The Last Tests

This morning I had to go to the medical center for the last of my pre-transplant tests and to meet with the social worker. I had an echo cardiogram and an abdominal ultrasound. They told me not to eat or drink anything from midnight on the night before the abdominal ultrasound. Those who know me know what a difficult task that is for me to follow. I NEED my coffee in the morning. Without it I am extremely irritable. Then I find out that the echo will take nearly a full hour. I made sure to tell them that I had to be at the 2nd appointment by 8:45 (15 minutes prior to the actual appointment.) They called the office at the medical center where my 2nd appt was and found out that if I wasn't there by 9a.m. they would cancel my appointment. Nice. They needed to put dye in me to increase the resolution and clarity of the echo so it took a bit longer. Honestly, I looked at the screen during the entire process and wasn't able to tell a difference between the scans before and after the dye was injected. They were super friendly and able to get me finished up by 8:55 a.m. So I ran to the next appt...in high heels...

And I made it in time. Then I had to lie in a cold room, with a thin cover over my naked top half while she scanned my tummy and kidneys. During this ultrasound, I have to roll onto my side and lean back a bit. I'm in good shape, but the leaning back, without a pillow, makes you very uncomfortable after a few minutes. I was on my side for at least 20 minutes, holding very still and using my abs to support the position. It seemed like she was going over and over the same spot again and again. Maybe she's not very good at it? And the right side took a LOT longer than the left. Whatever.

Then I actually got to eat something. I got a plate of food at the WORST hospital cafeteria on the planet. So bad. I had eggs, potatoes a biscuit and a donut. Real healthy, eh? Well, I just didn't care. I was hungry and that was just about all they had. But I didn't eat a lot....just one egg (7 grams of protein.) Oh, and a friggin cup of coffee. Thank goodness.

Then I had an appointment with the social worker -- another member of the transplant team. Again -- whatever. They called me into the office at appt time. Then, oddly enough, they weighed me and took my blood pressure. Seems odd to me that they would need to do this when I'm only coming to see the social worker, but who am I to question. Then 10 minutes after my appoint time, the social worker joins me. She seemed nice enough. Oh, I forgot to mention that I have a new transplant coordinator. I guess they fired the one I met at my transplant evaluation. And I really, really liked her. I want to find her and ask what happened.

Back to the social worker. She asked me a lot of questions and suggested I sign up for medicare. I guess I qualify when I am diagnosed with end stage renal failure. And they will pay for a lot of the drugs. So now I gotta do that. And she mentioned that there is a monthly support group. I don't really want to go to the support group. I don't want to be with other sick people. It will make me sad because I'll be afraid I'll turn out like them. I mean, in all likelihood, they are old and/or fat and unhealthy and probably they eat meat. I know that sounds mean, but I want to model my own image of kidney disease. The memories of my father's experience and look are already difficult for me to handle. I don't want to be in the same room with others' and their experiences.

The social worker suggested I get my husband to begin filling out the transplant donor paperwork. I should be approved by the transplant committee next week. After that, they'll start evaluating possible donors. Also, I got labs done again today. I'm looking forward to seeing what the creatinine is doing.

I was home sick this week for 1.5 days due to severe cramps. I get them so bad I actually have thrown up before. Thankfully, I was able to keep myself from doing so this time, but I was quite nauseous and came close. This doesn't happen to me every month either, thankfully. In any case, I am very behind at work. I have a project that was due on Tuesday, but I'm still not done. Also, I need to get AWAY! My husband and I are going to the desert for the weekend. It's hot and dry -- just wonderful for hanging in the pool all day with a 12 pack of cold beer nearby. I'm looking forward to it. In fact, I'm skipping my biology class so we can leave first thing Saturday morning. I have a new swimsuit, too. God get me outta here.