Our new normal - life on dialysis

Tuesday, February 11, Scott had his dialysis catheter put in on his upper right chest.  It was a minor surgery, and relatively uneventful.  That catheter is a tube that leads directly to the right atrium of his heart.

After the port was put in, he had 2 hours of dialysis in the hospital to make sure there were no surprises.  Now, he's on a Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday 8am schedule at a dialysis center near OSU.  He gathers a pillow, blanket, ear buds, and cell phone charger to keep himself comfortable.  He sits in a recliner for 4 hours while his blood circulates through the large "artificial kidney" machine to remove waste, toxins, & fluid.  (Stock photo to show what a machine looks like.)

Scott is definitely feeling better - we've been out to dinner for the first time in months, and his appetite is back.  This is really good news.

However, this is not a sustainable lifestyle for our family.  There is no way Scott can go back to the teaching he loves until he has a transplant.  Our family won't do much travelling.  We can go places, but having him hooked to a machine for 1/2 a day while Charlotte & I do fun stuff is not what family travelling is about.  A quick weekend trip might be an option, but that means more juggling of appointments, etc.

We are all glad he is feeling better, but hoping this fix is as short term as possible.

Please consider donation, it would mean so much to our family.
Link to OSU Live Kidney Donation Site