Welcome to my Kidney Walk fundraising page! I'm participating in this years Kidney Walk to improve the lives of all people affected by kidney disease and to increase awareness of this disease. I walk to keep the memory of Arlene Weiss alive.
She became a dialysis patient in December of 2012 when she was diagnosed end stage renal. She had kidney stones in both kidneys, kidney failure, she went into cardiac arrest while on dialysis (Christmas Eve day of 2012 and her heart stopped for ten minutes), had calciphylaxis, heart bypass and valve repair surgery, a leukemia scare and her carotid artery was at least 85% blocked. The arteries in both legs were horrible, her left foot became gangerous, followed by her right and in November of 2014, her left leg was amputated below the knee. Two days later she had a heart attack caused by sepsis poisoning.
On June 2nd, 2015, around 7 am, her sister called her, and said that she sounded fine, but they couldn't talk because of a bad cell connection, at 8:15 am, her nurse in the rehab center spoke to her and told her that she'd be back. That was the last time she spoke to anyone, she never became responsive again.
At 8:20, her aide came in with her breakfast and noticed that she was slumped back, non responsive and turning colors, at which time, they started CPR and called for an ambulance. I came up in the elevator 10 minutes later and was told what happened. They took her to the hospital and eventually she was brought into ICU.
A stroke, caused by a heart attack.
That day, I was told that she needed the right leg amputated below the knee because of sepsis and it had to be done that day or she was not coming out of the hospital alive. They did it guillotine style and left it open to let the sepsis drain out.
On June 10th, I was on my way to work and received a phone call telling me that she went into cardiac arrest and asking me if they should do CPR, I responded that they should and jumped in a cab and rushed back, making phone calls to work and to her sister to tell her to come quickly. She was alive when we both got there, but shortly after went into, yet again, cardiac arrest. Again I told them to do CPR, again, again and yet AGAIN.
Just after 4 pm, they called Arlene's sister and myself into the hallway and told us that they tried everything and that she passed at 3:55 pm on June 10th 2015.
Her last few years were terrible. She had five stays in hospitals and four in nursing/rehab facilities.
We were Superstorm Sandy survivors and in July of 2013, two years before she passed, we had to abandon our house because of delayed issues from the storm. We went from hotel to hotel for a couple of weeks, not spending more than two days in any one spot and not knowing where we were going to sleep from one night to the next, until Arlene and her sister reconnected and she took us in. She never slept in our house again in her last 23 months.
Arlene died a horrible death. She was in extreme pain for the last 13 months, a dialysis patient for her last 2 1/2 years and in a coma for the last 8 days of her life. She had had kidney stones, both kidneys fail, 5 heart attacks (three in the last 8 days and two on the last day), a stroke and both legs amputated below the knees. I lost track of how many surgerys. NOBODY could have survived all that. Her body just said "no more".
She was brave, she was fearless, she fought the good fight with the heart of a lion and was an inspiration to me and to all who came in contact with her. She was also the finest person I have ever met and the love of my life. Any donation to the cause would be welcome.
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