Hi all, my twin sister Beth does not have diabetes but had severe complications with her pregnancy 10 years ago that left her with stable moderate kidney disease, naively we all thought this was her new norm she does see her nephrologist regularly, but now it has jumped to stage 4 and I am frightened for her. Does anyone here have any holistic ideas that have helped them with their kidney issues. I have read about decreased protein, reflexology, of course I will have her try gentle yoga as I am an instructor but any other ideas?? Thanks so much for any ideas, Amy
Are you all unwilling to accept drug therapy? No judgement, just want to understand the bigger picture -- are you trying to supplement medical treatment, or looking for alternatives?
oh no not at all. i just tend to think outside the box abit, this is a new development for her as she was stable for so long i just foolishly didnt think her condition would worsen, she is seeing her nephrologist early september and doesnt seem as concerned as I am probably because she feels aweful right now with urinary tract infection, meanwhile i am worried that things will worsen very rapidly. her GFR is 36. thanks for any info. Amy
I find it interesting that she was stable for such a very long time before this sudden change for the worse. Does anyone on her medical team have a clue as to what the trigger was?
i know part of the confusion for me is she was being seen in nj where she lived for a year and now is reestablishing care her in mass, she is weaning off lithium therapy which she was on for many many years which may have compounded the problem, ( her new psychiatric nurse practitioner tested her and gave her the bad news about her numbers declining) she has continued to use ibuprofen as she has other medical problems ( fibromyalgia) and now is having her thyroid treated, so not sure if that tipped her over more she is a complex case and i need to get to one of her nephrology apts esp because i want to see if it comes down to it, if i will be able to donate a kidney. thanks for you concern david, i was saying to one of my friends today i haven't had this type of impending doom since i suspected Jacob had diabetes and was taking him to the hospital 5 plus years ago. blessings to you, amy
Ibuprofen and other nsaids are usually completely forbidden in kidney patients - in fact, I know of a woman (non db) who had kidney failure from years of taking ibuprofen. Did the nephro know she was taking it?
I suffered multiple organ failure 4 years ago as a result of a blood clot in my lung from post surgical complications.
I was on dialysis for 14 months and they have no idea why my kidneys just simply recovered. That was over 2 years ago. I can absolutely not take any new meds, either prescription or otc without my nephro's permission. I can have 1 gm of protein daily per kg of body weight, and sodium is severely restricted.
What was it that indicated worsening - increased creatinine or BUN in the blood? Increased spillage of protein? Has she done a creatinine clearance test?
Also it's important that blood pressure be carefully controlled, as well as cholesterol.
thanks Kathy I am sure she is honest with her nephrologist but also knows that she should not take ibuprofen she just cant find anything else to relieve pain perhaps her doc will give her a new idea. she also takes some supplements that she is weaning off of. her creatinine is up to 2.1 GFR 26 so not looking so good she will be doing her clearance test in a week or two. I am so glad you were somehow able to turn things around it sounds like your situation was acute due to the surgery so in that case there is more of a chance for recovery than with chronic slow loss of kidney function. her bp is very well controlled on a low dose of atenolol, and chol is fine. I have talked to her about decreasing protein and watching salt, in general she eats very healthfully. thanks for you thoughts, I think I will feel better about things when she recovers from this UTI and she sees her nephrologist early sept just feel helpless and wish I could offer some new ideas other than you can have my kidney, which of course I will gladly give up!
.....sigh. But maybe the uti is playing a role in the bad numbers. Let's hope.
Yes, my situation was acute, but usually in acute cases the kidneys come back within a few weeks at most, so the 14 month thing is a complete mystery.
Yes, it is a very helpless feeling - like being on the "rudderless ship". Hard to deal with.
Take care.