Having Support

Spousal and family support can be a big help when suffering through a kidney failure. Especially the long hospital visits and the medications that you have to take that prevents you from living a normal life. There were times that I could not walk and had to have the support of my husband and mother. There were times that I needed my husband to bathe and clothe me because I could not have done it myself.

The medications I was taking caused me to have muscle spasms and I had them especially bad when it came to bathing myself and cooking regular meals. My husband would have to bathe me because my hands would lock up or I would drop the spoon in the food because my hand would have locked up on me.

Caregivers make all the difference

When your five senses aren't working correctly, it becomes a issue. I would have hot flashes in 65 degree weather or if I was inside, my air conditioner would be turned on 68 degrees and I would be sweating. My sweat imprints would be so deep within the bed that I would sweat through my clothes, sheets, and it would be in the bed. I could not feel when someone or something was touching me because that sense was off as well. I would eat food just to make sure I ate, but I would not be able to taste or smell the food at all.

Each kidney failure my mother and my sisters made their way down to me and made sure I was okay. My mother wanted to bathe me, change the bedding, and clean the hospital room. My husband was the one that never left my side and would sneak food into the room that I could eat.

Some people just don't understand

When it came to friends, while I was constantly being in the hospital, some of my friendships ended because they did not come to see me. Sometimes at your worst you will see who your best friends are. Sometimes, it felt like no one was there and that hurt. They checked on me when I was out the hospital, but when I was in the hospital, they were no where to be found. Some of me friendships didn’t last because they didn't understand how serious chronic kidney disease is when it comes to kidney failures. My husband is my biggest supporter. He used to tell my family that they could leave and he would stay with me.

My favorite thing to say is to always put yourself and your family first because friends will come and go, but you will always have family. It might not be all of your family, but they will be there at your worst and at your best. When you have a condition like CKD, you have to learn to put yourself first and cut people off. The best medicine is to be stress free because certain things can be triggers in your life.