Ready To Fly

When I arrived at the hospital, I finally started to get nervous. Before then, I was like- I'm good.  I told my friend that she could drop me off at the front entrance and that she did not have to stay.  I boasted that I've had plenty of procedures and operations.  I'm use to this.  I am glad she ignored me.  I had my duffle bag filled with my favorite things, including my lucky blanket I used for dialysis.  I checked in and then headed to my room.  My thought- this is really happening.  

For the first time, I started to have anxiety because everyone kept telling me that this was major surgery.  I thought, what if I didn't make it?  Did I really have my affairs in order?  But then, I thought about the family of my donor. How did they feel?  Their loved one was on life support.  They had to decide if it was time to let go.  All of sudden, after thinking about my donor's family grief, my anxiety dissipated and my Faith kicked in like an old karate movie.          

It was a nice size room that included a sofa bed and a recliner.  Because of Covid, they only allowed 1 person to stay overnight.  However, when my sister arrived a couple of days later, they made an exception for me.  My friend and my sister was allowed to stay with me.  My neighbors, were also great. They helped my sister get acclimated when she arrived in town while I was in the hospital.  Then afterwards, my other sister helped me financially.  

I got in the room and changed into those gowns that never seem to stay closed.  Next, The doctors came in and told me what to expect. The phlebotomist also came in to draw my blood.  They had to do my final blood tests to be sure everything was as it should be.  The doctor also explained that my bloodwork, taken from the kits they sent me at the dialysis center, were excellent.  It was one of the main reason why I was chosen to stay at the top of the list.  He also explained that sometimes after they transplant a kidney, the kidney does not start working right away.  If that occurs, I would have to go back to dialysis until my kidneys "woke up."  I said,  Oh boy and then I prayed.   

Now it's time for surgery.  As they rolled me in the operating room, it was freezing, but everyone was so jovial.  I remember it being a lot of nurses and doctors present.  They made me feel so relaxed.  Next thing I remember was drifting off to sleep as music played.  Unless I was dreaming, I thought I heard them playing hip hop music.  As they were preparing to roll me back to my room after the surgery, I could hear the doctors and nurses marvel about how much urine I was outputting.  They were very excited.  As they stood there, I was able to open my eyes slightly.  My only thought- thank you God.  When I initially was told my new kidney may not start working right away and that I may have to go back to dialysis until it does, I prayed and said- God, let your will be done.  

The next day, I woke up and saw all the tubes inserted.  I was about to panic until I saw my good friend sleeping in the recliner.  My left arm was free from tubes. Even though I just had a kidney transplant,  I still had to preserve my fistula just in case my transplant failed at any point.  Therefore, I had about 3 lines in my right arm,1 in my right hand, and the other was in my right foot.  The pressure cup was on my left leg.  I'll cover more of that in my newsletter.   I also had a drain and a catheter inserted.  They had the best pain meds.  I was on oxy and fentanyl. About 3 days later, I actually told the doctors to stop my fentanyl regiment, but keep me on oxy. I can handle oxy, but fentanyl made me feel too invincible.  I did not want to get use to that feeling.  I was already on oxy for another medical reason, but thankfully, oxy was not addictive to me.  The staff made me as comfortable as they could because I was in a lot of pain after my request.  Oxy took some pain away, but Fentanyl took ALL the pain away.  

Later the next day, I was ready to eat.  I got the hospital menu and was ready to order.  When I called food service to order my breakfast, I was informed that I was only approved for a liquid diet and no solid food.  I was so hungry that I ordered cranberry juice, chicken broth, decaf coffee, decaf tea, and crystal light. No added sodium or caffeine was allowed in my diet.  Needless to say, I was still hungry after I finished all of that bland stuff.  Once the doctor arrived, he explained to me that I would have to pass my bowels before I could have solid food.  The anesthesia used during the surgery left my bowels sleeping.  I was given every laxative known to man to make me poop.  3 days had passed and still no poop.  Everyday the nurses asked did I pass my bowels or at the very least, pass gas.  I think it was the 4th day when everything came out. TMI! But, now I could solid eat foods.  I was approved for a low sodium, 60 carbs a meal, high protein diet.  I lost 10 pounds on that diet in the hospital without even exercising.  Plus, there meal plan had my last meal between 6pm-7pm.  

Now, I was ready to leave the hospital.  But first, I had to meet certain expectations.  I had to get out of the bed and sit in the recliner. Next, I had to walk around the hospital floor unassisted.   I also had to know how to set up my pill box.  I met with social workers who gave me gas cards so I could get back and forth to the doctors.  I met with psychologist that made sure I was mentally ready to handle going home.  I met with doctors and nurses that made sure I was aware of how to take care of my incision and drain.  They discussed how my immune system is now extremely compromised.  I had to keep my distance from anyone that showed signs of being sick. I could not do any gardening or change baby diapers.  All of these instructions, plus more were also in the book I was given to take home.  In addition to that, I could not have a dog or travel outside of the country for the first year.  I remember when my friend brought me fresh flowers the day after my surgery, I could not accept them.  Because doctors did not want me to inhale the spores the flowers contained, I could not have them in the room with me.  The nurses put them in a window behind a glass so I could look at them.  Also, anyone that came to visit was administered a covid test before they could see me.   Eventually, I went home and I slept all day.     

I was now home.  My goal- start living my best life and help others.  Doctors told me to listen to my body and pace myself.  If I felt like I needed to lay down, then lay down and take a nap.  I was feeling good.  After each doctor's appointment, I coaxed my sister into going to the park so I can get my walk on.  Plus, I wanted to be in a nature setting.  I lasted 15 minutes.  I turned to my sister and said let's go home.  I couldn't get in the bed fast enough.  I slept and slept.  However, I still had my sister take me to the park every other day.  Eventually, I was able to last more than 15 minutes.  I was instructed not to lift anything heavier than a gallon of milk- so walking was all I had as a way of exercising.  

The following week, I was bleeding profusely.  I sent pictures of my incision to my transplant coordinator because it wouldn't stop bleeding.  It also became painful to walk.  Next thing I know, my coordinator instructed me to come to the hospital and that a bed would be waiting for me.  She could tell by the blood loss that I would need a another blood transfusion.  By the time I got myself together to leave for the hospital, I could barely walk.  I could only take about 4 steps before I would have to sit down.  The pain in my stomach was also excruciating.  I was in too much pain to have any thoughts about if my new kidney was failing.  Once I got there, I was given an ultrasound, then immediately rushed to the operating room.  

Turns out, they had to remove a large blood clot in my stomach.  The blood clot was so large that it cut off the blood circulation to my legs.  I have a hereditary blood clotting disorder called Factor V Leiden.  This blood clotting disorder was discovered while I was on dialysis.  I had been taking the blood thinning medication Warfarin since that diagnosis.  After the blood clot removal in my stomach, different doctors and nurses stopped by to meet me. They said they had never seen a blood clot that size before.  Once they told me the circumference, I had to look it up.  It was almost the size of a football. I had to stay in the hospital for about a week while they conducted tests to see which medication interaction caused the blood clot.  The doctors determined it was warfarin.  Warfarin had interacted badly with my new immunosuppressant drugs.  I was switched to Eliquis then monitored for a few more days.  Eventually, I was sent home.  Now, again, I was ready to live my best life and help others.         

My daily routine consisted of me waking up and taking my vitals:  blood pressure, heart rate, temperature, and weighed myself.  I did this twice a day (morning and night).  I also check my blood sugar levels 3-4xs a day and wrote down the type and amount of insulin that I administered to myself.  I took my vitals at the same time everyday.  I take my medication at the same time everyday also.  Once the staples were removed from my belly, I still could not lift anything heavier than a gallon of milk.  But, I could walk for exercise and that's what I did.  After a few months, my sister would depart for Louisiana.  I was still determined to exercise.  Each morning I would apply sunscreen, put on my sun shades,  (The medication given to suppress your immune system will cause sensitivity to sunlight which can lead to skin cancer), put on my headphones, and walk around my neighborhood. Eventually, I was cleared to get in the pool.  But, hot tubs and any untreated water were prohibited.   The pool was better for my body because of my fibromyalgia, but I still walked and paced myself.    

ALWAYS check with your Doctors before trying anything from this site.