PKD Life - Summer 2020 - 5

Community Connection

HOW DO YOU MANAGE
WORK-LIFE BALANCE?

"I'm really fortunate that while I have
PKD, I have been pretty healthy so far.
I am also lucky to have a job I enjoy and
that's extremely flexible, so I'm able to
use some of my daytime hours for other
things that are also important to me-such
as my two girls and volunteering as the walk
coordinator for the New Jersey Walk for PKD. Even when I'm
really busy, I do try to find at least a few hours twice a month
to go out with my friends for dinner or another activity. It helps
re-energize me for our busy life."
-Stacey McClain, Berlin, New Jersey

Awareness

Tips for
Summer
Exercising
important to stay active
I t'syear-round,
but exercising

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in the summer heat can lead
to dehydration. Here's what
Jennifer Shelton, a health
coach in Mission, Kansas,
recommends:
Drink up! Staying
hydrated is important for
everyone, and especially
for those with PKD. Healthy
hydration can prevent kidney
stones and is important to
overall kidney function and
health. Because people vary
in weight, Shelton likes to
use the formula of drinking half of your body weight
in ounces. For example, a
person weighing 150 pounds
should strive to drink 75
ounces of water (about 9 cups
or 2.2 liters) per day.
Replace electrolytes.
You can replenish electrolytes that are depleted when

you sweat-sodium, calcium,
and potassium-with foods
or liquids. Yogurt, soy milk,
squash, leafy greens, celery,
coconut water, watermelon
water, and milk are all high
in electrolytes.
Work out indoors. Exercising in fresh air is great, but
when it begins to feel too hot,
then just take your workouts
indoors or into the shade.
(The shade can be 10 to 15
degrees cooler!)
Cover your skin. Lightcolored moisture-wicking
fabrics pull the moisture
from your body into the fabric, which then evaporates
quickly. It might be counterintuitive, but wearing a longsleeved moisture-wicking
shirt will keep you cooler
than short sleeves. Cooling
neck towels and bandanas are
also very helpful in keeping
you from getting overheated
during exercise.
Get in the tub. Bring
down your body temperature
after a workout by taking a
cool or cold bath or shower.

"Work-life balance is difficult for everyone,
and especially so following a living-donor
renal transplant for ADPKD renal failure.
I am a retired orthopedic surgeon who
practiced at an academic medical center
for 30 years, 18 of which followed my
kidney transplant. Family, health, and my job
became my ranked priorities. I reordered the importance of
my job responsibilities to avoid returning home after 10 p.m.
on clinic days, reduced call responsibilities, and learned to
say no to extra assignments, committee/society work, etc.
Exercise in a home gym and walks with my wife and golden
retrievers were routine. A particular challenge as a surgeon
was coping with hand tremors, which are a common side
effect of immunosuppressive medications. Despite these
challenges, I have enjoyed a fulfilling career in medicine."
-Steve Petersen, M.D., Gypsum, Colorado

"I am the only one in my immediate
family who does not have PKD. I've had
my moments of wallowing in self-pity
and unhealthy bouts of 'why me,' but
somewhere along the way I realized that
if I wanted our two girls to truly believe
they are perfect in every way, then I needed
to believe it as well. I needed to accept the disease, realize
I couldn't change it, realize their life would be harder, and
then somehow find gratitude for it all. We have had plenty
of ups and downs, but through it all there have been some
wonderful moments. I think we laugh more, smile more,
and are more present in each other's lives because PKD has
helped us see just how precious and finite life is."
-Megan Hamilton, Portales, New Mexico

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http://CONNECT.PKDCURE.ORG

PKD Life - Summer 2020

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