Hello, World!

It has been awhile since I've journaled anything about dialysis, and that's because everything has been going boringly well. No problems. No surprizes! And that's a good thing.

I've gone totally simplistic. They sparingly tape the needles once they are in and I hold or allow the tubes to lay free. (I am very cautious to keep them from being caught or tangled). It seems that any restriction at all creates discomfort of some kind. When it is time to come off, I hold the site myself, as I've posted before. The top site is usually good with the 'super stopper sphere' they use. (Similar to a cotton ball only it's made of rayon and something.) The lower site is good after I've held it 3-4 minutes. I change to a bandaid and I'm good to go. I do wait until the basic 15 minute waiting time is passed. Some day I may go ahead and leave. I've still not had one bleeding incident since I've been doing this.

One day one of the attendants was getting the stuff to take me off, and she had the clamps. I reminded her that I didn't use them and then commented on me messing with their routine. She said actually she had learned from it, and said they had recently had another patient that bled afterwards no matter how much they taped or what they tried. Then she remembered me, and used less pressure, less tape, etc. and she did fine. So, she learned that the same amount of pressure is not good for everyone.

An elderly friend of ours is on dialysis now, and I visit with him sometimes. He's in his 80's and is finding it difficult to be tied down so long. He has multiple health problems, a 3 in 1 heart monitor/pace maker thingy and diabetes, emphysema, and bronchitis and says he never has any pain. Very fortunate. His age and health prevents him from being eligible for a transplant. He says he is ready to go home.
For those who might not know, he's referring to heaven. It's not a morbid statement. It's the hope and peace of a christian. And I think he's looking forward to it. We tend to think on these things when we face our mortality.