Michael's Kidney Journey

Morning friends, it's Dalazia

The procedure is over, and we have wonderful news. Michael heart is looking really good. The doctor said that he only has 30 percent blockage in 1 arterie. With that being said, he will be able to be on the transplant list. Aaaahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!! Praise God ..... Praise God!!!! Next steps will be to talk to Doctor Kwoh to see what we can do to get the heart stronger.

Good morning everyone. It is super early but I have my heart procedure at 7am. This is the last procedure before I can be placed on the transplant list for a new kidney. Please keep me and my wife in your prayers this morning.

The procedure went well. He will be resting for the rest of the day. 😀

Good morning

Michael has his bone marrow biopsy today. The procedure should take about 20 -30 min, and recovery can be up to 3 hours.

Good Morning Everyone,

Time for a little update. Michael is doing good. Catheter is working like it's suppose to, so praise God no issues there. Today we have an appointment with the cardiologist for the transplant team. He is supposed to check Michael's heart for blockages and to see if his heart can withstand the transplant surgery. I don't believe the procedure is today, but I will keep yall updated. Also next week on Wednesday Michael will have a bone marrow biopsy. We are trying to figure out why his hemoglobin keeps dropping. Thank you all for the continued prayers. I will keep you all updated on today's appointment.

Good morning everyone,

Whew it's been a minute since we updated yall. We have been super busy over here. Michael is doing well. He started back to work 2 days ago. I'm glad both of us work from home so I can keep an eye on him lol. We did see a hemotologist last week to get some answers in regards to his hemoglobin. We are just waiting on the test results. Hmmmm I think that's it for now. Sorry it's still early, and I'm not fully awake yet. Hope yall have a great day.

After 2 surgeries and 9 days in the hospital, Michael is finally home. Welcome home darlin. Louie and I are so happy you are back.

Good evening everyone. My surgery went well this morning, and I am feeling great after dialysis today. Tomorrow the dialysis team will test the PD catheter to make sure it is working. If it is working then I am able to go home, but if it is not working, then I will have to do a procedure to start hemo dialysis permanently. Hopefully all goes well. Honestly I do not care which dialysis I am on because they both work, however hemo seems to be the one without any issues. Thank you to everyone for your messages and prayers. Dalazia or myself will provide another update tomorrow once we have any answers. Either way I should be going home tomorrow after 9 days in here if you count tomorrow lol. Love yall and hope everyone has a great weekendl!!!

Surgery already done. Everything went well. He will have another procedure later today.

Good morning,

The surgery is scheduled for 7:30am today. They will replace the catheter and also put one in for hemo dialysis. Michael will have to go to the facility 3 times a week for dialysis until the new catheter heals.

Update: Michael will have to have another surgery. The catheter is now flipped and they have to put it back in place. As of today he has been in the hospital a week. Will update yall whenever something new happens.

Surgery went well. They had to replace the catheter. He is in recovery now.

Surgery at 11.

Late in the midnight hour, God's going to turn it around.

This is a very true statement. Michael called me at 4:26 am to tell me he is out of icu and that he is NO longer on oxygen. He can walk without the oxygen yall. This is significant because he has been on oxygen since he was inpatient in February. Glory to God. Whew yall can't tell me my God ain't real!!! Alrighty so with that fantastic news, let's remember that he does have surgery today. Still don't know the time but once I do, I'll let you know.. Oh if I see any of you at the hospital, we will be dancing like David danced. 💃💃💃

Hey yall,

Happy Sunday. Everything is looking good with Michael. Blood pressure is 128/66 and oxygen is at 100. They will probably do dialysis sometime today to get as much fluid off as they can before the surgery tomorrow. No set time for the surgery however once I know anything I will send an update. Thanks for all the prayers and calls and will talk to yall later.

Good morning everyone,

I just got back to the hospital and everything is still looking good. Right now he is doing dialysis and the goal is to get 3 liters of fluid. . I will post another update later on today. :)

Big THANK YOU to the team of nurses and Dr. Hines in the ICU that saved my life. My breathing is better and we have some fluid removed. I was advised that if I went another day or two I wouldn't be here. Last night was tough due to not being able to breathe. I'm never to say anything bad or want anyone to lose their job, but I told the original nurse I had for 4 hours that it was hard to breathe and if she could turn up the oxygen. It was already hard to speak, but if your patient is struggling, first thing you should do is help, but she was more concerned with going get food at an employee party. She kept refusing stating my oxygen levels was at 92%. It took for me to call her out her name, saying a word you should never call a woman, in front of the charge nurse for anything to be done. Nurse Esther on the 5th floor at HCA Northwest is a terrible nurse and I believe what goes around comes around.

Update Time.

Michael is still in icu however he's doing better. He is no longer on the Bi-pap machine. He is still on oxygen though. We did have to go ahead and do the hemo dialysis. They are aiming to pull off 4.5 liters of fluid and right now we are at 3.9. The surgeon came in this morning to say we will have to push the surgery until Monday, however she came back and stated we might still get to do it today. Things are starting to look up, but definitely not out of the clear. Thank you for your prayers. Keep them coming. Our God is a way maker and miracle worker.

Sad news. Michael had to be moved to icu. The main goal is to get the fluid off. We are having to do hemo dialysis temporarily to get the fluid off fast. I don't like the idea but unfortunately it was the best option we had. I did not want him to have a tub down his throat. Hopefully, we can still have the surgery today. It was scheduled for 1pm but idk. Lord we are trusting you and I'm holding on to what you told me during our quiet time. I will update yall later today.

Hey everyone,
Michael will have to have semi emergency surgery tomorrow because the catheter is no longer draining. I say semi emergency because it was not done today. They will either have to just flip the catheter or replace it if there is fiber in the tube. Hemoglobin is at a 5.5, so he is having to get another blood transfusion. I really can't wait until we see the hemotologist. I don't know what time the surgery is, but I will keep everyone updated. Yall know I'm going to ask for prayer. Prayer for the surgery to go well of course but also prayer for Michael mental health. I ask when you pray, pray not from a place of sympathy but from a place of empathy. Pray as if this was you going through what Michael is going through. I promise you your prayer would be a lot different. I'm so glad I learned that from Pastor Morris because it's true, your prayers begin to shift. Michael darlin you have a lot of people in your corner. You got this!!! Oh yea on a side note I was able to make him laugh before going to sleep, so that is a huge plus. Talk to yall tomorrow.

Hey yall,
Today was an alright day for Michael. I think he might have done too much by going to the store and bringing in the groceries though. The dialysis center called today and stated his hemoglobin dropped again to 6.5. When we left the hospital, it was at a 7.9. We have an appointment to see a hemotologist in March so hopefully, we can get some answers. It's not good for him to keep getting as many blood transfusions as he does. Keep the prayers coming yall. Even if it's a quick 10 second prayer. Also pray for me please. I feel myself getting more and more physically tired as each day comes and goes. Working full time, taking care of the house, Louie and Michael is a lot. And... sleeping on this couch is getting old lol. Louie can't be in the room while Michael does dialysis overnight, so I sleep with him in the living room. He won't sleep in here by himself. Hopefully we will have some better news for you soon. Goodnight everyone.

Quick update: Being on dialysis you will have good days and some bad days, and today was one of those bad days. No appetite and just wanting to lay down all day. Not to mention blood pressure today has been lower than usual. Also entire right side of my body is very sore due to falling on the ground (possible veritgo) getting out the car going to Walmart in yesterday. I pray tomorrow will be a better day so I can go to church. I hope everyone has a goodnight. Time to hope on this machine for the next 9-10 hours and get some sleep.

Good evening everyone,
Hope yall had a fantastic Monday. For us it was a busy one. So, for a little update on Michael, his breathing is getting better day by day. He is able to go longer periods of time without having to use the oxygen machine. Praise God. Dialysis is going well however I am concerned about the swelling. Michael didn't have much swelling before we started Dialysis but now all of a sudden he is having more swelling in his feet, legs, and thighs. We are going to try and get a bed wedge so that he can elevate his feet at night. Hopefully that will help. Lastly some of you have asked how you can help us during this time. I want to start off by saying thank you. Thank you for even wanting to help us. Thank you for thinking of us throughout your busy day. We are truly grateful. There are 2 ways you can help us during this time. First thing is PRAYER. I know that everyone has been praying for us, and I ask that you please don't stop. I know it can get tiring praying for the same thing over and over, but I promise you your prayers are being heard. God is working over here. Second thing is if you feel led to give monetarily to help with meals, medical bills, and everyday living expenses we would appreciate that as well. I am still working however Michael is on leave and will possibly have to be out longer then expected. You can do so via cash app ( $DalaziaSmith, $MDJW8875 or Zelle ( my name or phone number). Whatever the Lord places on your heart to do is very much appreciated. Again thank you from the bottom of my heart for all the prayers, kind words and support during this time. Love yall.

Hi, everyone.

Happy Sunday morning. This week has been a whirlwind. He started off in the hospital for 3 days but ending in the House of the Lord. We also started dialysis at home this week. Whew that was stressful for me, honestly. We have to be really big on infection control, and I pray every day that Michael does not get an infection. The doctors say that it's very painful, and that's not something I want for him to go through. I want to thank everyone for all the calls, texts, and visits. Most importantly I want to thank Holy Spirit for walking with us each and every day. Okay, church is about to start soon, so ttyl.

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Michael is now home and excited to sleep in his own bed. He had to come home with oxygen and will use it on an as needed basis. A more detailed update will be coming tomorrow.

My God always comes through. Thank you Jesus

# Road2aTransplant

Good morning everyone,

Michael is doing better this morning. He was able to have dialysis last night for around 9 hours, and it took off a lot of fluid. He is having to have another blood transfusion because his hemoglobin is still at 6.5. Hopefully we can figure out where the bleeding is coming from because after 1 unit his hemoglobin should have went up. I will post another update later on today.

Road2Transplant

Alrighty who's ready for a update.

Michael is doing a little better. They had to put him on a different oxygen because the regular one was not enough. Some of the family came to see him and he really enjoyed that. Honestly, I did to. Christy, Tonya, and Grandma Beverly really had me laughing over this hospital food. Side note who knew hospital food was soooo good. Okay, back to the update. He should be starting dialysis around 6 p.m., and that should really get a lot of fluid off his body. I might do 1 more update tonight. We will see. Thank you for all the prayers and please keep praying.

Hey everyone,

It's Dalazia. Michael had to come back to the ER this morning. He was having shortness of breath and lots of swelling. They stated he has pneumonia. He will be staying overnight. So far, he has had a breathing treatment, oxygen, 1 unit of blood for a blood transfusion, and they will do dialysis tonight. Please keep us in your prayers. Also, please pray for Christy. Pray that the Lord gives her strength during this time. It's a lot for her because this is her oldest son. I will post another update later this evening.

I wanted to update you all myself and to God be the glory!!! This week has been great as far as dialysis goes. Felling a lot better with each treatment everyday. I have a lot more energy and starting to feel like my old self again. Not being able to depend on someone to do something for me. I'm still not able to lift anything over 10 lbs, but my strength is slowly coming back. My appetite has came back, but I'm staying on my diet to make sure I do not gain any weight. We are still praying for the transplant to happen sometime this year. I want to thank everyone for the prayers, support, and a special thank you to those who have reached out personally. Kidney failure is a struggle to deal with, but I take it day by day. One of these days I will go Live and tell my story about this disease.