Sunday, September 30, 2012 - I can finally post this topic on my blog, first, I must apologize, as I was having difficulty posting this topic on Saturday, as I promised, Google wasn't cooperating with me, so I am posting this in the wee hours of the morning, after getting comfortable and hooked up to the cycler for my 10 hr. PD therapy. Well anyway, I was reading some post on the Dialysis Discussion Forum on f/b, and my davita & f/b friend Marina chimed in, with a reply post to this topic, and yes, she is right, Laughter is the best medicine, and I know this all too well, as I have had many humorous incidences, that occurred at my hemo unit, in my car, while driving on the 80 Fwy, and many other places, but I want to share one of my humorous moments, that involve cramping and the ellen talk show. About fifteen years ago, I was on hemo at the time, and I was called to come in a little earlier, as sometime, when a pt. is unexpectly hospitalized, I was offered to come in earlier. I got to the unit about 2:00 PM, so I was there in plenty of time for the Ellen talk show. I got comfortable and my vitals were taken, (you dialysis pts. know the drill), then my arm was sprayed with ethyl chloride, (to freeze the skin, sort of making it numb), and I know what some of you are thinking, why don't I have lidocaine administered, well, that is because, a fellow veteran dialysis pt. at the time, told me in 1991, that I shouldn't get lidocaine, because I have to have four needle sticks, and that would very much in time, caused damage to my AV graft site, because AV grafts have a much higher risk of the development of clotting issues and artery blockage as well, and then he suggested ethyl chloride, and I had it administered ever since. Well on with the story, my needle insertion went pretty well, and then I was then able to rock and roll. It was now 3 PM, and time for the Ellen talk show. I began to watch the show, the theme music began, then her entrance to the stage, and as I was singing along with the theme, I could feel one of those cramps starting to creep up on me, I continued to sing, until that darn cramp, came full force in the back of my right calf, and as I was singing, you know, "Have a little fun today.....yeah, yeah, and Give a little love away.......yeah, yeah!!!!!!!!!!!! I was screaming to the top of my lungs, yelling, "I'm cramping", I got a cramp, help! help! I even woke up some of the pts. that were busy catching zzzzzs... still trying to look over her shoulder, trying to continue looking at ellen, because it was time for her intro dance, and I surely didn't won't to miss this segment of her show, as I am always surprised at the music she will dance to, but because I was in so much pain, it was a little difficult for me to concentrate on the show, and of course, the nurse, looked up at me, and started laughing as she was relieving me of this cramp, it was beginning to subside, and she said, "girl you too much", in all that pain, and still trying to look at TV, what is intriguing you so much, and I replied, after feeling better, "Ellen talk show", and she replied with, yeah I like her show too, but I only see it when I am off. Before leaving my station, she said, You would have had a fit, if you missed ellen, wouldn't you?, and I looked at her and said, Girl, you know it. You have to have been there, but I know there are hemo as well as PD followers on this blog, that can truly relate, maybe you have some very humorous moments to share. Do chime in with your stories, as well as thoughts about my cramping experience. And that isn't the only time, that I have had a hilarious moment with a cramping saga, and maybe I will share another experience with you in a future blog, but the reason for this blog, is to let those out there know, that it isn't the end of the world, if you experience these side effects from hemo and even PD as well, it's not that tragic, it does help to laugh sometime, the reason this may happen, is you may come in to hemo, with an excessive amount of fluid, over your dry weight, and sometime, when the tech or nurse, runs the dialyzer at a high blood flow, you could experience some cramping, because the fluid could be taken off too fast, because the tech is trying to meet your target dry weight as close as possible, but sometime it is a guessing game, because it could be you could be losing weight at the time, and you could have reached your dry weight, before your treatment session is over, so then they can turn your UF off. That is why it is important, if you are pending dialysis pts. and fairly new hemo pts. that you learn early on, the ins and outs about the dialyzer, learning what the display numbers mean, any features you are curious about, just ask, your tech or nurse, I'm sure the nurse or tech, would be happy to explain the features to you. Well, that is it for my blogging today, until my next blog, stay compliant with your renal diet and medication regimen, (and yes, I know that is easier said then done)and just remember Knowledge is key. Moderation when it comes to this very complex renal diet. All the best to you.
Glo
