Tonight's photo was a welcome sight about a half hour after we finished our week of dialysis training using Woody's graft. Of course, the reason that we were out and about was to take Woody to his oncology appointment...so he could sit in a chair for a while longer today...this time tonget his Keytruda infusion! I had hoped he would read during this time, but he said that he didn't read a word, that he was just too sleepy. I don't know if dozed at all during his treatment. But he said he was still very sleepy once he got home from that appointment. We did stop for a moment on our way home and I parked across the street from the Ginkgo tree and snapped a few pictures. This is just about the most beautiful tree in town...especially now as many trees have dropped their leaves and are beginning to take on their wintery look. In a few days this tree will probably have dropped all its leaves...thesr trees tend to be covered with beautiful yellow leaves one day and the next will have dropped them all...unlike our old stubborn oaks that continue dropping leaves until their spring growth pushed them off. Woody changed into a long sleeved shirt after he got home...he wears a short sleeved shirt on treatment days because I have to get to his upper arm, where his graft is positioned. He can wear long sleeves until Monday morning! I have made him two "sleeves" out of fleece that he can slide onto his lower arms when he has on his short sleeves. The nurse gave me credit for sticking Woody both times today...but it was still with some assistance...mainly with the nurse saying, "Push! Push! Push!" She said that I did it successfully...BUT...shortly after I got the dialysis underway, we got alarms that the pressures weren't right. The needles weren't apparently in just the right places in the graft tube...perhaps too close to the side of tube. The nurse repositioned them slightly and we got underway and things went smoothly up till the very end. We got another alarm towards the end. Woody shifted a little and the tubing moved and got pinched so once the tubing got repositioned all was okay. I did give him iron again today and the drawing up of the med from the vial went fine. You do have to fill the syringe with the amount of air that equals the med to draw up...you just can push it all in at one time. I have also learned to have the needle and the bottle straight up and down...I had been tipping it to keep the tip of the needle in the liquid. Anyway, I think that hurdle has been cleared! Now to get over the extreme dread of the two sticks per treatment. Monday we are transitioning over to a different care person for our training. Our nurse will be here, but so will the tech who will be with us this coming week. I dread having to get used to a different mentor! Oh, well...perhaps she will share a different tip or two that will make it easier! At the moment, I'm ready to forget about dialysis until Sunday when I have to make a new dialysate batch. Our nurse has to go help another new patient. I asked yesterday how many home hemodialysis patients they have and including us there are 11, but that number is about to grow to 13 when they add on somebody new to home hemodialysis and someone who is presently on home hemodialysis, but has moved into the area. Woody has already given in to his sleepiness and has moved over to the couch and gotten settled in for the long night ahead. I loaded up the dishwasher and bade Woody and the kitchen "good night" and am settling into my recliner for an evening of stitching and/or reading...or perhaps will do what I did last night...fall asleep in my chair with needlework in my lap (the other night I woke up with the needle in my hand...probably fell asleep in the middle of snstitch!)and several lights on...that's how I woke up this morning. At least in the morning all I have to do is fix breakfast...no dialysis duties! Be safe! Be well! Be cautious!
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