I am new to this and am hoping to find someone who can give me some helpful information. My father, who is 72, has been on dialysis since January. He goes 3 times a week for about 4 hours. Over the past few months he seems to have gone progressively downhill mentally. His doctor from his dialysis center says he is the healthiest patient she has and he consisitently gets good reports from the dietician, etc. He is having a very hard time because he says he feels so very weak all the time and that his stomach hurts. My father has gone from a very upbeat, active person to one who doesn't really feel like doing anything. He does try to do some things but this frustrates him because he gets so tired. It is also very hard to engage him in a conversation of any length and he is prone to cry with no provocation. My mother, who is his caregiver ,is at her wits end because no matter how positive she tries to be or how hard she tries to help him it doesn't seem to do very much. He has been on an anti-depressant for a couple of weeks now and that doesn't seem like it has helped either. Is this level of depression a common side effect? Does anyone have any suggestions on what can help? Is this something his dialysis doctor should be looking for and treating without family having to continually point it out? Can inadequate dialysis cause these problems? I know I asked a lot of questions but any insight that anyone has will be of help. Thank you so much!!!!

Hi, I just started dialysis a month ago. I certainly had my share of ups and downs. I also did some crying,usually when no one was around to see me! It's really tough coming to grips with the fact that you need "life support!" It doesn't seem like a big deal, unless you're the one going through it!
Also, it's tough knowing that you now have to ask others for help, especially if you were a very independent person.
Your dad may be still adjusting. Talk to his social worker and doctor. Things should start looking up soon! Also, I'm sure that if he doesn't have the proper dialysis prescription, it could affect mood, and his overall energy level. After all, I know how I felt just before, and when starting dialysis!
Also, ask doc. what your dad's hemoglobin and epo levels are like. A big part of my moodiness and fatigue have been that I was very anemic, and needed epo and iv iron with my treatments. Good luck, I hope you get some answers soon! Lin.

It takes almost two months to see any improvement on antidepressants, so don't be alarmed that he doesn't feel better right now. And adjusting to dialysis takes a different amount of time for different people. I also went through a very long adjustment period, and had several relapses into denial and anger. I cried a lot, too, but I didn't dare do it in front of my family. This is a lot for anyone to deal with!

Being outside in the fresh helped me a lot. Can your Dad still go for short walks around your neighborhood? Getting a small amount of exercise each day will help him physically and mentally. Good luck to you all.

Hi Kathryn:

I agree with the comments made by both Lin and DialyzinDar. I, too, went through a long period of depression, for lack of a beter word.

Going thrice weekly can really affect an individual, especially if they were very active before kidney failure hit.

Medication can sometimes take two or three months before the real effects are evident. Eventually, my nephrologist referred me to a psychiatrist who specialized in kidney-failure patients.

I went from Prozac to Paxil and it did help me some. But it takes two - the drug and the patient. No one likes to admit they are dependent on dialysis and anti-depressants to get by. It sort of doubles the conceived weakening of the body.

Crying, as they say, can sometime be a positive release, but if you are not accustomed to doing so, it makes the breakdown seem that much more pronounced.

I�m about 20 years younger than your father, but give him time and patience. The fact that he�s getting generally good reports on his physical condition should be reinforced.

Dialysis will not last forever, even though it seems like that at the beginning.

If you can encourage your father to communicate directly with me he can reach me at mallan_1999@yahoo.com.

Participating in chat groups like this - where I have found the participants to be considerate and informed - certainly helped me.

He should take every opportunity to talk to those in similar situations. Life is never the same after kidney failure, but it can be close.

My best to you and your Dad.

Best,
Mike

[This message has been edited by Michael Williams (edited 07-17-2001).]

I don't like to bring this up as it can be a good thing or a bad thing. If you can get into a home hemo program or slow nocturnal program you have a better chance at seeing the above issues resolved. If you can't get into 1 of these programs it just furthers depression because it just reinforces your lack of control.

Your situation describe mine to a T. The only difference being my father was 74. Our 2 years on in-center treatment was "h" and they kept telling us dad was good his labs were good etc. etc. My father really wanted to be home so with alot of effort I got him into a slow nocturnal program. We have been doing this for 7 months and I can honestly say he is back to what I knew him as, as normal with less drugs and epo.

To let you know how serious the decline was mentally. I have 2 sisters and all 3 of us thought my father was getting Alzheimers along with kidney failure. My next step was to take him to another doctor to find out.

At the same time I was considering this and getting ready to set up the Drs. appt. I got the call we were to start slow nocturnal training. The nephrologist suggested I hold off and see what happened. Within 3 weeks, I could see a change and since then I haven't even considered Alzheimers once.

Hello Again:

I agree again with both posts by Marty. (I always almost do.)

I was on home hemodialysis after first starting the standard thrice-weekly hospital treatment. Any of you can read of my experiences under the "Your Words" portion of this board.

Good to hear you sounding as positive as ever, Marty.

Best,
Mike

[This message has been edited by Michael Williams (edited 07-17-2001).]

Many thanks to all of your replies. It is so nice to know that there are people out there who are experiencing the same thing you are.
The day after I wrote my dad had a really bad day at dialysis. He was disoriented, shaky and had to be taken to the car in a wheelchair. His nephrologist called in a psychiatrist to consult with and he immediately took him off of the Paxil he was taking and put him on Zoloft. The Dr. said he didn't like to give Paxil to older patients. Since then two other people I know have told me that they experienced similar side effects while taking this anti-depressant (they were considerably younger and had no kidney problems) Just thought this was something people should look out for.
My dad is scheduled to enter the hospital next week for three days of evaluation to be put on a transplant list so we feel that is a very positive step. Please pray that he will be considered a viable candidate and that all the details will fall into place.
Again, thank you so much for your encouraging words. Michael,I am going to encourage him to e-mail you as you suggested.