1. I knew going in that if I ever had kidney transplant surgery that a key piece of the recovery would be regular, possibly frequent, trips to the surgical lab at the Sacred Heart Outpatient Health Center for blood work. I knew that on some of those days, if I spent my recovery days in Kellogg, it would mean driving an hour or so to the medical center, spending no more than fifteen minutes checking in at the lab and having my blood drawn, and then turning right around and heading straight back to Kellogg -- with possible stops in CdA or the Smelterville Walmart. I have to have this blood work done at around 7:30 a.m. because it's crucial that I take my morning meds at 8:00 and I have to have this blood drawn before I take my pills.
Because all but one of my blood draws and my urine sample are analyzed in house, the results are available very quickly. This wouldn't be true if I had the blood work done at a lab in Kellogg or Coeur d'Alene. I'm fortunate that Christy is both available and willing to drive me to Spokane at this early hour only to turn right around and return to Kellogg. I'm immeasurably grateful.
2. The one analysis that can't be done in house goes to Labcorp. It tests the level of Tacrolimus in my blood. Tacrolimus is one of the immunosuppressive drugs I'll take for the rest of my life. It's crucial, especially in these early days after the transplant, that I'm neither taking too little nor too much of this drug.
The results of the Tacrolimus level in my blood are ready in the afternoon.
Nurse Jenn then calls me with instructions as to whether I need to adjust the dosage of the Tacrolimus.
She also reviews the other blood tests with me.
When Nurse Jenn called this afternoon, she, in essence, told me things are stable or improving.
I'll stay with my current dosage of Tacrolimus and test my levels again on Wednesday.
My creatinine levels continue to trickle down, a positive sign.
My magnesium levels are low, but with supplements and diet, we are addressing that.
I'll return to the medical center on Wednesday for 7:30 a.m. blood work and meetings with members of the transplant team and see where we go from there.
3. I had fun early this evening cooking a HelloFresh meal of chicken cutlets with dill sauce accompanied by steamed green beans and boiled potatoes. Cooking meals doesn't tax me. It doesn't require lifting anything over five pounds. It's great for my spirit and morale. It makes me very happy to be able to do light tasks around the house -- very light and very occasional loads of laundry, food prep and cooking, keeping the dishwasher emptied and then loaded, and keeping cutting boards and countertops clean.
It's important that I move around, that I don't sit or lie around all day. The transplant team has made this very clear to me and I'm happy to comply. Debbie has done so much to help me over the last two weeks while also teaching nearly every day. The end of the school year is a challenging and demanding time for teachers. Debbie's been tired. I'm especially happy that I can cook for her, lighten her load a bit, and that doing so is compliant with the transplant team's urging that I be moderately active at home.
No comments:
Post a Comment