questions

My name is Ebony Brown and I am a 26 year old dialysis patient in Memphis, TN. I am working on a book dealing with how people, mainly minorities, cope with terminal illnesses. I dialyze at a center that is about 90% minority (mainly African-American). I would like any imput that anyone would be willing to give me regarding their own dialysis experiences. Please send your responses to [B][U]e_l_brown2005@yahoo.com[/U][/B].

Some things I would like to know about anyone who submits information are:

1. Name and location (city and state is enough information).
2. Age and Sex
3. How long you have been on dialysis
4. What stage of kidney failure you are in
5. How has your life changed since becoming a kidney patient?
6. What are some of those major changes?
7. What are some ways that you are coping with kidney disease and/or dialysis?
8. How does your family/significant other contribute to the coping process?
9. What are some of the major setbacks that you have/are experiencing?
10. How efficient is your renal care team?
11. What other illnesses, if any, are you dealing with also?
12. How has this experience changed you as an individual?
13. How well have you adjusted to your renal diet, taking medications each day, the dialysis treatments themselves, and the side effects of the treatments?
14. Has kidney disease/dialysis affected your lifestyle? If so, how? If not, please explain why it has not.
15. What are some of your ultimate goals in life? Have they changed as a result of kidney disease/dialysis? If so, how and why?
16. Please give me any other information about your experience that you feel comfortable sharing with me and others.

*** The information that you share is freely given. I cannot guarantee that all information will make it into the book, but I will send messages to those that do. Please also note that no one will receive any funds for the information given. I am writing a book to help others, like me because it has been an ordeal finding people who want to openly talk about dialysis and kidney failure. I thank you in advance for your help and submissions!