‘It can be such a lonely time’: Cork woman urges people with kidney disease to reach out for support
Sheena McDonagh, who lives in Rochestown, underwent a kidney transplant ten years ago this March.
A Cork woman, who developed renal disease in her 20s and who spent a number of years on dialysis before undergoing a kidney transplant, has spoken of the importance of mental health supports for people with kidney disease.
Sheena McDonagh, who lives in Rochestown, was diagnosed with nephritis in 1997 when she was pregnant with her son.
Sheena’s kidney function returned after her son was born, and while over the subsequent years, she said she found herself feeling exhausted, she put it down to caring for her two young children.
However, Sheena’s renal function had started to decline, and in 2008 she needed to commence dialysis.
The Rochestown woman tried two forms of dialysis treatment, which she underwent in her home; peritoneal dialysis which she underwent four times daily and then nightly dialysis treatment which she underwent for 8-9 hours at a time.
Her declining renal function had a huge impact on her life.
“The biggest impact really is on your energy levels and the hardest parts of it is tiredness. And so many things come along with that tiredness and fatigue; the weakness, the planning your days. There might be an element of nausea.” Following four years of treatment, Sheena underwent a kidney transplant, which she described as life-changing. She admits, however, that it was a time that was filled with mixed emotions.
“A live donor wasn't an option for me at the time for different reasons. So you're waiting for a deceased donor. There's an awful lot of emotions attached to that. So you know, my call, the call did come and it came in March 10 years ago, and it was like night and day. You're recovering from a big operation but your energy levels return straight away. You know, your kidneys kick in and it's such a fantastic gift to have received.” Sheena said that she has always received excellent clinical care at Cork University Hospital but said that accessing mental health and peer supports are also vital.
“At the time [when Sheena has diagnosed with renal disease], there was very little support as regards kind of mental health supports. A lot of it was about just kind of getting on with it and attending to your clinical appointments. It was really amazing support from CUH but that's regarding the clinical side of things, and the mental health side of things and kind of the awareness of what was going on with me- I didn't kind of register with me at all,” she explained.
“It can be a lonely time. And very often, you know, your family ask you how you are, you are trying to protect them, you say, your grand,but inside, you're, you're kind of saying ‘oh’. It can be scary, worrying, all of that and that can just be so overwhelming. You know, there's an awful lot of losses that come around having any chronic disease and renal disease is no different. You're talking about potential loss of career, which brings loss of income. You worry about the future. There are an awful lot of mixed emotions, that if people can work through them, with the help of a trained counselor, that it can, maybe allay some of those fears.”
Sheena said that the Irish Kidney Association is also rolling out a peer support programme.
The Rochestown woman spoke about her experiences of living with renal disease to mark World Kidney Day which takes place today (Thursday, March 10).
She will speak at an event taking place at UCC this afternoon, which has been organised by the Translational Medicine Society.
Also speaking at the event is CUH Consultant Nephrologist Dr Sarah Moran.
Translational Medicine Society, educational officer Mark Vesey said that all are welcome to attend.
“The event is about raising awareness for both students who might be going into the area of kidney medicine research, and just for the general public to be aware of kidney disease,” he explained.
The event takes place at Brookfield Health Sciences Centre at 5pm.
To mark World Kidney Day, the Irish Kidney Association (IKA), in association with the HSE’s National Renal Office (NRO), is also running an awareness campaign to highlight the importance of early screening for Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD).
Diabetes Ireland is supporting the campaign to ensure that the core messaging about looking after your kidneys reaches one of the most common at-risk groups, i.e., people living with diabetes.
The IKA’s campaign aims to highlight that it is possible to prevent or slow down the progression of kidney disease through lifestyle changes and medication and that it all starts with simple blood and urine tests done through your GP to measure and monitor your kidney health.
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