A man battling a serious health condition has drawn online attention after opening up about his experience living with the illness.
In the video, he revealed the early symptoms he noticed before eventually discovering that he was suffering from kidney problems.
The man, identified on TikTok by the username @dan, disclosed that he was diagnosed with stage-five kidney failure at the age of 26.
Dan decided to share his experience after many people asked how the illness developed. According to him, he wanted others to understand the symptoms he had experienced for months without realizing they were warning signs of kidney failure.
He explained that after attending classes during the day, he would often drive to a nearby car park and sleep for hours before regaining enough energy to continue.
Dan chose to be share his experience after being asked by people how the illness developed. He claimed that he wanted to people to know the symptoms he had for months without realizing it was signs of kidney failure.
He pointed out that after attending classes during the day, he would frequently drive to a nearby car park to sleep for hours before having the energy to continue.
He explained that this pattern had been happening almost every day for nearly a month. Even outside of those episodes, he often found himself needing long naps at home several times a week. Another warning sign he noticed before seeking further medical care was swelling in his feet and ankles.
According to him, his toes and ankles would become noticeably swollen at night, sometimes making movement difficult. Initially, he assumed the discomfort was caused by wearing shoes that were too tight.
However, he later realised the swelling had been linked to his underlying health condition.
The final symptom he highlighted was severely elevated blood pressure. He recalled visiting urgent care after experiencing repeated vomiting, where medical staff informed him that his blood pressure readings were dangerously high.
He was immediately advised to go to the emergency department, where further tests eventually confirmed that his kidneys had failed.
Despite the seriousness of the diagnosis, he ended the video on a hopeful note. He shared that he was coping with the situation and remained determined to recover, expressing confidence and faith that he would overcome the illness.
Watch the video below
@frickthosekidneys Symptoms I was facing as a 26 year old before I found out I had chronic kidney disease #kidneydisease #chronicillness #dialysis #fyp ♬ original sound – Dan 26 ESRD Patient
Below are some of the reactions to his experience
@Anna commented: “My sister didn’t find out till stage 5 she got swollen and took her to hospital she had high blood pressure and diabetes also.”
@Mymy said: “I work in kidney care and occasionally I see individuals in their 20s and 30s on dialysis, definitely scares me. Keeping you in my prayers! You got this.”
@Raquel Gettys said: “I hope you get better soon. Change that diet. Cabbage greens broccoli green beans, cauliflower lots of vegetables and water fruit watermelon honeydew melon, lots of water lots of coconut water hydration.”
@Megan reacted: “I had so many symptoms for years, and never even thought anything of it, I didn’t even realise I had high BP, or the fact I’d be sick so often took no notice, I had a transplant 6 months ago, was on dialysis 3.5 years.”
