August 10

I had another dialysis treatment last night. This one was not quite as great as the last few, but they are not worried. I only ran at a rate of 230 cc/min last night (and the normally did 300 cc/min). They said that they didn't want to go too fast with the small needles and with my developing fistula. I don't know if that is something to worry about or not. My heart rate was high at the end of the night again today, but not quite as bad as on Saturday. They still don't have any advice for me. They just said to make sure I go see my cardiologist.

They took off 2500 cc of fluid last night (which is a little over a pound). Even at a rate of 230 cc/min, I was still only hooked up to the machine for four hours. The best I can understand it, the machine just calculates the amount of fluid you need removed and pulls it off evenly over the four hours, regardless of how quickly your blood flows through the machine. So, as long as I am on the little needles, I need to keep a smaller fluid intake between treatments.

The hardest part of dialysis is my new diet. I had a restricted diet before because my kidneys did not properly remove sodium or potassium from my bloodstream. So, I have been watching my intake of those chemicals for a couple of years now. But, now that I am in dialysis, I have a new set of restrictions to watch. (This all comes from the renal dietician, whom I saw on Saturday).

Here is my recommended diet:

• 8 to 10 ounces of protein a day
• 1400 to 1600 milligrams of potassium a day
• 1500 milligrams of phosphorus a day
• 2500 milligrams of sodium a day
• 4 cups of fluid a day (plus whatever I output on my own)
• A total of 2400 calories a day

So now, in addition to what I was watching before, I have to take care of how much phosphorus I take in. This is a problem because pretty much all foods contain phosphorus. And, some of the highest foods are dairy products. So, all of that protein that I am supposed to be taking in cannot come from the cheese, yogurt, or peanut butter that I used to eat. I know peanut butter isn't dairy, but it is high in phosphorus. I am supposed to cut my milk intake to three serving a week, which I think is going to be tough. I'm also supposed to be eating 10 to 14 servings of bread/starch a day (I don't know how I'll do that) and 8 to 10 ounces of proten/meat per day. Fun fun.

So, you can invite me over to eat if you like. I'll have a turkey and bread sandwich, no cheese. Or maybe I'll have a few doughnuts and a bagel. I've got to figure out how to eat a little more bread (though I doubt I'll hit that 14 serving mark). But don't worry, once I have my transplant, I'll be enjoying pizza again!

My prayer requests are:

• Pray that I will be able to adjust my diet so that I can remain healthy
• Pray that my fistula will continue to develop properly
• Pray that my cardiologist will have some advice about my high heart rate
• Pray that my insurance card will show up so that I can start my transplant paperwork