After diagnosed with End Stage Renal Failure (ESRF) in 2019, there was grieve decline on my health . My body no longer met its actual performance and I bcome uncertain how resilient my body can further sustain to maintain a good health. At that time , my kidney only work at 5% of its capacity.
In order to mitigate my kidney from further damage, I went on strict protein diet,but unfortunately my kidney crash rapidly and its started worsen my health even more. It took me almost six month to progress from Stage 4 to reach end stage and I had no choice but to start the dialysis treatment . It was when I started to show severe simtoms of long fever , continous womitting, fatigueness and short of breath.
Kidney performs essential function to keep our body healthy . The toxic that builds in our body being exerete by kidney filtration, keeping up the balance of minerals in our body . Kidney ensures minerals in our body like sodium, phosforos, pottasium and fluid are in right balance and portion to keep our body function and perform well. Once the kidney fail to execute all his responsibilities,the body will start to deteriorate and gradually leads to detrimental health crisis and lost of life.
Dialysis is treatment to replace kidney functions, to keep ESRF patience sustain his health . It filtered the patient toxicated blood in a dialyzer machine and return back the clean blood to the blood stream through arterivenous acess made to the body. In order to stay alive, ESRF patients usually have to undergo dialysis treatment 3 times a week , 4 hours per session through out his life time. Unless the patients get a new kidney from the donor for transplant procedure, most probable he has a chance to lead a normal life again. Statistic recorded that less than 1 on 20 transplant procedure faced rejection.
While on dialysis, its important to keep strict diet to control toxic accumulation, which easily fluctuate due to loss of kidney function. Skiping dialysis sessions were great factor that lead to the death of kidney patients. ESRF patients who stop dialysis most probably have a month to live according to medical experts.
A person diagnosed with ESRF needs to adjust to new routine of life long treatments. Some may experience extreme post dialysis effects like low blood preassure accompanied by shortness of breath, abdominal and musle cramps, nausea , vomiting and even blood infection (sepsis).
Its important for ESRF patients to listen closely his body conditions and take appropriate and necesaary actions. Every 3 month they required to take blood test and timely monitored by nefrologist. I also suggest to ESRF's to keep themself updated with latest knowledge by joining support groups and thru extensive reading. Here I keenly sharing some books that I had read, during my winding road as ESRF patient. Hope it benefits who share the same journey.
1. Chronic Kidney Disease, Life after Diagnose by Jeff A. Parke
2. You Are A Dialysis Patients by James F. Horn, MD
3. How to Avoid Dialysis and cure kidney disease by Terry Cooksey
4. Anatomy of an Illness by Norman Cousins
5. The Doctor Kidney Diets by Mandip S. Kang MD
6. The Art of Medicine by Dr Herbert Hong Ping Kong
7. There is life after Dialysis by Vijay N. Shanker
8. Dialysis Without Fear by Daniel Offer MD
9. The Kidney Warriors by Vasundhara Raghavan
10. Kidney Disease A Guide for Living by Walter A. Hunt
11. Living Well With Kidney Failure by Juliet Auer
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