New York, New York
I met a young woman at Disney World (because that's where you meet people). She was in search of a kidney for her second transplant. She was about to begin dialysis, and this trip to Disney was her "last hurrah." I was with my parents and my friend, Tori. I explained to her that dialysis does not have to stop her life. I pointed at my mom and dad said “I just spent almost two weeks with them in Savannah.” Pointed at Tori, “and we’re going to New York!”
I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this, but I love to plan. Whether it’s a vacation, future plans, or what to have for dinner this week give me a calendar/computer/notebook and I’m in my happy place. Thankfully, God blessed me with my friend Tori (formally, Ketoria) who is way more easy going. The first thing to plan when you’re a travelling kidney patient is dialysis. With Davita dialysis, you can call at least two weeks ahead of time to reserve a spot at a clinic near to where you’re travelling. We were travelling Tuesday through Friday. So I called ahead and scheduled a session for Wednesday in Brooklyn. Then I contacted my own clinic to schedule a Saturday treatment instead of my usual Friday (this way I could have more time on my last day and catch my flight).
I was going to give you guys a play by play of everyday, but I decided to do what I do and make a list 😉 of some highlights
Double Decker Bus Tour of New York
Attended a the Taping of The Chew
Saw Once on This Island on Broadway (We met Lea Salonga!!!!)
Danced on Live with Kelly & Ryan (Ever wondered how someone with End Stage Renal Disease dances? – Answer: like nobody’s watching. Tune in on August 22nd)
Window Shopping at Chelsea Market
Actual Shopping in China Town.
Strand Bookstore
Shared pizza with some nice strangers
Food :
Okay. So what do you eat when you’re in NYC AND on a low-sodium, low phosphorus, and low-potassium diet?? While there are a ton of healthy options in the city, my trick is to pack my usual snacks and eat small portions of the not-so-healthy stuff. But really, does one go all the way to New York to eat low sodium-phosphorus-potassium foods? Not so much. So I while I didn’t go crazy, I did splurge a bit. Here’s another list ….
*A thanksgiving sandwich with dressing, turkey, and cranberry sauce
* Snickerdoodle and chocolate chunk cookies from Ben’s Cookies (I had a plan to eat just a piece and save the rest for the trip home. Those poor cookies didn’t even make it to the airport!)
* Pizza (duh!) from Roberta’s in Brooklyn and from Rays.
So yeah, that’s that. This super long post was to just to say that you don’t have to feel like you’re grounded just because you’re sick. There’s so much life to experience-even in day trips or staycations. Whether you are itching to see the Grand Canyon or take your dog to a nice local park, talk to your support team and make it happen!
