The opinions, recommendations, statements, and advice
contained on KidneyTalk! are for information only. You should not use the
information on this show to diagnose or treat a health problem or disease
without first consulting with a qualified healthcare provider. Please consult
with your healthcare provider about any questions or concerns you may have
regarding your condition or dietary regimen. For more information, visit
RSN's
KidneyTalk!
Home Page.
On this week’s show, Lori Hartwell and Stephen Furst
talk with a spirited woman who embodies the wonders made possible by dialysis.
The definition
of “dialysis success” for this long-time kidney patient, Roanne Dale, is looking
great and feeling great while on dialysis. While this might sound like an
oxymoron, one look at Roanne proves that dialysis success is achievable.
Roanne’s
experience with kidney failure began back in the early 1970s. While on a
tobogganing adventure with family members (for those of you from warm climates,
a toboggan is a type of snow sled), her younger sister had a traumatic accident
resulting in severe injuries. Because of the injuries, Roanne’s sister suffered
kidney failure.
Roanne and her
older sister were tested as possible kidney donors and found to be compatible
matches; however, the older sister was the better match and the one who donated
her kidney. But after only a month, the transplant failed and Roanne was asked
to donate. Seeing that her older sister had come through the surgery without
problems, Roanne also donated a kidney to her younger sister.
Three weeks
later, on Thanksgiving morning, Roanne awakened feeling sick. Remembers Roanne:
“I felt like I had a horrible flu. But, my intuition was telling me that
something just wasn’t right.” By mid-December of the same year, Roanne found
herself on dialysis... her remaining kidney had failed. Fortunately, after three
months, her remaining kidney began functioning again and she was able to stay
off dialysis for the next five years. Though off dialysis, Roanne had to
continue the renal lifestyle of fluid restriction, dietary restrictions, and
exercise.
This September,
Roanne will celebrate 28 years on dialysis! But to get to this point of
celebration, Roanne had to climb out of what she refers to as a black hole. “I
was pretty young, only 21,” says Roanne, “and angry about the whole thing.” For
Roanne, overcoming the mental challenge was the biggest hurdle, but once she got
past that, “everything else fell into place.”
In 2004, Roanne
wrote a book--“Dialysis Success: A Self Help Guide to Live Well on Dialysis”--in
which she encourages other kidney patients that they, too, can live well while
on dialysis.
When asked her
opinion about what the key is to dialysis success, Roanne readily answers,
“Exercise!” Explaining further, she says that “Looking great takes work. To me,
exercise is really key. What you do for your body, you do for your mind. I want
people living with kidney disease to understand the dynamics of why we’re told
to do what we’re told. It’s important to know the rules of the game. If you
cheat at the game, you lose. It’s about participating and understanding the
rules of the dialysis game and enjoying it.”
For more
information about living well with chronic kidney disease, check out the Renal
Support Network website at RSNhope.org. To
find out more about Roanne’s book, “Dialysis Success” (which is also available
on CD), visit her website at www.dialysissuccess.com.
