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Community Care FundDuane's StoryDuane is awaiting a kidney transplant and until a donor match is made and he can have the replacement surgery, Duane requires dialysis three times per week for three hours and forty five minutes.When Duane began his first dialysis session, he experienced a loss of freedom. Being connected to a machine, for 3 hours and 45 minutes, three days a week left him feeling powerless, trapped and vulnerable. Missing doctor appointments to avoid hearing bad news and feeling angry at dialysis sessions, he knew he needed help with acceptance. A nurse recommended him to the Osher Center and with the aid of the Community Care Fund, Duane took his first step towards helping himself. “I never thought my body would break down or that I would need to ask for help [but] …when I would leave dialysis I would feel so vulnerable, so sad, so defeated. Unless I was able to deal with my problems with acceptance—that there was not much they would really be able to do to help me. |
I learned that I could be a partner with my doctor and the nurses and with my dialysis. Brook has helped guide me to find solutions and answers.
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At the Osher Center he met Brook Stone, MSW, LCSW. Working with Brook, Duane learned relaxation exercises and how to put things in a new perspective. Through guided imagery and relaxation techniques, Brook taught Duane techniques to deal with the anger and to approach dialysis differently. “I learned that I could be a partner with my doctor and the nurses and with my dialysis,” observed Duane. “Brook has helped guide me to find solutions and answers. My attitude in every part of my life has changed. When I leave [from a dialysis session], I take a walk in Golden Gate Park.” Duane continues to work with Brook today.
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