Hello Himalayan Salt

Mr. Bean (aka Queen Nephrotiti) feels like a fist-sized water balloon nestled inside of me next to my right hip bone. In the days following surgery I could feel it more, especially when I was lying in bed. It sat there resting on my back, except from the inside. When I rolled onto my side, it seemed to – bloop – roll onto its side as well. It’s a strange feeling, not having anything there before, and suddenly a new body part appears.

I’m growing accustomed to it, like a new family member adopted into the fold. Very quickly it’s beginning to feel right at home. I’m still sore where the scar is, which I’m told looks like a C-section scar, though diagonal and off to one side. The area around the scar is also still a bit numb. I had thought maybe the doctors had given me some super potent anesthesia that was taking a ridiculously long time to wear off, but I was told yesterday that some nerves were cut during surgery, and sensation may never fully return. Nothing to worry about. It just means I would win any tickling contest.

During my follow-up appointment yesterday at UCSF, my second post transplant, my nurse practitioner said my numbers look fantastic. My creatinine is down to 0.87! That means my eGFR (a measure of kidney function) soared from 3 to 78! Anything over 60 is normal. I have normal kidney function!! No more toxins building up in my body, which means I’m not so tired anymore. Even during the days immediately after transplant, when I was busy managing pain, I never felt like I needed to nap. I was told to rest anyway to facilitate healing, but I could stay up until 11pm and feel just fine.

The dosage for one of my anti-rejection medications needed adjustment; it was causing my magnesium level to drop too much. Aside from that, my nurse practitioner’s only other directive to me was to increase salt intake so we could increase blood pressure. We want to keep feeding Mr. Bean a good supply of blood. So I came home and surveyed my supply of salts. Despite having been a low-sodium family the past year, we do enjoy our salts. We have tropical pepper sea salt, edible flowers sea salt, and one of my faves – Trader Joe‘s Himalayan Salt with Truffles. That truffle scent is di-vine!

I could get used to this new life. salt