Daily Journal #19 — Watching the Scale, My Feet, and My Kidneys

My morning health check was about as good as it has been the last couple of days, but one thing caught my attention.

I gained a pound since yesterday.

Normally, a one-pound change by itself probably wouldn’t alarm me too much. What concerned me was that I really didn’t eat much yesterday. I had a salad for dinner. It wasn’t a small salad, but it certainly wasn’t anything that should have caused me to gain a pound overnight.

Then I started looking at everything else.

My feet were slightly swollen.

My blood pressure was up.

My body-water calculation was also higher.

Put all of that together,

and I started wondering if I was retaining fluid again.

So I took a Torsemide this morning.

I only take my diuretic on an as-needed basis now. That was a decision made with my medical team, not something I decided to do on my own.

I manage my sodium and fluid intake very tightly because my goal is to avoid needing diuretics whenever possible. My doctors have actually seen the Excel spreadsheet I use to track everything. I don’t miss days. I document changes, symptoms, weight, blood pressure and medication adjustments made by my medical team.

That level of tracking became especially important after what happened a few months ago.

When Too Much Diuretic Became a Problem

A few months ago, I ended up in the hospital after becoming over-diuresed.

Basically, my body had gotten too low on fluid while I was still taking my diuretics as prescribed.

That contributed to an acute kidney injury, or AKI.

My kidney function dropped significantly. An eGFR above 60 is generally considered a better range, and mine had fallen into the low 30s.

That episode is part of the reason I later had a kidney ultrasound and why I now have an MRI scheduled.

After several appointments with my nephrologist, and after my doctors saw just how closely I was monitoring everything, my diuretic plan was changed to as-needed use.

That gives me a little more flexibility, but it also means I have to pay close attention to what my body is telling me.

And lately, I am.

Why This Morning Has Me Concerned

This is now the second time in about a week that I’ve noticed signs that make me wonder if I’m holding onto more fluid than I should.

What makes it frustrating is that I can’t immediately point to something obvious.

I didn’t have shrimp in my salad.

It was basically vegetables, other than the dressing.

So my next step is to retrace everything I ate and drank yesterday and see if something contained more sodium than I realized.

Sometimes that’s all you can do.

Go back.

Look at the numbers.

Then at what you ate.

Also at what you drank.

And try to find the missing piece.

Blood Work Today

I also have a blood draw today.

A few hours after that, I’ll have a new set of numbers to look at.

And I’ll admit it: I’m having a lot of anxiety about it.

After watching my kidney function drop before, it’s hard not to worry about what those lab results are going to show.

I’m praying everything looks good.

If it doesn’t, then there may be more changes ahead.

Either way, I’ll know more soon.

And when I do, I’ll let you know.