Category Archives: 2. Die and stop dialysing

The long and windingroad… has been a pleasure

I am going to have a break from writing my blog for a while.  For the last six months, I have been unwell and it is a real struggle most days to just to do basic living and the things I enjoy most. I am still finding enjoyment in many of my favourite activities especially catching up with family and friends, reading, watching the occasional movie doing all our business related stuff and of course, having such an intimate time talking and sharing with you.

But being on dialysis for the past 24 years is impacting on my health now.   Many of my body systems don’t work as well as they use to.   Hopefully, in time I will pick up.   For now, though I am concentrating on getting better. This phase is quite a challenge.

This blog has always brought me great please and I am humbled by the number of people who read it and found it helpful for themselves or a family member or friend who is on dialysis.   I am also very pleased that I have been able to work with clinicians and improve the experiences and knowledge for people of dialysis.  Thank you all for being part of my audience.

The future? who knows?

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Two weeks can be a long time on Dialysis

It has been a big two weeks.

Last Friday (the 21st), Charlie died.  Charlie started dialysis at our unit in 2000, when he was 68.  Our BigD community (us, our families, and ‘our’ clinicians) is a long-term proposition, like a special interest club.  We all have a common interest (kidney stuff), we spend time together (no matter what!), we learn from each other and some of us become close friends.  Over the 13 years Charlie was with us, we got to know him pretty well.  He was a good guy: friendly, supportive, inclusive and well-loved.  He was a gold-class BigD club member. (more…)

There are only three Ways Out

I went to Janine’s funeral yesterday.  Janine was a long-term BigD friend, who’d been dialysing for 15+ years.  The BigD community (recipients, their families, and clinicians) is a long-term proposition, like a special interest club.  We all have a common interest (kidney stuff), we spend time together (no matter what!), we learn from each other and some of us become close friends.  Janine was a gold-class club member. (more…)