I have referred in posts past to my impatience for gadgetry in all its forms and with all its false promises of an easier life.
If I were present at the invention of the wheel, my initial reaction would have been a shoulder shrug and a 'Meh, what's wrong with walking?'
While some don't like change, I tend to regard it with deep suspicion. I'm not sure why. It is probably an extension of my many insecurities or my general laziness. I do like to find a comfortable groove, nestle in and stay put.
It is for all of these reasons that everyone will one day be taken completely by surprise when I take over the world...but back to my point.
I don't like gadgets and new-fangled items, but I have stumbled upon a dialysis accessory which has revolutionised the way I have been sleeping for the past 400 or so nights, since I first brought Brendan home to meet my mother.
It's an extension set for the patient line - in healthy human terms, it is basically a longer line that connects me to Brendan, allowing me to keep him outside my bedroom if I wish.
I tried it out the last two nights and all I can say is separate bedrooms may be the key to a happy marriage, but it is also the key to a better relationship between one girl and her dialysis machine.
Word has it the health authorities don't tell us about these extension lines because they add extra expense to the already hefty bill rang up by APD patients.
I have some sympathy for this and I don't wish to cost the taxpayer any more money, but good sleeps make for healthier dialysis patients and that may end up costing the health services less in the future.
So if you are on APD and you're having trouble catching your zzzs, ask for some extension sets. It almost makes dialysis bearable.
PS My thanks to Milo Shaper for alerting me to the existence of these lines and to Sonia for providing some samples!
Finally Brendan can get some peace.
ReplyDeleteHolemaster - You always take his side ;)
ReplyDeleteHi, does the extension join the patient line or does it replace it? How long is it? And do you have to talk to the neph or PD nurse about it first or can you just order it with the fortnightly delivery yourself. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteHi Anonymous - you can just order the extension lines yourself, but you'll probably need your PD nurse to show you how to connect it up. It's really simple. You just attach the extension line to the patient line that's on your cassette (during set-up obviously).
ReplyDeleteIt has the same attachment at the end for fitting into your connection shield for hooking up. It really has made a huge difference to me.
A word of warning though, make sure you re-prime every night before you hook up. Because the extension line is so long, the fluid often doesn't all the way through it during normal set-up. I wasn't re-priming initially and I ended up with air in my peritoneum as a result - extremely painful.
If you don't know how to re-prime, get your nurse to show you that too. It's also really simple. Hope this helps you!