Getting ready for 2010–tips for managing chronic kidney disease

The period between Christmas and New Years is a great time to wind down, reflect and gear up for the year ahead. I always like to take some ‘self’ time to think about upcoming events, schedules, goals and yes—a few New Year’s resolutions.

So after the family and guests have gone on Christmas day and in-between planning the New Year’s bash, set aside a few hours each day to contemplate on being healthy with chronic kidney disease in 2010. Here are a few suggestions to get you started:
Dec 26th—look at your calendar and schedule  appointments with doctors, dietitians and other healthcare professionals.

Dec 27th—Review all prescriptions and get rid of old ones; make a schedule for refills on current ones and for the upcoming year.
Dec 28th—Revisit your meal plan, recipes and menus. Create a new shopping list and meal schedule. Visit DaVita.com for new ideas and view the DaVita kitchen videos to learn how to stock a kidney-friendly kitchen.

Dec 29th—Make a contact list with all your healthcare professionals and medical facility information to store in one place. Get rid or all the scraps of paper and update to a new pocket calendar.
Dec 30th—Hit the road. Make a trip to the grocery, pharmacy, bookstore and other places to put your earlier plans in action.

Dec 31st—Take a while to relax and visualize a happy, healthy New Year with less stress and more time to relax and enjoy the present moment. Put aside worries about tomorrow and regrets about yesterday. Get ready to welcome the New Year with a greater sense of peace, happiness and organization.

Happy New Year from DaVita.com