Hair Socks
So for starters I got a much needed hair cut today. I had actually considered shaving my head bald because in the last 6 months my hair has severely thinned and just looks weird now unless I don't wash it for two or three days and then it seems to acquire volume from either all of the product I must put in it or perhaps the general dirtiness of it all. Maybe a little of both. Here's the before and after.
What does that have to do with recovery of my kidney transplant, you ask. Well, I suppose not much but it improved my self image value to just get that mop cleaned up... I was looking raggedy enough with the hair, then you add all of the weight loss and it really made that hair look bad. So... there's that. But also I've talked to Meg about getting a few pictures for posterity of me in just my underwear. Showing off my skin and bones body and my staples. I imagine I'll gain at least some, if not all of the weight back eventually and I want a record of this moment in my life.
By the way, I once told my friend DeeDee that I was going to start a trend called "hair socks" and the thought of shaving my head reminded me of it. It would require me to shave off every bit of hair from my body except the part of my legs where my socks are. Then I would wear silver lipstick and probably skin tight silver 3/4 length pants and a silver tee shirt and silver shoes. Not sure why all the silver. I never did it... but wouldn't that be a friggin sweet look for me?
Is it just me, or does the weight loss combined with the hair cut, suddenly make these glasses look huge on me?
Questions Answered
Q1
My friend Mark wanted to know if I'll ever know the name & gender of the person who's kidney I received.
So the short answer is Maybe.
There's a process. I have to start the process by writing a letter to the family of the donor. I can't include my last name or the hospital where I had the transplant. I mail the letter off to an organization that will match me to the donor family and will ask them if they'd like to receive the letter. Some families are still dealing with the grief of their loss and might not be ready for such a letter. Assuming that they want the letter, the organization will mail the letter to them. If they want to write back they will go through a similar process. Through this process we can discuss the possibility of meeting, or of sharing our full information and if all parties agree, we sign wavers and then we'll be allowed to share our full names and even possibly meet.
Q2
I've been asked this more than any other question and I've already answered on FB but here it is again. Do I have any diet restrictions?
I CAN'T have grapefruit, it conflicts with one of the meds I'll be on for the rest of my life. I can't eat raw foods like sushi, oysters or steak tar tar. I can eat raw fruits and veggies but I need to really clean them. I can't eat rare meats, they need to be medium to well or maybe just a hint of pink. I can't drink anything unpasteurized. Other than that, they recommend that I avoid processed foods and too much salt (over 140 mgs). The healthier I eat, the healthier I'll be.
All things considered, that's not too bad, right? Of course Grapefruit is my favorite fruit, Sushi is my favorite food. I love raw oysters. And I love my steaks good and red. So it's all bad news... but again, not too bad.
Q3
Do you still have to do dialysis?
Good question.
So today I don't need dialysis, but my disease is an autoimmune disease. What my body did to my own kidneys it might also do to my new kidney. Only time will tell. It could be as little as five years or as many as twenty or more years, but the odds favor that eventually I'll need dialysis again. The thing is that I'll be on meds for the rest of my life, and these meds come with their own set of potential complications, but they might also impact my body in a way that protects the kidney from that autoimmune disease.
Also, I'm only 52, my parents are in their 80's. Assuming I should at least live to be as old as my parents under normal conditions and possibly longer, this kidney is probably not going to last that long even if my disease doesn't impact it at all. So chances are good that some day I will be back on dialysis. This is why it will be important to live well with this kidney so I can live without regrets of all the things I didn't do that I've always wanted to do if I ever end up back on dialysis... like start my trend called hair socks (just kidding on that one).
Of course technology is changing at a rapid pace and in 15 to 20 years the kidney transplant world could look very different. They could be growing human organs on the backs of other mammals. They could be 3D printing organs from your own biological DNA and creating the perfect match kidneys. We just don't know what advances there will be in the transplant world... so hopefully if I need a new kidney down the road there will be some new options rather than waiting 4 to 5 years on dialysis for one to become available.
One or two more things
I'm not happy at all with the way the layout of this blog is working out. I'm asking it to do things and they're just not happening. I may have to revisit and simplify.
Also, I'm in the process of starting a second blog. I had actually started it a few years back but time restraints kept me from it. It's more of a catch all for all my thoughts... you know... like hair socks. It's called "Robots in the Paint" and will be making it's debut in another week or so. Keep and eye out for it if you enjoy all the wacky zany things I like to talk about.
My name is Bil... and that's the way the kidney crumbles.
sorry Mike.. that just doesn't work... but I tried it.
Comments
Post a Comment