Organ Doner? Don't You Need Organs That Work?

Ok, so here's what happened, in chronological order, as best that I can remember:

November 24, Thanksgiving, went to my sister's for dinner with the family, all is well, dinner is great, family is too.

November 25, Friday, I start getting the usuall tell-tale signs of a kidney stone in my left kidney, they get worse as the day progresses until it's very painful and I don't sleep for the next few nights.

November 26 + 27, Saturday & Sunday, pain in left kidney area moves through the days down toward the lower back area, then movement appears to stop...pain increases and no stones are passing. Something's there, and it's refusing to go any further.

November 28, Monday, pain increases, movement of stone appears stalled in ureter outside of bladder, urine output slows to almost nothing. I begin to worry. I begin to suspect renal infection/failure.

Novmber 29, Tuesday - Ok, that's enough. I call my doctor, get in to see her pretty quick, she sends me to get a CT Scan at St. Mary Medical Center in Newtown, PA. CT Scan shows major problems and I am admitted through the ER. In an amazing development, I am admitted and am receiving intensive treatment within hours of arriving for my CT Scan, at most other hospitals it usually takes 4-5 hours just to be SEEN by someone in the ER!

At 1030pm Tuesday night I am being sedated so I can have a stent inserted in through my bladder up to my left kidney to open it, and the doc finds 3 large stones along the way! So now I have a stent in my left kidney/ureter.

By Wednesday morning I am in ICU and undergoing major & intensive treatment for renal failure & Sepsis

I am in ICU ("Close to death") for 6 days, being pumped full of anything laying around with about 6 doctors working to keep me around. Finally, my kidneys start working again and all appears well. I have the indignity of a Foley Catheter insterted Wednesday morning, too many IVs to count and people pulling me in and out of consciousness for the next few days, not letting me slip away to peace.

The nerve of some people.

Finally, all seems to be going well enough to move me out of ICU on Monday morning and I am released Tuesday, Decemeber 6.

Now, I'm home, taking 6 pills a day (to try to break down the kidney stones), getting a vancomycen treatment every day until the 13th (anti-biotic, I have a PICC Line again and give myself an IV of vanco), and every Saturday for the next 8 weeks I will be getting a procrit injection as well, to help the blood loss.

I am alive, once again, and it's getting very tiring....
I wish it would all go away ; one way or another.

RobMac

Back From Death....No, Really!

Bigger post tomorrow, but in a nutshell
- my obituary almost read -
July 3, 1970 ~ November 29, 2005

I was moments away from death due to kidney failure and septic poisoning. Luckily, one of my local area hospital's, St. Mary Medical Center in Newtown, PA, saved my life.

Details tomorrow....I have just gotten home and want nothing more than an alarm-free, nuresless, warm bed to sleep in....something I thought I'd never have - once again.

RobMac