
Ending Weight:  103.4 Kg

30 Oct 2012
Starting Weight:  105.0 Kg
Water Removed:  1.60 Kg
Ending Weight:  103.4 Kg

01 Nov 2012
Starting Weight:  105.1 Kg
Water Removed:  2.20 Kg
Ending Weight: 102.9 Kg

03 Nov 2012
Starting Weight:  106.3 Kg
Water Removed:  3.10 Kg
Ending Weight:  103.2 Kg

06 Nov 2012
Starting Weight:  105.3 Kg
Water Removed:  2.30 Kg
Ending Weight:  102.9 Kg

08 Nov 2012
Starting Weight:  105.5 Kg
Water Removed:  1.60 Kg
Ending Weight: 103.9 Kg

As you can see, my weight fluctuations have been fairly consistent, as has my base weight. For now, any time I go lower than 103.0 Kg's, I have a lot of cramping, soreness and exhaustion all over my body. Yesterday, in spite of ending at 103.9 Kg, I was horribly sore and crampy all day. I am still feeling it today, as well. I don't know why this has happened. There are no changes in appetite, liquid intake; I'm not feeling sick at all.

My Labs--taken at Davita--have also been consistent. The following are my latest labs, drawn 06 Nov 2012:
    = Good      =Bad

*Albumin 4.4 G/dL  (no movement)

*Hemoglobin 11.8 G/dL  (+.2)

*Calcium Corrected 9.6 mg/dL  (no movement)

*Phosphorous 4.5 mg/dL  (+.3)

*PTH Intact 116 mg/mL  (no movement)

*K+ (Potassium) 4.2 mEq/L  (no movement)

*URR (Uremic Reduction Ratio) 75%  (+3%)

The headache has been going up and down. It remains severe on D-day, but waffles between bad and minor on the off days. In all I am averaging three T3's per day over the past month. Though not great, I will still take that over the six or so a day I was averaging before I started dialysis.

My appetite has been OK. Nothing really to report on that front.

My sleep has been all over the place--nothing new there! Along with increased exhaustion--presumably from my kidneys losing function--I am not sleeping in any regular or predictable patterns again. I am taking more naps again, sleeping short hours, then long, then short, then moderate...you the point. I do know that a part of this is my bilateral flank pain.

The area of my back over both kidneys has been downright painful 24/7. The cysts on my kidneys are really causing problems. Sitting, laying, standing...it doesn't matter. That pain is very prominent no matter what I am doing. Dialysis can be excruciating because I can't get up and move around in order to relieve the pain. I am now always sitting (rather than laying) during the treatment so I reduce the pressure exerted on the kidneys. This makes little difference, however. I won't take meds for it because, well, I am on dialysis; and any meds taken will just get filtered out and have no effect. If the pain worsens to intolerable, I may have the double nephrectomy sooner than planned.

That's all for now. I am tired, sleepy and I just forgot what else I had wanted to update you with. So...

Good Health to All!

ScottW