here we go again

[afib1]

my mom is 87. she has afib, had chf, and now out of the blue gfr 26.6 bun 26 creat 1.7 bp normal no diabetes. stage 4 chronic kidney disease. surprise! SHE is on lasix 40 kidney dr raised it to 80 mg some fluid in legs. she does not need dialysis. urine and rest of bloodwork good. stay on low sodium diet, maintain normal bp, and sent us home . see in 3 months with more urine and bloodwork again. i am upset i have no support. when she asked dr how am i he replied excellent..........a call to family dr who was not in office about this. nurse stated talk to your kidney dr for concerns. no support. i feel like we are being pushed aside because of mom's age. i am upset and a wreck. please reply with your experiences. i wish everyone good health always. thank you

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[jillab]

Hello, I will be 73 in a few days so can relate to your Mums age, I am also stage 4 eGFR of 25%, I found out a couple of years ago that I had kidney disease, having been told for as long as I can remember that I had I.B.S.(irritable bowel disease), I won't bother you with the whole story, but it was found out when I insisted on being sent for tests and the Dr. getting rather cross with me and saying o.k. we will prove to you it is I.B.S. and send you for tests, the rest as they say is history, left kidney was completely disintegrated and had to be removed quickly and right one was damaged too and only working at 25%. I have had similar treatment to your Mum, when I ask any questions I never seem to get a proper answer , it's always we will see how you are in a few months time, at first it was every 4months now it is 6 months and and until you are at stage 5 (hopefully neither of us will deteriorate to that) there is not a lot for them to do, we can help just by eating and drinking sensibly. So tell Mum not to worry we all get treated the same, I do go on a renal site and chat with other ladies of all ages and some older ladies have had transplants when needed so don't worry if we need help I'm sure we will get it.

[jaykay777 in reply to jillab]

jillab --

If you feel comfortable doing it, would you post here the URL for the renal site where you chat with other ladies of all ages about your conditions? I'm an 84 year old woman with stage 3 CKD, and would like to visit that site. I'm happy that we older women are proactive in dealing with our conditions.

[jillab in reply to jaykay777]

Hi, the site I mentioned is Women's Renal Failure Support Group. It is a closed site so you will need to apply to join but it is worth it.

[afib1 in reply to jillab]

oh thank you jillab. you really understand and made me feel better. i hope you are doing well, too. thank you

[jaykay777]

afib1 --

Perhaps although the information you are being given is correct, but the people communicating with you lack the ability act caring to you and your mother. I'm an 84 year old woman, and feel that my nephrologist and her nurse practitioner care about me even though they don't say so. They both listen to me without interrupting and respond to all my concerns. I do think the family doctor's nurse who just referred you back to the nephrologist may have responded brusquely, but that may just be how she is, and not related to your mother's age. I hope you and the doctors will soon all be "on the same page.

[afib1 in reply to jaykay777]

hi. yes, they listen to us however I am worried over my mother. i feel like i have no support. i have to sit here and wait for whatever happens and i feel like no one is doing anything aggressively. i spoke to kidney dr nurse today she said the dr knows what he is doing. i wish you well. thank you for responding. lets hope and pray she dosen't get worse.

[jaykay777]

Do I understand correctly that the kidney doctor's nurse said, "The doctor knows what he is doing. I wish you well. thank you for responding. lets hope and pray she doesn't get worse," but didn't put your call through to the doctor or have the doctor return your call?" If that's the case, the doctor and his staff definitely aren't giving you any support. I hope someone here can give you a suggestion on how to find support where you live.

[afib1]

my primary dr is out of office until end of week. we are seeing him in feb. i hope and pray he gives us some hope and how to proceed. the kidney dr has his staff address questions. i brought up the lasix 40 to 80 mg change he made stating it does a number on your kidneys. she is also on zarolyn 5 mg 3x week. she had chf too . they are balancing her meds, heart meds bp meds with the lasix. i am afraid the lasix will bring her over to worsen condition. the nurse stated he is aware of all her meds and this is what he wants for now. i didnot get a call back. i guess he can't say much. it is what it is. jaykay thank you for your responses. i hope you are doing well.

[afib1]

i saw the primary dr and he stated her kidney are good for a woman her age. what does that mean, i have to wait until next blood and urine tests in may to see if her gfr goes up or down. i didn't say this, but as i am home now it is upsetting me again. do what we have been doing. i mentioned a scooter or wheelchair, he stated i have to look for a company who is medicare covered and then have them fax papers over to him and he will then do a complete mobility exam for medicare approved power wheelchair or scooter. i know nothing about these things. does anyone have a motorized wchair or scooter. i need a light portable one which we can place in the back of car. he said i have to research to see which is best. he dosen't know. i feel so overwhelmed. any replies will be appreciated. she is to stay on all meds for now as kidney dr wants it..