Friday, June 8, 2012

Homeless Again

It's been a while since I updated. I guess I didn't update because I was doing pretty good and didn't feel like it. I don't know. Regardless, I'm homeless again. How and why I got back to this point is sort of a long story. It's hard to explain.

I was doing PD for a while and it was going well. My marriage wasn't. We had problems. Things got to a point where I knew I needed to move back home. I made the mistake of coming back to Washington state thinking I would have support from my family. I didn't. I begged both of my parents to let me stay with them until I could get on my feet but they refused. I even asked them if I could just store my dialysis supplies in their garage and I would camp in the woods until I got my social security check but they refused. You read that right. They refused to let me store my life-saving medical supplies in their garage!

Dialysis is something I have to do 4 times a day, every day. My bags of solution are heavy. I have over 35 boxes to last me a month. I can't carry this shit around. I could carry 4 bags max. I'm not even really supposed to lift over 10lbs. That's my life.

I was able to get a motel voucher with some help from the Northwest Kidney Center but that ran out after 3 short days. After that I had to go without dialysis for almost a week until I got my social security check. I was able to do that by not eating much so I wouldn't build up toxins and because I have a little kidney function left (about 7%.) Most dialysis patients can't go more than a few days without it. Regardless fluid and toxins build. I wasn't doing too good.

A week later and my money is dwindling. Motels here are way too expensive. My social security check is tiny. I have about $100 left from my money and what I've made panhandling. I knew I couldn't spend another dime on a room so I bought a tent, sleeping bag, and some other gear to survive on the streets of Seattle. Actually, I'll be camping in the woods but it's still the streets no less.

My only hope is I can panhandle enough money every day on the freeway offramp and that the cops don't harass me too much so I can build up enough money for a room to rent or at least another motel. Hopefully it won't take long so I can get my medical supplies and start doing my treatments right. For those of you that don't know, my only other option is to do Hemo dialysis but that requires access which takes surgery and time to heal. Also Hemo isn't a great option. PD is working great for me and it's better for my body but I don't have a home.

As far as my transplant options, I have a friend that got tested in California. She's a match and she's in good health but I have to start the transplant process over again here in Seattle and that takes a few months. Also, I can't be homeless and get a transplant. There's no way that can happen.

That's where I'm at. I've seen a lot on the streets already. I seen a man die. I seen another guy get stabbed. Seattle is pretty safe but no city is safe being homeless. I'm hoping to keep a low profile and do my panhandling thing until I can get back on my feet. I'll update more often. I use the libary mostly but hoping to buy an inexpensive laptop. Not a real priority right now. If anyone has an old working one to donate let me know. I'm working on getting a PO Box.

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