Do you drink water before labs?

When they draw my blood they ask if I’ve had anything besides water or black coffee. I drink a liter of water before I go in. Easier to get the blood out. The phlebotomist appreciates it!

Hi, @gphetteplace. That's a lot of water! Do you do labs in morning or later in the day? I don't believe I would be able to do that prior to my early morning lab draw. It sounds like this pattern of yours does meet the approval of phlebotomist, and that is good thing. I do make sure that I drink some extra water on the day before my labs. Since I learned to do that, it does make a big difference for an easy needle stick!
How often do you have routine labs drawn?

Hi Rosemary - I’m down to monthly (3 1/2 years post) but I’ve been doing this pretty much all along. I had sepsis prior to my transplant and my veins are pretty much toast so I do pretty much anything I can to make it easier. I’ve also found leaning back in the chair, relaxing and breathing deeply seems to help the blood flow. In the early days they sometimes had to stick me again because the blood stopped flowing in the middle.

@gphetteplace, I hear you loud and clear! I'm 14 years post with a liver and kidney transplant at Mayo Rochester . I have always been a difficult stick because my local labs complained about my tiny rolling veins, and they didn't use the small needles unless requested (and I didn't know that there was such a thing) Mayo has wonderful smooth, small, sharp needles and fantastic phlebotomists, and I learned what to tell my locals because that experience. I agree with your self help practices. Here are some of mine: leaning back, deep breath, relaxing, feet on floor, uncrossed legs, eyes closed...
My routine labs are 3 months apart now. One thing that really surprises people is that I still cringe at the thought of getting labs drawn. Somehow they think that I should be used to it by now. Haha.

Remind me, What organ did you get? How are you getting along? and have you been able to resume your pre transplant activities?

I got a liver. Dodged a SLK by about a month. My eGFR was 11 when I had sepsis, but my kidneys eventually clawed their way back to 40. I’m pretty much back to normal though. Most people don’t realize it wasn’t the transplant that was difficult. It’s how terribly sick I was before. I was up doing laundry a week after the surgery. I’m SOO thankful for a second chance at life.
When did your labs go from monthly to every 3 months? Looking forward to that! 🙂

I’ll weigh in here. I have small, rolling, scarred difficult to stick veins. I’m nearly 18 years post pancreas transplant. The pre transplant evaluation process required 20 something tubes of blood and post transplant status requires lots of routine labs (though slowly decreasing as time goes on). I learned to schedule labs early in the morning. (Some tests require fasting & / or holding meds until after the blood draw.) I always make an effort to be well hydrated, extra water the day before and right up until the blood draw. My hands and arms are hot packed awhile before the blood draw. I squeeze a squishy thing to help pump up the veins before the blood draw. I close my eyes and practice relaxation breathing techniques, positive imagery (think peaceful/pleasant place). Last but not least, because I’m a Christian believer, I pray. I thank God that He knows how I am put together and how I work. I thank Him for the training, experience & skills of the phlebotomist. I ask Him to help the phlebotomist do their job well.

Yes, my daughter is a liver transplant patient. She is 100 days post op and doing great!

@adrienne0329, I am certain that you are as excited as your daughter is to be celebrating 100 days since her liver transplant.
I have had the opportunity to meet a girl, a teenager, who had received a liver transplant due to acute liver failure. She had received her liver a few days before I met her. I had been asked to drop in to see her while I was volunteering with my Kentucky Organ Donor Affiliate Group. I remembering sitting with the girl and her mother. They had only a few questions, but mostly were concerned about what her life would be like after discharge from hospital. I was told later that my visit, and meeting a liver transplant recipient who was doing well was helpful to both of them. I also learned that she had returned to high school classes and was doing well. It is great to hear that your daughter is doing great with her recovery.🤍

adrienne0329, My transplant was 14 years ago, when I was 60. If you have any questions/ or if your daughter has any questions about life with a transplant, I'm here.
Was your daughter ill prior to transplant? Will she be returning to school?