Living With Kidney Failure: How to Attain Quality Life

Kidney failure is potentially debilitating. However, contrary to what most people believe in, this disease does not always equate to great limitations or even immediate end of life. If you are diagnosed with this condition, know that there are a lot of ways for you to still enjoy life

Treatment

There are two main treatment options for kidney failure. Although these approaches cannot reverse the damages done to your kidneys, complying with any of the two will help prevent disease progression.

Hemodialysis

Hemodialysis involves the removal of waste products and excess fluid out of your system through a dialysis machine and a special filter called dialyzer. Typically, this treatment averages 4 hours per session and is usually done in a dialysis centre three times a week.

Aside from in-centre approach, hemodialysis has another form, peritoneal dialysis, which you can do at home or at work. It requires a daily session, a cleansing solution called dialysate and the skills to perform the procedure.

Kidney Transplantation

This is an invasive surgical procedure involving the placement of healthy kidneys, either from a living donor or someone who has just passed away. Although promising, this approach does not offer a complete guarantee that you’ll be cured or that your condition will be reversed. It entails several risks, including rejection, the need for continuous dialysis or even a secondary transplantation surgery.

Management

Discipline and fostering a healthier lifestyle are essential aspects in preventing your condition from worsening. Aside from adhering to your treatment plan, here are the other things you need to consider in order to live a productive life:

Diet

Because there are damages in your organs, waste products tend to accumulate and become toxins in your system.

● Controlled protein intake is generally recommended.
● Salt intake should be low to prevent high blood pressure and fluid retention.
● Potassium intake may depend on the severity of your kidney failure.
● Fluid intake is mostly limited.
● If you are overweight, losing a few pounds may be necessary.

Exercise

Depending on your physical capability, exercise may prove to be beneficial in improving your condition. Before starting on any of the following, be sure to consult your attending physician first.

● Balance exercises can help reduce the risk of accidental falls. They are not physically demanding in general. As a matter of fact, holding a standing pose for a few seconds can immensely help.

●  Aerobic exercises can assist in improving both your heart and lungs. Walking and biking for a few minutes are some of your best options under this type of activity.

● Flexibility and resistance exercises, as the name implies, can improve mobility and prevent joint stiffness in kidney failure patients. 

Some Things Money Can't Buy.| Why You Can’t Sell a Kidney

Have you ever wanted to sell your blood? How about your hair and with some men, your sperm? People do this all the time and nobody seems to have an issue with this type of commerce. Perhaps it is because humans replenish sperm and hair and blood. Could the issue really be that simple? Is that why you can’t sell a kidney?

When I was in college my roommate and I considered selling blood during a particularly difficult time. We needed to pay rent and in those days blood banks were paying $30 per visit. A few trips to the Blood Bank and we might make it, we thought.

We never did sell any blood, but the option existed for us. I think this is more of the issue than anything else-the option existed for us and in the United States we are used to options being available. With so many human body parts on the block, including hair, I wonder why an organ is not on the list.  I guess the simple reason is that Congress has established guidelines as to why you can’t sell a kidney. They are very clear.

The United States Congress has made sure that organs do not become available for sale in the United States.  It makes no difference that 14 people die each day waiting for a kidney transplant. Congress is sticking to their guns on this one. Finally, we have breached the gridlock in Washington DC. The National Organ Transplant Act (NOTA) of 1984 strictly outlines this decision. The theory surrounds the unequal social factors that are obvious. The wealthy or at least those with money will coerce the downtrodden to cough up a kidney for compensation.

Even  donations from deceased individuals cannot involve compensation.

Since the abolishment of slavery, many humans detest the commercialization of organs and render this a step backwards as a society. Moreover, how would you determine a price for a kidney? Would it be according to age? Establishing a baseline for health would be important, however would the benefit of compensating circumstances create an arena of fraud among donors? Would an individual actually mislead a patient about their health if money were involved?

Since Congress doesn’t have the topic within sight and we can assume that if the subject did make it to the floor, it would end in no action, what then are we to do?

As a people, concerned about mankind and the people in our communities and churches and families, what shall we do to address this issue? Some suggest that we compensate families of deceased individuals for the right to harvest and distribute a loved ones organs. Perhaps, more prudent would be to offer the financial incentives to the individual while he or she was still alive and to get the approval from the donor themselves.

Another idea was to create a market based on the future value of an organ. In such an instance, the healthy individual would enter his organ into a pool along with several other potential donors and depending on supply and demand, when the individual meets his-her end, the reward would go to the family members. Such an award would already have been established by the marketplace and an agreement would be in place before the death of the donor.

And finally, we find ourselves here at this website, livekidneydonation.org and read more about Kidney Infection Symptoms.

It is a site where individuals with kidney disease can tell their story with the hopes of connecting with others who may care enough to offer help. Help may not come in the way of a kidney donation, but the simple act of sharing such a personal tragedy with others will help to uncover an issue millions face and never discuss.

Top Kidney Friendly Recipes - Get Kidney Smart

I was scrambling around trying to figure out how to get the family spaghetti back on the table. Especially after my son was diagnosed with kidney failure. Thick, rich, garlic-infused red sauce was a staple for years in our household.

The issue, of course, was that Michael was in kidney failure and could not eat tomatoes. The phosphorus and potassium levels in his blood work would not allow for even a magazine with a tomato on the cover. Sure, we have had our share of pasta, white pasta along with white rice and both were getting too much to eat every day. We needed something new-something comforting.

The idea occurred to me as I was roasting bell peppers, watching the char turn the pepper sweet. What would happen if I could puree the grilled bell and turn it into a sauce, using chicken stock? Cream would have been my preferred choice, but this kidney patient was allowed no dairy.

Hence began a new-kidney friendly version of the Italian Fav, Spaghetti Sauce, ala Kidney Friendly. The first few batches needed work because of texture and after I figured out how to blend at high speed, I had something the family was commenting about. I added some fresh herbs and it because a weekly meal. It wasn’t perfect, but my goal was nutrition first, then taste. It worked. Learn more about the Renal Diet.

Resuming Life After Kidney Transplantation

After a kidney transplant there are numerous advices to be followed.

Though I have not had a kidney transplant, I am as close to the actual situation as you can get. I am the parent of a young man who was very sick one day; sick enough to send him to the ER and to receive a diagnosis that he was in kidney failure.

I remember that fateful day very well, informing my wife of that tragedy took all the courage and stamina I could muster.

It took a mere 6 months before Michael received his kidney transplant, courtesy of his kindergarten friend, Kellen. Loma Linda, located in Southern California preformed the surgery and they told me before that they loved the fact that Kellen was so much taller than Michael because it meant the kidney would be large and a large kidney lasts a long time.

Kellen and Michael live together these days-college roommates and still best friends. Had the surgery not gone as well as it did, I am certain they would still be best friends. They have a bond most people can only imagine and it is probably something even they cannot quite describe.

Life After Kidney Transplant

Still, getting from kidney failure to kidney transplantation was no easy task. Kellen had to qualify and on many levels. Health, psychologic testing and even after over 50 vials of blood were taken, Kellen stayed the course. When the medical team told him to quit smoking and to quit drinking, he complied without the slightest tremor.

There are a lot of people like Kellen. I wish I knew the count because we could really tap into their wonderful psyche and try to bottle the mojo they bring to the world. I was stopped at a recent fundraising event by a young woman who told me she wanted to donate her kidney to “someone”.  So, I know there are more Kellen’s out there because we get calls and emails all the time from people who want to help mankind. They want information on how they can donate a kidney.

If you are in Renal Failure or if you are on the UNOS Waiting List for a kidney transplant, you should have faith that you have a chance. The issue is not how many or where are the donors, I think the issue is more exposure to the need. The more people know that you need a kidney the better your chances are for connecting with a living donor. It is the basis for the website we have created, livekidneydonation.org and it is why you should sign up because it is free and you have nothing to lose.