First off, today, 05 Sept. is the birthday of one of my personal musical hero's, the late, great Freddie Mercury. Had he not died of AIDS in 1991, Freddie would have turned 72 today. I cannot even imagine the incredible music he would be writing now...
Happy Birthday, Freddie! The music world, and millions of fans miss you immensely!
Alright, onto the news of the week...
Yes, I did go to my schedule appointment with my local nephrologist last Wednesday. As expected, we discussed meds, progress, events since my transplant, etc. I shared much information that the Transplant Clinic is doing and looking at, where things are headed and the expected additional doctor visits in other medical disciplines that I need to see.
My doctor was actually excited to see all of the scars on my abdomen! I gladly obliged his request, and when he saw the scars, he literally got a wide-eyed look, and uttered his astonishment at how well I was doing considering everything I've been through in the last sixteen months. We both laughed at his reaction!
Afterwards, we set two future appointments for November and February. However, should the Kidney Clinic release me, that schedule will certainly change.
Yesterday was my final dose of Tacrolimus; 0.5 mg with my A.M. meds. In the afternoon I had my latest Belatacept infusion. As always, 600 mg in 100cc of NS (Normal Saline), over 30 minutes. The stick was a little difficult, but everything went smoothly and I now have 27 more days until the next infusion.
As I have a few things to discuss regarding my latest labs, let's review those now...
04 Sept 18 Labs
*Tac: 2.0 (-0.6)
*Creat: 2.36 (+0.13) Dropping
*HCT: 34.7 (+1.4) Low
*Hemo: 11.0 (+0.4) IR
*Lymph: 5.7 (-6.7) Extremely Low
*Lymph ABS: 0.4 (-0.2) Extremely Low
*Neut: 84.1 (+1.4) Extremely High
*Neut ABS: 6.2 (+1.9) IR
*RBC: 3.76 (+0.11) Low
*WBC: 7.3 (+2.1) IR
*BUN: 35 (-3) Very High
*CA: 10.3 (+0.2) IR
*GFR: 30 (-2) Extremely Low
*K+: 4.6 (+0.3) IR
*NA+: 141 (+1) IR
*Prot: 7.3 (+0.3) IR
*MG: 2.2 (+0.2) IR
*Phos: 3.6 (+0.7) IR
*BK: Not Detected
*CMV: Not Detected
IR= In Range NC=No Change
As I anticipated in last weeks' entry, my Lymphocytes took another dive. The Lymph ABS also fell in conjunction. I'm glad that I continued precautions all week. Had I not, the lymphocytes might have fallen even further, and I would have run the risk of getting sick.
The Hematocrit rose nicely once more, and though still low, I am getting close to having that where it needs to be!
Additionally, there was another rise in my Red Blood Cells. Incremental though the rise was, I am inching closer to the low end of the desired range.
This week, of the seventeen labs I am tracking, there are 9 results within the ranges needed. This in unchanged from last week, which is excellent! This means some labs are finally stabilizing. There are still between 1-4 months [post-rejection episode] before everything should settle into a semblance of the appropriate ranges.
Next, my TMD headaches had a small lull this week; which was great! Any downturn, however brief, is happily welcomed! I still monitor and adjust my jaw at night. This seems to be continuing to help alleviate the headaches a/o their intensity. I will keep doing this and look for additional relief.
Sleep has been good and bad. Most nights I do OK as far as getting back to sleep, but I remain sleepy tired most of the time; which tells me that the quality of sleep I am getting has been less than good. I don't know that there is any real solution to this until I am healed up and at least getting in some decent walking every day.
While I'm on the subject of sleep, the number of times I have gotten up at night [this last week] to empty my bladder has ranged between 2-5. I try to limit my late evening fluid intake, which definitely helps reduce the times I awaken, but this doesn't always happen.
On this same subject, my kidney is doing exactly as is should and is processing all the fluids I take in each day. My weight has been fairly consistent, as has my fluid intake. Now, I just need my bladder to expand more so I can have fewer visits to the restroom every day. And now that the surgeries and various recovery periods [for rejections] are behind me, I am hoping this will finally improve.
This week I am beginning my walking...however brief they may be, at first. It will be challenging to get my legs and back used to walking for any distance again. My physical conditioning is so depleted that even a slow walk over a couple of hundred yards is incredibly difficult. However, like any exercise program, getting started is THE hardest part. My body will adjust, adapt and improve. I will be sore, exhausted and have extreme physical and mental opposition. I just need to stick with it, let my body rest as needed, and continue to move forward, however slow it might be.
I believe that that is all I have for today.
Until next week...
Good Health to All!
ScottW
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