The headaches are gone and I did not go to the doctor about them. I got to feeling better and decided not to rock-the-boat. If they occur again, I will go then and be tested to see what it might be. I am hoping it was just one of those things that occasionally happens to everyone and there is really no real problem.

Dr. Shorie, the nephrologist at the dialysis center, made rounds on Monday and talked to me about the itching that I experience. He said it is usually a sign that the body is building antibodies against the blood and platelets that are received over a long period of time. Dr. Page had told me this and there is nothing that can be done about it. Dr. Shorie has upped the Epogen injections to 50,000 units at each dialysis session to try and make the red blood cells more active and help with my fatigue. It had been at 45,000 units, which was considered very high, but now the amount is higher. I said I thought the 45,000 units was the max and they said the 50,000 is very, very high but he wanted to try and see if the higher number would be of any help. He now wants the hemoglobin to remain above 10.0 because even the 9.0 he has suggested a couple of weeks ago is not high enough to keep my heart from working so very hard.

My hemoglobin was 10.7 and my platelets were 17,000 and I did not have to have transfusions this week. Enjoyed that fact because it is nice to have a day once in awhile that does not involve anything medical.