Drove down to visit my sister/donor Silvia and gave her a shirt I painted for her.

My sister, Silvia (on left) continues to be healthy, as always.  It's been almost 5 years since she donated her kidney to me.  My husband, son, and I went to visit her and our families in December 2013.  We live 7 hours away.  This picture of the 2 of us was taken when we took our kids to Chuck-E-Cheese.

I have been doing well also.  My last creatinine was 0.93 and my glucose was 91.

It's been 4 years since my sister, Silvia donated her kidney to me in 2009.  We are both happy and healthy.  My creatinine is .98 and I rarely get sick.  I've never had a rejection and all my blood test results are always normal.  I will always take care of the gift she gave me.  I am thankful every day.

Visiting my sister/donor

Silvia (my donor), my 5 year old son and me at the zoo.

Do you like our t-shirts?   We were at Disneyland.

My husband, son, and I drove down to visit the family.  We spent almost 3 weeks with them.  I got to spend a lot of time with my sister/donor, Silvia.  It's been almost 2 1/2 years since the transplant and we are both doing great.  We all visited Knotts, Disneyland, the zoo, and ChuckECheese with my son, our nieces and nephews. Both Silvia and I have enough energy to keep up with the kids, our blood pressures are great, and we are very happy.  We continue our long distance communication daily.

Was sick, but now I am better.

My son, Christopher (is 4 years old) and we love to play together.

A few months ago, I got sick, which started with a day of vomiting and weeks of on-an-off diarrhea.  The doctors (my PCP, my nephrologist, intestinal specialist and Kidney Center) never figured out what made me sick.  They did all sorts of blood tests and stool samples but nothing came up.  The only thing they did find is that my Prograf medicine level had reached a toxic level in my blood (it was 20 and a normal number is 5).  We don't know if it was the Prograf that made me sick or my sickness that made my Prograf go up.  But it made my Creatinine go up to 2.04 (it had been at 1 just a month before).  The Kidney Center doctor told me to gradually lower my  Prograf and do frequent blood tests.  I've been doing that since and I am no longer sick and my Prograf and Creatinine are back to normal numbers.  I am relieved because it gave me a big scare.  If I ever get sick like that again, I am running to the lab to get my blood drawn right away in case it is my Prograf level getting too elevated.  FYI:  My sister and donor, Silvia Encinas is doing well and we talk by phone or messenger every day.  I miss her and am thankful for her gift every day.

Visited the Family in Southern California

This picture was taken on March 28, 2010, on my sister's 28th Birthday, just 2 weeks  after our 1 year Kidney Transplant Anniversary.  I am on the left (Denise), my husband (Yarid), and my sister and donor (Silvia).  My husband, son, and I went to visit our family in Southern California in March.  And now we are all getting over our colds that we caught over there.  My cold is taking the longest because I am on immunosuppressants (Mycophenolate and Tacrolimus).  I had sore gums and pain in my throat for a couple of weeks.  But now I only have a cough and runny nose.  I am still anemic but my folate, iron, and B12 levels are fine.  My hemoglobin has remained at around 11.3 for months.  My potassium has stayed under 5, and my creatinine around 1.05.  Everything is going well.

Doing Well

I only have to take 2 anti-rejection medications and a tiny aspirin every day. It has been 6 months since my kidney transplant on March 16,2009. My anemia is gone, my hemoglobin went up to 11.5 and continues to climb. I only have to get my blood tested once a month now. My weight is completely back to normal and is stable. My husband and I are looking forward to Halloween with our son, Christopher (he is 3 years old) and will be Batman. My sister, Silvia continues to be well, she is visiting family in Mexico and we will travel down to visit her as soon as she gets back.

Decrease of Medications

Out of 9 medications, my doctor told me to stop 4. And hopefully that will help eliminate my anemia. 2 weeks ago, they told me that my hemoglobin went up from 9.1 to 9.5 (improvement), and my iron levels are fine so iron is not the cause of my anemia. The four that I don't have to take anymore are an anti-bacterial one, an anti-viral one, one to control cholesterol and one that was for high blood pressure. They will check my cholesterol in 3 months to see that it is still under control. Before my transplant, I was told that I'd have to have a biopsy of my new kidney 3 months after surgery and then again a year later. So I asked the doctor about that and he said that I won't need any biopsies because my new kidney was a perfect match and they don't feel they have to worry about rejection. That's great news. My blood draws have been switched from once a week to every 2 weeks. And in a few months, it will be switched to once a month.

Anti-K Antibodies

I just received a letter in the mail saying that on 3/11/09, (that was the day of my transplant pre-op) they found that I developed Anti-K Antibodies. It is not supposed to be something harmful but it is something that I developed because of my 2 blood transfusions. I had a total of 4 units and that means blood from 4 people. I just have to make sure that if I get another transfusion, it doesn't include the Kell Antigen. I guess this is better than developing HIV or Hepatitis from transfusions. But they scared me when the letter started off saying, in your recent blood test, we found that you have developed a new antibody. That sounded like I was rejecting my new kidney until I read on and figured out that it was harmless and caused by transfusions and the test was done before my transplant. Coming from the UC Davis Medical Center, I am not surprised that it took them 3 months to give me this information. I have had over 20 blood tests since my transplant, and the doctors refuse to give me even one printout of any of my results because they say they have too many patients and not enough time. I have to look over their shoulders when they see my results on their computers so I can write down my results. I am not paying 25 cents per sheet and waiting a year for medical records to let me have them. Last week, my transplant coordinator called me to say that my hemoglobin dropped from 10 to 9. So this Monday, they checked my iron levels and I am waiting to find out if I need extra iron or Epogen shots. I have gained 9 pounds and am now at my original weight from a year ago. It has been 1 year since I found out I needed a kidney transplant. I am very happy it's all in the past.

Anemic from Side Effects

I've been extra careful to stay away from crowds and people so I won't get sick. My doctors want me to stay healthy while my immune system is so low from the anti-rejection drugs. But Christopher caught a cold and gave it to Yarid and me. We are all almost over it. The anti-viral drugs I've been taking have helped me. And drinking 2 liters of water every day have kept my kidney healthy and my Creatinine low. It was 1.2 yesterday, that's the lowest it's been since the transplant. I am anemic, my Hematocrit is at 31, the normal range is 35-42. It makes me tired. The doctor says the anemia might be caused by 3 of my medications. But most of my medications will be decreased or changed in the future. My Potassium is good at 4.9 but I still have to watch my diet. And I have to try to gain some weight so I try to drink protein shakes, I don't like the flavor.

Stent Removal

"Urine is formed in the kidney and is passed to the bladder by the ureter. A ureteric stent is a hollow drainage tube placed at the time of transplant in the ureter to aid urine flow. A stent is made of plastic. The length of an adult sized ureteric stent ranges from about 9-12 inches. To remove, a person is placed under general anesthesia and has to breathe through a tube down the throat. A surgeon removes the ureteric stent by inserting a small telescopic tube with a camera through the urethra and into the bladder." My stent was poking me whenever I urinated. It was due to be taken out on Monday, April 20 at UCDMC. My appointment was at 11:30 AM but the surgeon wasn't done with his previous surgery until 7:30 PM. I was starving and dehydrated by the time it was my turn. The actual procedure only took half an hour, but they kept me an extra 2 hours afterwards because my blood pressure went up to 170/105, but medications brought it back down. It was a long day, and I am glad it's over. I no longer have to go visit a nephrologist weekly, only monthly but I still have my blood drawn twice every week. My blood pressure medicines have been reduced from 11 pills to only 2 daily because my blood pressure is no longer as high. I am still on a low potassium diet. My next procedure will be a biopsy of my new kidney, in mid june. My sister Silvia says she is feeling well.

Better

My potassium is normal now because I am on a low potassium diet. I am taking one less blood pressure medicine because my blood pressure is improving. My White Blood Count went up a little, I hope it doesn't mean anything.

Fluctuations

My potassium is a bit high and my blood pressure still goes up and down. With time, I hope everything settles. I will have a simple outpatient surgery where they will remove my stent, in 1 month. That's a little tube inside my ureter (that connects my new kidney to my bladder). They go in with something like a catheter. And in 3 months, I will have a biopsy to check that everything is ok, then another biopsy in 1 year. I am taking 14 medicines every day, some are anti-rejection, some are anti-infective, and some are for my blood pressure.

Back Home

The surgery was a success! We are back home. We still have a lot of pain and walk like old ladies. I hope the pain gets better soon because we can't sleep or walk. I took 15 prescriptions home. And my chest catheter is out, but they had to really dig it out because my flesh had grown onto it, it was very painful, and bloody. While Silvia was already in surgery on Monday, they had to dialyse me because my potassium was too high at 6.2, so my surgery didn't start until hers was all over at 3 PM.

It finally Happened!!!!!!

Hello, this is Denise's husband. The transplant happened yesterday and everything went ok. My sister in law is already talking, she looked swollen but they said that it was expected. She should be able to walk today.
My lady, when I tried to talk to her was going in and out because they had her in strong medicines cause she had very bad nausea. They overdose her and that made her sleepy, they say she should be better today and I would be able to talk to her.
I'm waiting for my sister in law to call us when she's awake so we can go and see them. My lady will write when she's back. I'm not much of a writer. Thank you very much to all the people that have wrote and donated to her. I hope all of you have a great day as it was for me yesterday when I heard the news that both were doing great!!! Take care bloggers!!!

Pre-Op Day

Silvia arrived on March 4rth, 2009 and will stay with us until the end of the month, Hector is arriving this weekend to take care of Silvia while she is in the hospital. The Pre-Op appointment is Wed. March 11, all morning long. Then I will go to dialysis in the afternoon. The appointments are for a chest x-ray, anesthesia clearance, an EKG, a final blood crossmatch, a final interview for Silvia, and a physical with the surgeons. I also have to do an extra dialysis session on Saturday, in preparation for the surgery on Monday.

Transplant Date

March 16th, 2009 is the planned day for my transplant. I hope the transplant surgeons don't cancel because my blood pressure goes over 200/125 almost every day. Maybe it will be under control by then.

Transplant Approved

Silvia received a phone call yesterday to tell her that she is approved by the committee to donate her kidney to me. But we don't have a set date yet because the Donor Coordinator is on vacation. We need her to make the appointment for us. We are so close now! Finally. My blood pressure was 204/125 two days ago and 166/109 this morning. I still get shortness of breath at night from the fluids.

Week in the hospital

I went in for the dialysis catheter on Tuesday, January 20th. I fasted since Monday night and they had me wait at the UCD hospital all day. The appointment was at 11 am and my catheter was placed at 5 pm, then I didn't feel like eating until the next morning. The catheter placement was so painful, they barely sedated me, if at all. I felt every needle prick, about 12. The shoving in of the catheter was the most painful. Afterward, they couldn't stop the bleeding, so the nurses took turns pressing their fingers onto the wounds many times for long periods, I wanted to cry. They didn't give me pain medication until my husband requested they give me some after all the pressing. We requested my bloodwork results and they gave them to us later, my platelets were 89 and my hemoglobin 8. They sent me home, still bleeding and told me to go to emergency if it didn't stop. A few hours later, Yarid took me to the Sutter emergency room, where they did some more pressing. An ambulance picked me up and took me to the Woodland Memorial at 1 am. That morning, I had a transfusion and my first dialysis session together. It made me nauseas and dizzy and raised my blood pressure. Afterwards, I couldn't breathe, and I felt like fainting, by the time the nurse believed me, it was night and they found that I only had about 50 % oxygen, instead of 100%. I was rushed to the ICU. They drugged me and placed a breathing mask on me. I woke up toward the end of my second (emergency) dialysis. I would have drowned without it. They told me I had fluid overload. The next morning, I had dialysis again, I had nausea and dizziness, then I almost vomited. My body became very hot and I went deaf for a while. I almost passed out but they stopped that part of the dialysis. Later they told me my heart had stopped beating for 6 seconds twice during th0se 15 seconds, when I almost passed out. Monday, I had another dialysis session, and I became nausea, dizzy and had very strong stomach pains, my session had to be limited. I was discharged and went home with a major headache. The highest my blood pressure went during the week was 240/130. They can't figure out why it's always high. Tomorrow, I'll have a new dialysis session in Dixon. I am afraid.

All day testing complete and dialysis starts Wed

Silvia finished her initial tests: cat scan, 24 hour urine, chest x-ray, transplant doctor evaluation, EKG, blood work, and interview. We don't have all the results yet though. The coordinator told us that the soonest surgery date that is open is mid-March. My newest symptoms are hot flashes that make me dizzy, and a very sweet taste (like artificial sweeteners) in my mouth. I am always tired, but I can't sleep. My edema is even worse than before. My blood pressure is still very high. I have bruises on my legs that are getting darker instead of healing. I also had a very bad leg cramp when I woke up yesterday, and a painful cramp on my chest today. My creatinine was over 11 last week, GFR 4, and my platelets are decreasing. My neck catheter is going in on Tuesday at 11 AM at UCDMC. And I will start dialysis Wednesday, the 21st at 6 AM.