Cardio Nurse called back

They are going to try aldosterone for two weeks to get my potassium higher, and then recheck my BP and heart rate and do a bunch more labs on the 29th. Hope this works and doesn't spike the BP... i'm already on Cartia 180 to just keep it in check. Here goes!
Just thought you should know.
~Sunnytoday~

[Fluffysmom]

Thanks for the update; I've been reading, if not commenting.

I was thinking that you might need to eat a little more, and drink a little more water.

Potassium is in so many foods; I knew someone that had to avoid it, and he was very limited in what he could eat.

I think potatoes have quite a bit of potassium, as well as bananas; you could google high-potassium foods, and see if eating a few more of them could help, too.

I've found that pumpkin seeds contain a nice amount of magnesium.  I eat this Nature's Path organic pumpkin flax granola just about every morning; they make granola bars, too.  My magnesium levels are always good.  Flaxseeds are good for your heart; lots of Omega 3.  They are best ground up; you can put them on oatmeal, bake them in cookies, get creative.

Same with pumpkin seeds; you can eat them as a snack, toss some in a salad, bake some in cookies or rice pilaf.

I hope the aldosterone works, and your BP stays stable.  I want you healthy, young lady!

Hugs,

Kathy

[Sunnytoday]

Kathy
I fogot to say that they also said that I should drink 10 to 12 glasses of water a day. Now that is just an insanely LOT OF WATER!!!!! ugh!!!! But, this is an antidiuretic so maybe i won't be running to the bathrom so much if i take this and drink that much?? I can't eat seeds because of tummy troubles, but I do eat banana's and I eat potatoes about every other day- they are yummy. I'll google and see what else i should be eating. Thanks for the tips! :)
((((((hugs))))))))
~Sunnytoday~

[Wobbly]

Hi there... what I do is drink my water with Crystal Light in it... it helps as I don't like just drinking so much water ...I have it near me so it's just there and I end up drinking more then I used too.  

good luck and watch the BP ..
take care
wobbly
undx

[rendean]

Thanks for the update!

I'm glad they have a game plan in place for you. Let us know how things go with the 10-12 glasses of water.

Good luck with everything!

Hugs,
Ren

[Sunnytoday]

I picked up my meds from the pharmacy and it was spironolactone ... and my dear friend wikipedia said that this drug

"is a diuretic and is used as an antiandrogen. It is a synthetic 17-lactone drug that is a renal competitive aldosterone antagonist in a class of pharmaceuticals called potassium-sparing diuretics, used primarily to treat heart failure, ascites in patients with liver disease, low-renin hypertension, hypokalemia, and Conn's syndrome as well as high blood pressure. On its own, spironolactone is only a weak diuretic, but it can be combined with other diuretics. " ........"This increases the excretion of water and sodium, while decreasing the excretion of potassium. Spironolactone has a fairly slow onset of action, taking several days to develop, and similarly the effect diminishes slowly. Spironolactone has anti-androgen activity by binding to the androgen receptor and preventing it from interacting with dihydrotestosterone."


So, i'm positive she said they were putting me on an antidiuretic, and this is a diuretic. Those are two opposite things.

hmmmmmmmm, well two weeks of this can't kill me.
~Sunnytoday~

[vizslagal]

Please call your doctor to make sure the pharmacy filled the prescription correctly.  they will have it in your records.  Just a precaution.

Yvette

[PastorDan]

Gotta go with Yvette's advice here, girl.  Mistakes can happen, and do.  Best be safe.

[Janette2836]

Sunshine,
Like repeating this will make you do it  :)  Call your doctor about this med - DO NOT take it until you do.  

[wishforchange]

Been thinking of you.  Posted my own post on falling over then half way through started talking to you!  Don't know if you read it.  You have a crisis here and YES, two weeks on the wrong medicine can kill a person.  If your kidneys are struggling and they get pushed any further in the wrong direction you will be beyond help.  You must get this right, it is always the simple errors that are the most dangerous.  You have some clinical training lady, you know how easy it is for records to be mis-interpreted.  

You are very, very vulnerable clinically right now.  In no position to absorb any mistake.  My mind is so furred up I wish I could think whether you need an anti-diuretic or diuretic.  Most likely is a diuretic.  Can't think of a reason why they would want you to retain water.  BUT DON'T FOLLOW MY ADVICE.  Your clinician has all your test results and know what they want for you and you must ensure you have the right medicine.  Now.  Today.  
Am still in shock from my fall and plenty of near misses since.  Tbe nerve signals from my  leg are completely off, but just wanted to clear my conscience and answer this.  Am logging off now as work still not finished.  Woke up unconscious on the settee this morning with pills all over me.  Anyone who came in and saw me would have thought the worst.  Was still gripping the opened  bottle when I woke up as the phone was ringing, about seven hours after I sat down!  Just must have blacked out while I was opening the bottle.  
Need to finish up my work and contact my tutor.  So am in a mess too, but your mess is resolvable right now, and of great urgency.

Thinking of you a LOT right now.  Ususally do that when I'm worried about someone.  Your twenties are a time of not seeing the darkest consequences of illness, but those of us here who are mostly older than you can see you are in danger.  Not patronizing you, just it's harder inside the situation to see the way out.  

Need someone to sort me out too, but our problems are very different.

Post asap and tell us you have the meds sorted.  Not by guesswork, or by any of our advice, but by the advice of your pharmacist and doctor.  We are just online friends, medically trained or not.  Even those of us you trust are not privileged to all your clinical information.  Get this sorted today.  Must log off and work - nearly there.  Hope tutor still accepts it!
Be well
wish

[Sunnytoday]

well, I didn't see this until this morning. Bother. my doc's office is closed till monday..  I'll try to get it straightened out then. Thanks for the post Wish.... I read the whole thing, and nodded a bazillion times, and then made a huge post-it note to call to make sure i'm on the right thing. I can't afford to screw up my kidneys at 21. Nope!! I do know that records can get messed up, in fact, they did't have my lab for some reason until i called and asked them to please check on it.

as far as the antidiuretic vs. the diuretic (which i'm confused on)... my lab levels said

Osmolality, Urine 224  (390-1090 mOsm/kg)  
Potassium Blood 3.2 (3.5-5.1)
Magnesium 1.6 (1.8- 2.4)

So, that was what they were worried about

I'll go look for your post, and good luck with what you were working on!
~Sunnytoday~

[Lulu54]

Sunny,
From the cardio perspective there is absolutely no way that they would want you to retain fluid and put an additional strain on your already overworking heart.  The tachycardia would really soar if you are retaining fluids.

That said, you still need to call to make sure that this is what the doctor wants.  The 10-12 glasses of water PLUS the diuretic make a world of sense to me.  But it is also going to be stripping your potassium......

Stick with this, ok?
L