Fistulagram #4: The Balloon Ride Nobody Asks For

Tomorrow morning, Tuesday, September 8th, I get to experience something that has become a recurring event in my dialysis journey:

Fistulagram #4.

If you’ve never heard of a fistulagram, you’re not alone. It’s a procedure where a doctor injects contrast dye into your dialysis access (my AV graft), takes X-ray images to see how blood is flowing, and if they find a narrowing, they inflate a tiny balloon inside the blood vessel to open it back up.

Think of it as calling Roto-Rooter… but for your bloodstream.

The goal is simple: improve blood flow so dialysis can do a better job cleaning my blood three times a week.

Now here’s the part that usually gets people’s attention…

I don’t use anesthesia.

I don’t take pain medication.

Why?

Because I want to drive myself home afterward and get on with my day.

That doesn’t mean you don’t feel anything.

When they inflate that balloon…

Oh, I know it’s there.

You can actually feel the pressure as it expands inside your arm. It’s one of the strangest sensations I’ve ever experienced. It isn’t unbearable, but it’s definitely one of those moments where you think:

“Yep… that’s happening inside my arm.”

My instructions are the usual pre-procedure fun:

• 🚫 No food after midnight.

• 🚫 No drinking after midnight.

• ⏰ Arrive at the hospital at 6:30 AM for a 7:30 AM procedure.

• 🩺 About 30 minutes for the procedure itself.

• ⏳ Another 30 minutes getting prepped and recovering before heading home.

And yes…

If I accidentally eat after midnight…

I’ll turn into a Gremlin.

(Okay, maybe not medically accurate… but it makes following the instructions a little more entertaining.)

Hopefully this will improve the flow through my graft and make dialysis treatments run more efficiently.

I’ll let everyone know tomorrow how Fistulagram #4 goes. Hopefully the balloon and I will continue our strange little friendship… and hopefully it’ll be a while before we’re reunited again.