Recently had a kidney transplant - So far, so good.
I got that all important telephone call on Thursday 28th June, telling me that a kidney donor was availbale and that I should immediately make my way to the hospital for preparation of a kidney transplant, so without hesitation I made the 6 mile journey from my home in north London to ther hospital on the other side of north London. After further test and cross matching it was then straight to the operating theatre for that all important surgery at 3am in the morning. The surgery was successful and after a 11 day stay in hospital for recovery and observation it was a relief to be back home on the 9th of July. All is going very well so far, thanks to excellent surgeons, doctors and nursing care and great support from family, loved ones and friends. I'm already driving myself around and making the steps back to full strength. I now have hospital appointments 3 time a well for the normal tests and observation. It now just a matter of resting and taking it easy and strictly following doctor's advice and after care treatment. The great thing is that after nearly 4 years of having to do dialysis in order to survive it will now be a relief not to have to depend on it now at all. At the age of 42 I now feel like it almost a fresh start out in life for me again. At the same time I am not being over optimistic I do realise that it's still early days and I am still at the observation stage, My creatine level has fallen all the way from 1600 to 179, my tac level is still a little bit low but with a few more other meds and an increase in my tac tablets the doctor is confident that it will soon be under control. I am just taking things day by day and doing what's necessary in order to make my recovery as comfortable as possible and obviously that mainly involves following all the instructions that the doctors and nurses all tell me to do, and following it religiously. I will never forget that another human being had to 'pass away' and donate their kidney in order for me to gain a better quality of life, for that I will always be greatful for.
Re: Recently had a kidney transplant - So far, so good.
Woo Hoo! Congrats. I am so happy for you. My cousin gave me a kidney almost 5 years ago and I'm doing well. The first year is the hardest - you'll find a lot of paranoia, especially during cold and flu season. I find that hand sanitizers like Purell are a great thing. I almost never get sick.
Re: Recently had a kidney transplant - So far, so good.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Coravh
Woo Hoo! Congrats. I am so happy for you. My cousin gave me a kidney almost 5 years ago and I'm doing well. The first year is the hardest - you'll find a lot of paranoia, especially during cold and flu season. I find that hand sanitizers like Purell are a great thing. I almost never get sick.
Best of luck to you.
Cora
Thanks for the helpful advice....... Appreciated.
You are very much right about the paranoia. Even though it's now just been over 2 weeks since the transplant I find myself avoiding crowed places such as elevators and crowded trains and places, if someone next to me coughs or sneezes I step away from them immediately, heck i'm even caution about shaking peoples hand. I don't like being like this but I was told that my immunity system will be vulnerable for a while so I guess i'm just being over cautious. I guess in time as soon as I get used to the whole transplant living then I will relax a little bit.
Re: Recently had a kidney transplant - So far, so good.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bob_Ben
Thanks for the helpful advice....... Appreciated.
You are very much right about the paranoia. Even though it's now just been over 2 weeks since the transplant I find myself avoiding crowed places such as elevators and crowded trains and places, if someone next to me coughs or sneezes I step away from them immediately, heck i'm even caution about shaking peoples hand. I don't like being like this but I was told that my immunity system will be vulnerable for a while so I guess i'm just being over cautious. I guess in time as soon as I get used to the whole transplant living then I will relax a little bit.
Try to always keep something in your hands: Papers, folders, a drink, a plate, anything you can think of then you can escape teh hand shaking without feeling awkward.
I recently traveled to a foreign country for business and shaking hands was common but the water in the area was steeped with typhoid. I avoid awkwardness by lining my pockets with wet naps and then I could just nonchalantly put my hands in my pockets and wipe them on the wet nap without anyone being any the wiser or getting insulted. It backfired only slightly in the fact that as a female they kissed me on the cheek with each handshake.
Recently had a kidney transplant - So far, so good. 
Re: Recently had a kidney transplant - So far, so good. 
