thecheekofgod

I'm new to these forums, so bear with me. My story is long and ... complicated (pun intended). I had an open Roux-en-Y in April of 2002 at St. Vincent Hospital in Carmel, Indiana. I lost over 200 pounds in a three year period and have maintained that loss for more than a decade. I am a Type 2 diabetic. I am on insulin. The surgery never really helped, and my own inconsistency and occasional non-compliance (read: stubbornness) are self-made traps. I am in control at present with an a1c of 9.2 (and falling). I walk quite a bit at work and do functional lifting when needed, but am otherwise inactive other than routine daily activities. I started smoking about two years post-op. I needed something to do with my hands as grazing was no longer an option. I have stopped a few times, once for over two years, but have yet to quit completely. As of January, 2015, my kidneys seemed to be fine. My creatinin was 1.5. A little high, but normal for someone in my shape. By July, it has peaked above 5. I was anemic and almost dead. They direct admitted me from the doctor's office and began dialysis. Oxalate nephropathy was the diagnosis. Basically, oxalates in food that normal get absorbed and removed in the stomach and intestines instead routed through my kidneys and formed crystals that clogged up the works. I stayed on hemodialysis, both home and in-center, until September 2016, when I received a transplanted living donor kidney from my son at St. Vincent in Indianapolis. He is my hero. On my last visit at the Indy clinic, my lab work showed my creatinin has risen to 2.3. It had been normal at every other test post-transplant. Because of some medication issues that are getting cleared up, I am dehydrated and my heart is palpitating more than I am comfortable with. No pain, just lethargy and worry. Basically, my new kidney is failing for the same reason as my native kidneys, but at a more alarming rate. The solution? Everyone is leaning toward reversing my WLS. There are enough complications to warrant this course of action, and it beats the alternative of more dialysis and a shortened life. Is this unheard of? Can it even be done so far removed from the original surgery? This is sort of an open topic with vague questions. I just want to spark some conversation to help clarify my thinking. Peace . . .

No worries. My wife is very patient with me in this regard. I tried Chantix once a few years ago when it first became a viable option. It just didn't take. I had a doctor tell me once that, with all my issues, it's a shock that smoking actually isn't the thing that's killing me . . . :-)

I had been taking a Tums (750mg of calcium) daily since my transplant, but my team asked me to quit taking them about two weeks ago. We have implemented some food nutrient counts we want to monitor, including calcium, as well as planning off of a list of foods low in oxalates. My calcium has always been relatively normal per lab tests, so I don't believe it's part of the issue.