New and looking for advice and friends that can relate!

[Epril]

New here with stage 4 kidney disease. How did you decide it was time to get dialysis? Thanks!

[Hidden]

Your nephrologist will discuss this with you and write the script to begin dialysis. On your other post I told you about the Kidney Smart class. You'll receive a lot of information on the dialysis modalities available to you, but you may have a lot of time to slow the progression without dealing with dialysis if you slow it down..

[Lilly234 in reply to Hidden]

I started to vomit quite a bit and I lost a lot of sleep. However, visits to the nephrologist was a wake up call. She told me that I could die in my sleep or at any time. I have been on dialysis, now, for 3 years. I don't have a live donor so don't qualify for a kidney transplant. I go from Stage 4 to Stage 5 and back again. There are certain foods that help the kidneys. Some of these are strawberries, raspberries, cauliflower, cabbage, etc. You can find the complete list on-line.

[KidneyCoach NKF Ambassador in reply to Lilly234]

Please speak with your nephrologist. You do NOT need a living donor to qualify for a kidney transplant. Call your local transplant center and ask to be evaluated for transplant.

There are around 550,000 on dialysis, 100,000 on the list.

Blessings

[Jayhawker in reply to Lilly234]

I do not have a living donor for a transplant either. However, I was actively waitlisted for a deceased donor kidney on January 10, 2020. My kidneys suddenly plummeted from low stage IIIb to Stage V the first week of January 2017. I am, at this time, still not on dialysis.

I have been able to improve my renal function some with dietary changes. My eGFR is stable at 15 and has been for the past 16-18 months. This is an improvement from an eGFR of 8-9.

I completed transplant evaluation from August through October of 2019. So the testing to see if you qualify will take some time. I was told it would be 2 to 2 1/2 years before I would likely receive a deceased donor kidney. Of course, that was before COVID 19. I’m not sure if COVID will change the wait time or not.

As I wait for a possible deceased donor kidney, I’m doing my best to remain healthy and strong. I thought I would be starting dialysis very soon but learned this past Wednesday that it is still some time away. So I’m still in a holding pattern with dialysis. However, when the time comes, I’ll use PD dialysis.

I’d agree with what others have said. I would also encourage you to focus on stabilizing your renal function, if possible, to sustain what you have now as long as possible if you can’t improve it. After all, I’ve been in renal failure for 3 years and 10 1/2 months without the need fir dialysis.

You and your nephrologist as well as a renal dietician should set treatment goals fir your treatment. I would definitely ask about the possibility of improving renal function some as well as stabilizing it. I would also ask for renal failure education. Most nephrologist’s provide that as you move into Stage IV.

Let us know how you are doing🐶

Jayhawker