View allAll Photos Tagged kidneyfailure
Found out Patches has kidney failure on June 12, 2017. Vet said he could live a while with it, on a special diet. Flash forward a few days! He is bleeding from his bum and penis! Call Vet, they are over booked...take a Patches to the Emergency Vet, out of Town. Find out he has a raging bladder infection. He is given antibiotics and fluid under his skin for dehydration to help his condition. They had taken a culture of the infection to grow in the lab just to make sure that they were giving him the proper antibiotics. Turns out that they were giving him the wrong antibiotics and he was getting no better so on Friday he was given a new antibiotic and more fluids under the skin for dehydration so hopefully he will start to get better soon.
Pearl was very much alive when I took this of her snoozing in the sun. ...this was taken a few years ago...she loved soaking up the sun coming thru the window[s].
.
We tried to fix the unfixable yesterday but after discovering she could no longer walk when we brought her home last night ...our decision to let her go was absolute.
After cuddling with her all night, we took her to our vet and she died peacefully this morning at 8:10am. I've never witnessed having a pet PTS by a vet. I certainly intended to, but always got too emotional at the last moment. This time I was determined to be with Pearl until her last breath. She went quickly and quietly.
How can I thank you all for being on this "journey" with me these last couple of days? Do know I thank you from the bottom of my heart for your warm and caring comments.
I will now take a deep breath....celebrate the 19 plus years of having Pearl in my life.....and will no doubt have a very subdued Christmas. My love and thanks to you all.
My life's companion Davide (almost 17 years old) crossed the Rainbow Bridge today June 25th, 2012 at 5:30pm.
We had to put him to sleep because he stopped eating and lost weight. He had kidney failure and was suffering.
Davide was my first cat and I helped his mother when she was giving birth to him and now I helped him to cross the Rainbow Bridge.
He had a wonderful life and has been very healthy.
I have not done hundred things in my life because of him but...
I HAVE done thousand of things because he was in my life.
Thank you my dear Flickr Friends and sorry for being so absent.
RIP DAVIDE
Everybody called him "Chain" - "Kette", because of all the chains he carried around his neck.
Once he studdied photography but since he was living out in the streets he never touched a camera again. We talked a lot about old cameras, dark rooms and processing film but he always seemed to be too tired to start out a new life.
At the end of January 2013 he was put into artificial coma because of a total kidney failure.
Two weeks later he died at the age of 32. His parents refused to visit him at the hospital, because they didn't want to have anything to do with all of those homeless guys.
Part of the Set: "German Outsiders"
"Reports of my imminent demise are greatly exaggerated", thinks Rusty paraphrasing her favourite American author Mark Twain.
It's true .... Rusty was diagnosed with Level Three Kidney Failure this week (there are 4 levels) but, as this Sunday photo shows she is OK for now. I've learned how to give her fluids under the skin and, for once in her life, I'm supposed to encourage her to eat as much of whatever she wants through the day. This month's goal is to help her gain weight.
Her vet said she probably has about 6 months to a year with us. In cat years that's 7.5 to 15 years which I can handle a whole lot better.
P.S. Thanks for the love that has already come our way from our wonderful flickr friends.
P.P.S. Rusty's photo looks good on black this week.
†.....It is with deep sadness that I inform you of the death of Horatio Caine...†
He crossed the Rainbow Bridge, today Nov 7th 2011 at 2:45pm.
We had to put him to sleep because he had kidney failure and was suffering too much.
We have done everything we could but it was useless.
The irony of the destiny: my unforgettable Xena was killed by kidney failure too.
I'm devastated.
Thank you very much for your support during this hard time, my Flickr Friends.
+ 5 photos underneath
Xena was my best friend. She was killed by kidney disease.
She crossed the Rainbow Bridge on June 2nd, 2007.
I dedicated the Flickr photostream to her.
Dear Friends -
This is a project near and dear to my heart! Every year there's a wonderful prom for teenagers and young adults with kidney disease. Everything at the 2010 Renal Teen Prom is FREE - gowns for the girls and ties for the boys are donated, dinner and party treats included, transportation is covered.
Long time survivor, Lori Hartwell, founder and president of RSN, glowed with happiness watching the teens dance, laugh, and make friends at last year's event. “That’s why I created the Renal Teen Prom,” she exclaimed. “I missed my own prom because of chronic kidney disease, which I have had since I was 2. I spent all my teenage years on dialysis. I know that one friend can make a difference, and we give these young people the chance to get to know others who are like them, walking in the same shoes.”
This is the 11th annual prom and I am so honored to help with planning it this year. Lori Hartwell and her team do a fabulous job! The theme is "Masquerade!"
Please send this info on to young kidney patients, friends and family. And if you'd like to donate, or live in the LA area and can drive a teen, please follow the link below.
rsnhope.org/programs/renal_teen_prom2.php
Jenna and her brother will also be volunteering again this year!
Please contact me if you'd like more information.
Robert's son donated a kidney to him!
For dialysis message forum go to www.ihatedialysis.com and for Info and support for living donors: www.livingdonorsonline.org
Jenna was one of the lucky ones, a living donor gave her the gift of a kidney Jan. 16, 2007. But 80,000 people are still waiting for kidneys in the US.
Jenna and Johnny wearing a new t-shirt "Dying for a Kidney" custom designed by tattoo artist Brian Wren from Brooklyn, NY, to help raise awareness for organ donation. The proceeds from the online store benefit our patient forum at www.ihatedialysis.com! To purchase similar items please go to www.cafepress.com/ihatedialysis
Here's the set Dialysis and Kidney Transplant www.flickr.com/photos/karolfranks/sets/72157607575033588/
Info and support for living donors: livingdonorsonline.org/ldosmf/
Jenna was one of the lucky ones, a living donor gave her the gift of a kidney Jan. 16, 2007. But over 80,000 people are still waiting for kidneys in the US.
Jenna is wearing a new t-shirt "Dying for a Kidney" custom designed by tattoo artist Brian Wren from Brooklyn, NY, to help raise awareness for organ donation. The proceeds from the online store benefit our patient forum at www.ihatedialysis.com! To purchase similar items please go to www.cafepress.com/ihatedialysis
Here's the set Dialysis and Kidney Transplant www.flickr.com/photos/karolfranks/sets/72157607575033588/
Information and support for those interesting in living donation: www.livingdonorsonline.org
"Matisse", I picked that name because he reminded me of Pepe' Le Pew the cartoon where the French skunk pretends to be a cat because he is in love with a black & white feline. Matisse and I played, "hide & seek", "pursuer & distancer". "'Pepe Le Pew' & the cat" everyday I was with him for 19 years. I really, really miss all those "catty little games"......he always let me win as you can see in this photo :)
forum.bcdb.com/forumPepe_Le_Pewquotes_P8961
I gave Jenna a little tickle to make her laugh for the photo. She said "Mom! My incision!" Then she laughed! This was 9 days after her kidney transplant in La Jolla, CA.
A Message Forum for kidney patients Click here
A site for Living Donors Click here
Los Angeles Times Dec. 30, 2006 Column One - by Alan Zarembo
read it here: www.livingdonorsonline.org/cgi-bin/dcforum/dcboard.cgi?az...
According to this warning poster seen on London's tube, "diabetes causes amputations"... For my original blog post, see engineroomblog.blogspot.com/2008/10/photo-special-diabete...
Jenna attended the 10th Annual Renal Teen Prom in January. Her brother Johnny was her escort. This is a great event for kidney patients ages 14 to 24.
The Renal Support Network (RSN) sponsors the free prom for kidney teens, and this year the theme was 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow.'
......
News Story: Long time survivor, Lori Hartwell, founder and president of RSN, glowed with happiness watching the teens dance, laugh, and make friends. “That’s why I created the Renal Teen Prom,” she exclaimed. “I missed my own prom because of chronic kidney disease, which I have had since I was 2. I spent all my teenage years on dialysis. I know that one friend can make a difference, and we give these young people the chance to get to know others who are like them, walking in the same shoes.”
This massive community effort needed a lot of volunteers, and people came from many places to be drivers for teens who needed rides, to do hair and make-up, help with registration, and mind the food supply in the parents hospitality area. Five hospitals and Nephrology nurses gave their time and secured rooms so that young women in need of a pretty prom dress could choose one to wear and keep from among 300 donated dresses which RSN caravanned around southern California.
Special guests were introduced: Phillip Palmer, ABC morning anchor who donated his kidney to actor and video editor Dale Davis, both men speaking eloquently about the need to stay on target with medications and dialysis, and of the need for more organ donations so that the many teens in the room could have the transplant they had been waiting for and dreaming of.
.......
If you get a chance, check out all the great stuff the Renal Support Network is doing at www.rsnhope.org
Kidney forum for patients: ihatedialysis.com Info and support for living donors: livingdonorsonline.org/ldosmf/
1/100 non-strangers:
This one of my favorite photos of my daughter Jenna, who is now 23 years old, because it represents a very sweet memory. I took it 2 1/2 years ago - on the day we got some really wonderful news. Her transplant team called and told us that a woman from Ohio, who we had met on the internet, was a match for Jenna and could donate a kidney to her! Jenna had been on dialysis for 3 years so this was a major event in her life. We went to Olvera Steet on this day, Nov. 1, which is All Saints' Day. The face decoration is done to commemorate Day of the Dead which is Nov. 2. The transplant took place in Jan. 2007 and Jenna and her donor are both doing great!
This photo was taken 12/4/08. I had to put him to sleep 12/15/09. I must remember that this life is finite & to appreciate those souls in my life that have so much meaning.
I like to think that he is sitting (not a jumper or bird catcher) and watching those birds...making that little cat chatter noise with his teeth and swatting his tail.
He may be catching "vols" the predator that he was (when he got outdoors). He was a "mouser" twice. He placed them perfectly on the seam in the floor between the kitchen and dining room. Who says he doesn't earn his keep?
forum.bcdb.com/forum/Pepe_Le_Pew_quotes_P8961
Rusty is seeing her vet, Dr Anne Irwin, on Tuesday to be weighed.
In the last month, since receiving the diagnosis of kidney failure, Rusty and I've both had jobs to do. I hydrate her twice a week and Rusty's job is to gain weight. At the time of diagnosis she'd lost 10% of her weight. I know she's tried her best eating probably twice as much as she used to.
Here, in anticipation of seeing Dr Anne, she is peering into the mirror trying to figure out if her loose skin has to mean more weight loss. All she can really see for sure is that she's as cute as ever.
Dec. 2006 - Jenna in her 3rd year of dialysis - waiting for kidney transplant. Pasadena,
Photo by Mark Boster / LATimes
Here's a link to the LA Times story leading up to the transplant www.livingdonorsonline.org/cgi-bin/dcforum/dcboard.cgi?az...
Jenna received a kidney transplant from an altruistic donor, Patrice (our hero!) - Jan. 2007 and they both are doing great!
UPDATE: As of Jan 2014 Jenna's transplant rejected and she is back on dialysis - please see her search for a kidney donor:
www.facebook.com/wantedkidneydonor
A Message Forum for kidney patients Click here
A site for Living Donors Click here
Today, 1 month ago I lost him. After 19 years I still find myself looking for him when I come home.....when I leave.......when I am driving to visit relatives/cancer treatments...he was always in the car with me.
I catch myself singing his morning song before I get out of bed just as always.
Every evening I find myself calling or looking for him for our snuggle talk time about an hour or so before bed. I walk to his box to scoop litter to find his box covered and I cannot move it yet.
One month and things are getting better. I am starting to really realize he is gone and how much a part of my life he was......and I just never realized.
Such love can't be forced. It takes 19 years of joy that doesn't give it justice.
Pepe Le Pew would disagree, of course!
Jenna on dialysis in 2005 - 19 years old.
UPDATE: She received a kidney transplant from a kind stranger - Jan. 2007. A rejection episode has reduced her function and she'll eventually need a new kidney. Jenna's Caringbridge page
A Message Forum for kidney patients Click here
A site for Living Donors Click here
Our story: Los Angeles Times Dec. 30, 2006 Column One - by Alan Zarembo
read it here: articles.latimes.com/2006/dec/30/local/me-kidney30
UPDATE: As of Jan 2014 Jenna's transplant rejected and she is back on dialysis - please see her search for a kidney donor:
Jenna's transplant - Jan. 16, 2007 - yay!
First meds following kidney transplant:
500mg Cellcept, 6x per day - immunosuppressant
1mg Prograf, 2x per day - immunosuppressant
40mg Protonix, 1x per day - prevent ulcer/heartburn
400mg Bactrim, 1x per day - anti-bacterial - 6 months
250mg Cipro, 2x per day - anti-bacterial
450mg Valcyte, 1x per day - anti-viral - 3 months
10mg Mycelex, 4x per day - anti-fungal lozenge - 3 months
2.5mg Norvasc, 1x per day - blood pressure
multivitamin, 1x per day
baby aspirin, 1x per day - prevent blood clots
100mg ducusate, 2x per day - stool softener
325 ferrous sulfate, 3x per day - iron supplement
1mg folic acid, 1x per day - nutritional supplement
400mg magnesium 3x per day - nutritional supplement
400mg vitamin D, 2x per day - increases calcium retention
250mg Nuetraphos, 3x per day - potassium/posphate supplement
The number one online support group for kidney patients, caregivers, family, friends and medical professionals. Kidney gear available from cafepress.com. www.cafepress.com/ihatedialysis/1932372
I am an administrator. www.ihatedialysis.com
For information about living donation go to www.livingdonorsonline.org
Jenna is renewing her passport - will be taking her first BIG TRIP since her kidney transplant 2 years ago - without her family - going to live in Paris for about 4 months!!
Jenna attended the 10th Annual Renal Teen Prom in January. Her brother Johnny was her escort. This is a great event for kidney patients ages 14 to 24.
The Renal Support Network (RSN) sponsors the free prom for kidney teens, and this year the theme was 'Somewhere Over the Rainbow.'
......
News Story: Long time survivor, Lori Hartwell, founder and president of RSN, glowed with happiness watching the teens dance, laugh, and make friends. “That’s why I created the Renal Teen Prom,” she exclaimed. “I missed my own prom because of chronic kidney disease, which I have had since I was 2. I spent all my teenage years on dialysis. I know that one friend can make a difference, and we give these young people the chance to get to know others who are like them, walking in the same shoes.”
This massive community effort needed a lot of volunteers, and people came from many places to be drivers for teens who needed rides, to do hair and make-up, help with registration, and mind the food supply in the parents hospitality area. Five hospitals and Nephrology nurses gave their time and secured rooms so that young women in need of a pretty prom dress could choose one to wear and keep from among 300 donated dresses which RSN caravanned around southern California.
Special guests were introduced: Phillip Palmer, ABC morning anchor who donated his kidney to actor and video editor Dale Davis, both men speaking eloquently about the need to stay on target with medications and dialysis, and of the need for more organ donations so that the many teens in the room could have the transplant they had been waiting for and dreaming of.
.......
If you get a chance, check out all the great stuff the Renal Support Network is doing at www.rsnhope.org
Paul has always walked and stood with hind legs spread far apart. It helps him to keep his balance.
Honestly, I'm surprised he was able to leave his refuge at the back of the house and make his way to the kitchen. As near as I can tell, he did not eat anything (either moist or kibble). His kidneys are failing, so there's no real hope of recovery. I was told he might spring back for awhile, but the overall progress of his ailment is inevitably downhill.
It would have been easier on me to leave him at the vet's for his final hours, but it would have been much harder on him, to leave him in a strange and noisy environment.
It is ineffably painful to watch him die slowly, but I can't bear to have him put down while he's able to purr feebly when I stroke his fur.
Jan. 16, 2008 - Jenna - one year anniversary of kidney transplant from Patrice - living donor. Kidney cake! - www.caringbridge.org/visit/jennafranks
..................
Jenna received a kidney transplant from an altruistic donor, Patrice (our hero!) - Jan. 2007 and they both are doing great!
A Message Forum for kidney patients Click here
A site for Living Donors Click here
Help to raise awareness for organ donation - proceeds from the online store benefit our patient forum - thank you for your help! Check out the brand new design by New York tattoo artist Brian Wren "Dying for a Kidney" - custom for www.ihatedialysis.com!
Available here www.cafepress.com/ihatedialysis/6863056 - t-shirts, hoodies, tote bags too!
"That's the thing about pets. They only last 10 years or so...But it's worth it."- Chad last night as we lay in bed, crying and trying to sleep.
Our cat Clyde, almost 11, quit eating about a week or so ago. He quit jumping on our bed at night, and most notably, he was quiet. This noisy loud mouth cat (part Siamese) who is so vocal we frequently have to holler at him "Shuddup, cat!" was suddenly stone silent. We took him to the vet hoping he was merely constipated with hairballs or something simple. Turned out to not be simple at all. He's going into kidney failure from something called Polycystic Kidney Disease. It's genetic, common to long-haired cats, and something he's had since he was a baby. There is no cure, no treatment, and there's nothing we could have done to change his trajectory. He was born with his kidneys full of tiny cysts.
As he got older, the cysts grew and began to crowd out the good tissue, and impair kidney function. The vet said he has no idea how sick he is, and still was remarkably responsive and social considering the toxins building up in his blood.
They sent us home with some special food which is easier on the kidneys, and bags of fluids, tubes and needles so we could subcutaneously flush his system this week (inserting needle between the loose skin between his shoulder blades--it's a bit daunting) and perhaps bring his crazy blood test numbers back to something more level.
Last night he gobbled up his special "recovery" food, the first meal he's eaten in a week.
We're positive, but realistic about his condition. The vet couldn't tell us how long he has to live, and even the best case scenario sounded grim. So we're going to make his last week(s), month(s) the best we can. We'll take him for walks along the river, and let him lounge in the tall grass. We'll get him to wear wigs and pose for photos. We'll cuddle with him and love him for as long as he has left. And when it is no fun for him anymore, we will say our goodbyes.
I certainly never thought my cat would die at age 11. I thought he'd live to a ripe old 17. This makes me question my notions about everything. We're all falling apart. The rug can be pulled out from under us at any moment. No one knows the future. We must live every day like it's our last.
Laying in bed at midnight, I said, "When Raoul [our last cat] was hit by a car it was so sudden when we found his body in the road. I was buried in grief. Now, even though Clyde is still alive, I've already started mourning his death. We have time to say a proper goodbye. And I guess that is a good thing." Sobs took over my chest, making me feel hollow inside.
Rusty is getting subcutaneous fluids twice a week. This is what she looks like the day before the at-home procedure. It's not so easy to get a photo of her after she's had the fluid injected because she feels so good she hardly stands still.
Gift from MaryAnn Clayton - day before kidney transplant - www.caringbridge.org/visit/jennafranks
7 years later... www.facebook.com/wantedkidneydonor
Only few units in the UK used this machine from the USA; it was relatively small and useful for home treatment, but did not have a good reputation for consistent delivery and reliability (low fluid path volume). With a HIFLO blood pump - see other images of this. Thanks to Paul, Gary, Steve and all the other techs for keeping the machine and the information.
La Jolla, CA - Pre-op appt. for kidney transplant - Jan. 11, 2007 - www.caringbridge.org/visit/jennafranks
Jenna just celebrated her 3rd kidneyversary, but unfortunately is having a rejection episode. She felt ok but it was detected in routine labs. Over the last 4 weeks she was hospitalized several times and received large doses of steroids, ATG and IVIG at Scripps Green. We have a great deal of confidence in their team and just got a call from the doctor. He said that since we didn't see improvement in the kidney function by now, it is unlikely that Jenna would recover any additional function. It means she will eventually need dialysis or a transplant as her function will decline over time, and it is impossible to predict how long it could take. She gave a good fight, going through every treatment recommended to her. She now will be getting more treatments, not to rescue the kidney, but to lower her antibody level so that she can be eligible for another transplant in the future, if possible.
On a positive note, I spoke with her living donor Patrice, who is doing great. She is scheduled to run the Boston Marathon again in April and a tri-athalon in July. I know this news is tough on her too, but she's an amazing support person and we are most grateful for the gift that gave Jenna the best 3 years she's had since being diagnosed at 15 years old.
Jenna 3 days after her kidney transplant. Nurse is reviewing all the post-op meds to take home so she can be released.
Jan. 18, 2007 Scripps Green Hospital in La Jolla, CA, Jenna and living donor Patrice - www.caringbridge.org/visit/jennafranks
UPDATE: As of Jan 2014 Jenna's transplant rejected and she is back on dialysis - please see her search for a kidney donor:
Jan. 16, 2009 - Jenna - two year anniversary of kidney transplant from Patrice - living donor. Kidney cake!
A Message Forum for kidney patients Click here
A site for Living Donors Click here
I found this other photo from Jenna's kidneyversary. In Jan. 2008 it will be two years since the transplant - what a wonderful gift it has been!
------------------
In the US:
Your holiday gift could save lives.
If you’re searching for the perfect gift this holiday season, you may not realize that you have the ability to give something for free that will touch the lives of countless others.
Find out how to become an organ, eye and tissue donor by visiting donatelife.net/CommitToDonation/
Thanks.
This really is a cracker in dialysis history, a peritoneal dialysis cycling machine. Tube in your tummy, fluid warmed up (see other image), then pumped in and out of the abdomen using this machine. Made by Hawker-Siddeley in Coventry. This factory made Whitley bombers in the war, then became aeronautic and space engineers after the war (Sea Slug missiles, etc), but had a little sideline in dialysis. Then became part of British Aerospace (then closed). This prototype was made around 1965 was given to Mr R E Shaw (urologist) at Keresley Hospital in 1968 and was the first dialysis machine to be used in Coventry. Thanks to Paul, Gary, Steve and the other techs for keeping this and for the information.
4 days after the kidney transplant - visiting the seals in La Jolla
........
Jenna received the kidney transplant from an altruistic donor, Patrice (our hero!) - Jan. 2007 and they both are doing great!
A Message Forum for kidney patients Click here
A site for Living Donors Click here
Dec. 30, 2006 Column One - by Alan Zarembo
read it here: www.livingdonorsonline.org/cgi-bin/dcforum/dcboard.cgi?az...
LATimes archives articles.latimes.com/2006/dec/30/local/me-kidney30
Jenna received a kidney transplant from an altruistic donor, Patrice (our hero!) - Jan. 2007 and they both are doing great!
A Message Forum for kidney patients Click here
A site for Living Donors Click here