It is a while since I have blogged with a health update so it is probably time.

For regular readers of this blog you will remember that in August 2021 I had my kidney removed here in China. Then in May 2023 I had a major bleed following a routine thyroid biopsy which resulted in surgery to removed a large blood clot in my neck. At that time I was pumped full of antibiotics as I was on the life threatening register and i believe that they worked. However, unbeknownst to me 16 bags of the drugs also damage your gut lining which can take months and months to repair.

So, when in August only weeks after the whole botched biopsy and subsequent surgery, Kevin inadvertently fed me with some dodgy dumplings, I didn’t havde the internal resources to fight off the infection. I suffered a vicious dose of food poisoning which lasted for 7 days and left me weak and dehydrated. I saw nothing of our mini break to Nanjing except the inside of the hotel room!

A visit to the GP confirmed that I had a massive infection. My blood results showed 142 for the infection marker when in a normal person it should be under 10! Further test results told me that the whole episode had also damaged my remaining kidney. I was now suffering from Chronic Kidney Disease Stage 3 and I was referred to a Nephrologist.

CKD can be divided into 5 stages. Stage 1 is normal kidney functionality and Stage 5 is renal failure and dialysis. I was slap bang in the middle at half way through stage 3 but the bad news was that in all likelihood the damage was permanant. There was a chance that with some dietary and lifestyle changes that I might nudge the numbers back a bit towards Stage 2. Thus, under medical guidance I have been on an extremely strict diet.

I am monitored very regularly by my nephrologist who is very good and explains every thing so well. I am not allowed any alcohol or red meat and I have targets for drinking water each day. I also have a nutritionist who put me on a low protein diet with the intention of removing pressure from my kidney in an attempt to allow it time to heal itself a little. She is a lovely lady but VERY strict.

For the last 6 months I have had to eat the same food every day. I can have one egg in the morning (scrambled) and a bowl of low protein rice congee. I can confirm that low protein rice is not as nice as regular rice! Using the online shopping APP Taobao I thought that I was ordering 5 bags of this special rice but inadvertantly ordered 5 boxes so I have ended up with 25 bags! I have a good supply now so can continue this regime for quite some time!

For lunch and dinner I have the same food just in slightly different quantities. Every thing has to be weighed out carefully to ensure that I can have the correct amounts of plant and animal proteins. For a VERY long time I have not been allowed to eat any meat at all and instead have had a soluable protein powder. Yay! Actually, it doesn’t taste bad… but then again it’s doesn’t taste particularly appetising either. I can have 40g of boiled low protein rice, 40g of sweet potato vermicelli, 80g of mashed sweet potato and 150g of (some) green veg. Try weighing out 40g and you will discover that it is not much.

I can also have 150g of fruit, but that is restricted to blueberries, raspberries or strawberries only. The highlight of my day however, is a cube of Choc Zero (sugar free chocolate) which I had previously thought tasted a bit like washing powder but now is ABSOLUTELY delicious!!!

Not only do I have these dietary restrictions but I am required to send photographic evidence to my dietitian every single meal! Plus a screen shot of my weight each morning. So basically she can tell if I am sticking to it correctly or not!

This diet is tough but it has worked. I have lost some weight and feel better for it.

My ayi helps by cooking in bulk than boxing up what I am allowed into lunch or dinner portions and so fortunately I still get to eat some chinese flavors. Eating at work and home is fine but when invited out I have to ask for a glass of warm water and mix up my protein powder. Then have some fairly disgusting lotus root powder to compensate for the sweet potato carbs. Then weigh out 150g of whatever green veg is on offer. This is hard, especially when I can smell all the delicious dishes that the others are eating…

Funnily enough I haven’t missed alcohol at all but I do get cravings for a nice bread roll or a slice of toast with butter. I am permitted either 80g of natural unsweetened yoghurt per day (which is less that a small tub) or 1/2 a latte. So I do make sure that I have that.

Has it worked? Well yes, but only very very slowly. My kidney numbers were gradually inching towards Stage 2. But then some things happened at work (more on that later) which were quite stressful for me and low and behold I was back to square one! Stress is a bit of a bugger and can affect you in ways that you don’t realise.

For now though, I have improved enough to be allowed to have 40g of either lean chicken, shrimp, salmon or duck to replace the protein powder for one of my meals. This is hugely exciting for me. I am also now permitted 5g of nuts per day but when I went to weigh those it turned out to be only 3 nuts so hardly worth bothering with!!! Even so, I don’t turn my nose up at small mercies.

Facing CKD is scary especially when it is your remaining kidney. But I have to commend the service from the doctors and staff at Sino United. I am monitored and checked regularly. I understand now what I need to do to stay as healthy as possible and I feel much more in control. I do crave a lovely toasted teacake from time to time and if I am honest, I do sneak the occasional treat. But I know that when I cheat it is only cheating myself. The biggest problem that I find is that there are no signs or symptoms for kidney disease so I don’t feel any adverse effects of my ‘cheats’. That makes them more tempting so I need to be super disciplined which is easier some days than others.

I am now the proud owner of a new set of weighing scales which are just amazing. Honestly this technology just blows me away. These scales bluetooth to an app on my phone and they record not just how heavy I am but also my body fat, visceral fat, BMI, heart rate and much more! This is absulutely incredible and will really help me to self manage my condition.

Taiji has also been enormously helpful in managing my stresses and emotions over this last year and I know that I would probably be in a much worst state without it. But more on that in a future blog…