metrogirl Posted January 26, 2011 Author Share Posted January 26, 2011 I am convinced that 24 hours in a day is simply not enough, nope it needs to be extended because I can't squeeze everything into one day anymore. LOL The appointment with the kidney specialist went well. He increased the bf's blood pressure medicine and thankfully he didn't add any new ones. We covered a lot of ground at his appointment and this is where we are at... The doctor wants him to get a kidney biopsy done so he can get an idea of exactly what caused his kidneys to fail at such an alarming rate. He suspects it happened because of the diabetes but just wants to make sure there isn't something else going on there that doesn't come up in the routine blood tests. Fair enough.. Either way at the rate his kidneys are failing, he will need dialysis soon. He said that he is referring us to 2 classes, one is the kidney disease class which we already knew we were gonna need to take so we can understand more about his condition and what is to come. The other class really suprised us, he wants us to take the transplantation class. He feels that the bf would do much better with a kidney transplant instead of the 3x a week dialysis at a center or daily dialysis at home. To my complete surprise the bf told the doctor he would rather have the transplant. We also discussed his anemia. The doctor had told us that the bf might have to start getting injections of Procrit on a weekly basis to help build his red blood cells. He had his first dose yesterday. Now we could go to the hospital once a week for this or I could be trained in giving him the shot myself so I have my training next week. I think I am in the wrong profession, I should just train to be a nurse. I feel a little calmer and more at ease at the moment. I should be terrified because everything is happening so fast but I have a good feeling about it right now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OptomisticGirl Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 A transplant? wow. That's very serious! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metrogirl Posted January 26, 2011 Author Share Posted January 26, 2011 Yeah it is. He has stage 4 chronic kidney disease. His kidney function is at 20%. When in reaches 15% he will have to start dialysis. Something bad happened somewhere in a short amount of time. In June 2010 his kidney function was at 59% and within 4 months it had plummeted down to 20%. He also has a massive protein leak from the kidneys. The normal range should be under 30 ug/mg and his number is 3803! Yes, you read it right, he should be under 30 but has a number in the thousands. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sanesoul Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 Wow, that's crazy Metro. I must say that I'm so glad you and your BF are on top of things, and getting the medical help that he needs. That will make all the difference in the world. I have some stubborn family members who hate doctors, and one is about to lose her life because she refuses to get the help she needs. It's heartbreaking to watch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sidehop Posted January 26, 2011 Share Posted January 26, 2011 That's good to hear though that he has options. I'm sure you two are very stressed about this situation and watching your loved one going through it must be so hard on you. I hope he gets the right treatment if not the transplant and start to feel better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metrogirl Posted January 26, 2011 Author Share Posted January 26, 2011 Thank you Sanesoul and Sidehop. He is feeling very good about the option as scary as it sounds. Were not even sure how soon it would happen. The doctor said if he is to go on the national list, the wait is 7-9 years. If he has a family member or friend that would want to donate and is a match of course it cud happen much much sooner. On a super positive note, my granddaughters hearing aids are being replaced for free! They were techinically still under warranty so they will be replaced. I have never felt more relieved than I do right now. Bella, thank you for the pep talk. It helped more than you could ever know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OptomisticGirl Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Glad to hear about the hearing aides! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BellaDonna Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 On a super positive note, my granddaughters hearing aids are being replaced for free! They were techinically still under warranty so they will be replaced. :smile: I have never felt more relieved than I do right now. Bella, thank you for the pep talk. It helped more than you could ever know. YAY!!!!!!!! I am so glad to hear this. FREE is always wonderful!!!! I promise some day in the future, both of you will be laughing over "the day grandma threw away the hearing aids" . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sherryberrypie Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 I'm just going to say, fingers crossed for everything! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metrogirl Posted January 27, 2011 Author Share Posted January 27, 2011 YAY!!!!!!!! I am so glad to hear this. FREE is always wonderful!!!! I promise some day in the future, both of you will be laughing over "the day grandma threw away the hearing aids" . Well that would certainly be better than all the crying I have been doing lately. LOL Too bad we don't lose weight from crying, I would have had a killer body this week. LMAO On a more serious note, I just came into work and the boyfriend was already here. He was sitting on a bus waiting for me outside my office. He didn't look good, kinda pale. He said that he had 3 episodes of dizziness and he wasn't feeling too good. I reminded him that the doctor was worried about him coming back to work because he thought something like this would happen. I don't know how to drill it in to his head that he is going to feel 10 times more tired right now because of everything that is wrong with him and having fluid around the heart and in the lungs doesn't help matters. So I have buddy of his keeping eye on him for me tonight since I am in the office and he is out in the station with the buses. If anything seems out of order to me later, I'm dragging his ass outta here and straight to the hospital. Argh..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sherryberrypie Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Really don't think he should be working. What about temporary disability? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metrogirl Posted January 27, 2011 Author Share Posted January 27, 2011 Really don't think he should be working. What about temporary disability? Well you and I are on the same page, he knows how I feel about him working right now but he is stubborn and hard headed. He was off for 5 days and going stir crazy in the house. He could get disabilty right now, he also has an alternate insurance that he needs to sign up for (thanks for reminding me) that will pay his bills while he is out. I think this is partly his way of denying there is something wrong with him. He accepts the fact that his kidneys are failing but he doesn't accept the fact that there is something going on with his heart. When we talk about the heart thing, he tries to change the subject quickly. I know he is probably scared but he needs to do what the doctors think is best right now. I hope after his echocardiogram, if they confirm what they already think is going on maybe then he will keep his ass at home for awhile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sherryberrypie Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Problems with certain organs can really hit home. For some, kidneys aren't viewed as these vital organs, while the heart..as soon as something is wrong, they feel it's more serious. Like with my sister, as soon as people hear that it's a mass in her brain, they get wide-eyed and nervous. If it were in her leg, it would be no big deal, but either way, it can be a very serious thing. I'm tired. I hope that made sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metrogirl Posted January 27, 2011 Author Share Posted January 27, 2011 No you make perfect sense. I was thinking the same thing while driving into work tonight. People live with one kidney everyday and kidneys are the one organ that you can still donate and be alive to do it. When we think of heart problems, we think well you can't live without a heart and someone else has died to give you a heart. It all has a very dark feeling to it. I don't want him to think it's an instant death sentence because it's not. The doctor was saying there are things that can be done to fix the problem, medicines to take to strengthen the heart. I just really wanted him to rest a bit more before coming back to work but nothing I can do about it now, he's here. But mark my word, I am watching him like a hawk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metrogirl Posted January 27, 2011 Author Share Posted January 27, 2011 Paycheck comes, paycheck goes. I haven't had my paycheck in my account for more than 3 hours when I just paid 500 dollars in bills. That was just some of the bills. I still need to pay my car payment, insurance and a few other things. Grrrr So the bf and I had a good talk a little while ago. Since I have to go to the notary public with my daughter on Friday to get the documents notorized to replace my granddaughters hearing aids, I will also be taking some paperwork for the bf as well. He is signing a medical advance directive that gives me the right to make medical decisions on his behalf should he not be able to make them himself. We also discussed his working while he isn't feeling well. He said that he wants to keep working until they know for sure what is going on with the heart. He said when he knows with absolute certainty that there is something dangerous going on, then he will take time off from work to deal with it. His blood pressure seems to be coming down a bit. I was getting some readings of 150 and 160, better than the typical 180 -190 I normally get. The doctor said it would take about a week for us to really see some changes, if of course the medicine increase is working. Here's to hoping. I was really looking forward to my days off (today and tomorrow) and then one of the girls asked if I would cover her shift tonight. Meh.......I said yeah, only because I like making money but gosh darn it I was gonna do some stuff around the house and maybe have dinner with the girls. Oh well, there is always next week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OptomisticGirl Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 I'm like your boyfriend. If I don't work I go stir crazy. But Sherry made a good point... we just don't view kidneys as vital as we do the heart and everything. My grandpa donated one of his kidneys and then him and my grandpa were in a car accident (drunk driver hit them). Because grandpa only had one kidney he didn't survive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metrogirl Posted January 27, 2011 Author Share Posted January 27, 2011 I'm sorry to hear that OG. I have to take into consideration, this is all very new to him. He hadn't seen a doctor in years. He never wanted to see a doctor for anything. I nagged and nagged and nagged him to see a doctor in the early part of our relationship, why??? to find out what was causing his erectile dysfunction. He wouldn't go and wouldn't go and wouldn't go. He kept putting it off saying "the doctor is gonna find something wrong with me". Umm yeah you think?? He finally decided to go in Feb of last year and this is where it all started. The diabetes and the high blood pressure. Then the kidneys and now the heart. We haven't even asked the doctor about the ED. I have done enough reading into all his medical problems to know that it has severely impacted his ability to perform and really I am ok with that. We still entertain each other and we are both left satisfied. Oh wow, I went way off course, sorry about that. My original point was, he never wanted to visit a doctor for anything and now we are constantly at different doctor's offices and I can understand why he isn't quite ready to just take time off because all he knows is work. Complete work-aholic. He likes making his money as much if not more than I do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OptomisticGirl Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 I think it can also be a pride thing, you know? None of us want to admit our body is failing us when we don't want it to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metrogirl Posted January 27, 2011 Author Share Posted January 27, 2011 I think it can also be a pride thing, you know? None of us want to admit our body is failing us when we don't want it to. Absolutely! He still can get up to go to work so in his eyes, he's okay. I'm telling you, he is okay with his kidneys being severly diseased but as soon as the topic changes to the heart, he says there is nothing wrong with his heart. So in a sense I pacify him and I tell him that it's okay if there is something because he truly has amazing doctors and there are meds for just about everything these days. I don't want him to be in complete denial. He needs to understand and accept that things are wrong, his body is giving out but if he continues to take care of himself, he can still have a good life. He just has to do all the right stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OptomisticGirl Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 I know I would be in complete denial in the beginning myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sherryberrypie Posted January 27, 2011 Share Posted January 27, 2011 Definitely sounds like he's in denial! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metrogirl Posted January 28, 2011 Author Share Posted January 28, 2011 His blood pressure was even lower today! That is really good news considering his bp has been off the charts. Today it was 149/76. His sugar was also low. Kaiser called him today and scheduled our Kidney class for Feb 17th. He wasn't sure if it was for the regular Kidney class or the transplant class. Doesn't matter, we still need to take both classes. I told him that I want to go ahead and sign up for the Hypertension class so we can learn how to better manage his blood pressure and I really need help on how to feed him. It's easy enough when I have time to cook his meals, but I am more concerned when he grabs something to eat when he is on his way to work. He doesn't grasp the concept that sodium will kill him. He has to eat foods that are super low in sodium and he is struggling with this. I guess it's no different than us that are trying to lose weight and we struggle with our eating habits. Only difference for us is our choices will just add weight to our hips, his bad choices can kill him. I'm not giving up though, not even close to giving up. I feel like I am in fighting mode right now, I want to fight this with everything that we have. He can get better, he will get better. I honestly can't wait for the cardiologist to tell him he 'has' to work out. I'm dragging his ass to the gym with me. I even told him that he could start swimming, it's so much easier on the body. He's not a swimmer but he could move around in the around and get some cardio in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metrogirl Posted January 28, 2011 Author Share Posted January 28, 2011 Ok a tiny bit of retail therapy is in order I think. I am going to go home at 6:00am and sleep for a few hours and then venture out to the Citadel Outlets and see what I can find. I spent the better part of 30 minutes printing up coupons to use at the Reebok store, Carters, Osh Kosh, and Old Navy. I want a new gym bag and maybe some new workout gear from Reebok. Carters and Osh Kosh, of course are for the babies and Old Navy, heck whatever I can find. I actually like their t-shirts a lot, so hopefully I can find some good deals. I wasn't really going to spend any money this weekend but I think after the crazy few weeks I have had, I deserve a Starbucks and a little shopping. Come to think of it, now that football season is over, I bet the Reebok store will have the NFL shirts marked down. Woohoo I am gonna do my best to stay away from the MAC counter this weekend. I'm tempted, oh so tempted but I am in all honesty going to try and behave myself. I can only thank my lucky stars that this particular outlet center DOES NOT have a Coach store. It would truly be all over if they did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OptomisticGirl Posted January 28, 2011 Share Posted January 28, 2011 I love Osh Kosh! They always have great deals, so does Carters. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metrogirl Posted January 28, 2011 Author Share Posted January 28, 2011 Yeah, I love buying the babies clothes there. This outlet center just opened a Sprockets store too. When Mervyn's was in business they used to sell that clothing line. My babies grew up wear sprockets, I can't wait to see what they have. I swear, I love shopping for my little pumpkins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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