Time for another installment of this Wednesday/Sunday night series!
Picking up from last time –
So, Dr R. calls me.
He let’s me know that the protein in my urine is still high. (My understanding is that it’s even higher this time.)
I’m having a really hard time hearing this news. I was just so sure, since I’d passed urine tests less than 2 years ago, that I’d pass this one.
All I’d done was get healthier in that time. I worked out more (and better). I ate healthier. My body was stronger. It seemed surreal – no way could there be a test with a problem.
I can’t remember all of the details of the conversation. The only thing I can remember with clarity is the glaring part that stuck out to me. I was asking what I had to do to fix it – what I could do to be a living kidney donor.
And he said I needed to stop worrying about being a kidney donor, and worry about myself. I was no longer a potential kidney donor; I was now a kidney patient.
What?
He told me not to be worried. I wasn’t in any immediate danger or anything. He didn’t want to make things sound worse than they were. Nonetheless, he still wanted to stress the seriousness of this.
He let me know I should have a nephrologist keep an eye on me – that I should probably be tested every 6 months to a year, to see if the problem gets any worse.
He talked about the possibility of maybe being my nephrologist, if I wanted.
Again, so many thoughts were swirling, there wasn’t any real planning or decision-making happening in this phone call (other than his decision that I’m a “kidney patient now, not a kidney donor”).
[*eyes look down sadly and wistfully*]
While on the phone with Dr. R, I mentioned having peed in cups. I mentioned doing the ultramarathon. I even mentioned getting my deep tissue massage that week.
(Only after my massage hurt so much did I look more into deep tissue massages… I read in some articles that if deep tissue massages are too deep, they can push more protein into your urine… Of course that was from the random internet rabbit hole. What does the internet really know?)
Anyway, I mentioned everything I thought could’ve even maybe had an impact on my test. But he said none of that should’ve affected it. He said we could technically do the test one more time, but the chances that things would be different (after two results in a row of elevated protein) were slim. So, he didn’t recommend it.
And then came the most heartbreaking part of it to me, which is where I’ll pick up next time.