On Monday I had a consult appointment with the radiation oncologist. It was just a meeting so we could discuss what I can expect as far as radiation and when and how much, etc. Basically, my radiation will begin about 3 weeks after my last chemotherapy treatment. I'll go 2 weeks after my last chemo to meet with the radiation doctor to do the planning and set up of all my appointments with them, then a week later I'll begin the radiation.
So if the 2 rounds of chemotherapy go as planned and I don't need a third round, then it looks like I'll probably begin radiation around the first week of March. In total, I'll have 18 radiation treatments. I'll go every day (Monday through Friday, so excluding weekends) for 18 days in a row. After that point, then I'm done with all cancer treatments.
I still need your thoughts and prayers to get through the rest of these treatments. And please pray that my body responds well to the anti-cancer drugs and that this cancer gets completely wiped out! I'm hoping for remission by April so I can begin my Spring and Summer cancer-free and get on with life! It sounds weird to type that out, but in reality, April will be here before I know it!
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Sunday, January 4, 2009
A Happy, Picture-Filled Post
All this talk of cancer is really not the most fun thing to talk about... so, for a change of pace, I thought it would be nice to share some pictures of my most favorite thing on Earth: my son, Logan.
In all the craziness that's been happening lately, I completely forgot to share Logan's Santa picture. We had a heck of a time getting him to cooperate this year. Finally, we had to bribe him with a candy cane and he had to not know that Santa was there... so Santa crept up behind him for us to get this shot. And yes, this is as good as it gets for our "Santa Picture" of 2008... by the way, this photo was taken on December 20th, Logan's 2nd birthday. Ironically, his Santa picture from last year was also taken on his birthday... how's that for doubling as a birthday pic AND a Santa pic?!
These next shots are just a couple that Lee snapped of Logan and me cuddling while watching t.v. last night. I'm not wearing make-up so be warned, these are scary. But hey, it's me and my boy... It doesn't get any better than that!
Now, for something "crunchy", since, after all, I am the "crunchy mama"...
I had a sweet mama in Canada from my cloth diapering board knit these pants and hat up for Logan with yarn that I sent to her. They are 100% wool so they not only work as pants, but they are also a waterproof diaper cover for over Logan's diapers. They're called "scrappy pants" or "potluck pants" because they're made from lots of left-over yarn scraps all worked up together. It's a great way to recycle yarn that otherwise wasn't going to be used, AND the pants end up matching literally every shirt Logan owns! Kind of reminds me of a "coat of many colors" type of thing! Here's the little model showing off:
That's all folks!!
In all the craziness that's been happening lately, I completely forgot to share Logan's Santa picture. We had a heck of a time getting him to cooperate this year. Finally, we had to bribe him with a candy cane and he had to not know that Santa was there... so Santa crept up behind him for us to get this shot. And yes, this is as good as it gets for our "Santa Picture" of 2008... by the way, this photo was taken on December 20th, Logan's 2nd birthday. Ironically, his Santa picture from last year was also taken on his birthday... how's that for doubling as a birthday pic AND a Santa pic?!
These next shots are just a couple that Lee snapped of Logan and me cuddling while watching t.v. last night. I'm not wearing make-up so be warned, these are scary. But hey, it's me and my boy... It doesn't get any better than that!
Now, for something "crunchy", since, after all, I am the "crunchy mama"...
I had a sweet mama in Canada from my cloth diapering board knit these pants and hat up for Logan with yarn that I sent to her. They are 100% wool so they not only work as pants, but they are also a waterproof diaper cover for over Logan's diapers. They're called "scrappy pants" or "potluck pants" because they're made from lots of left-over yarn scraps all worked up together. It's a great way to recycle yarn that otherwise wasn't going to be used, AND the pants end up matching literally every shirt Logan owns! Kind of reminds me of a "coat of many colors" type of thing! Here's the little model showing off:
That's all folks!!
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Thank You SO Much, Valerie & Randy!
I've been feeling a little down the past few days... not down as in depressed, but just kind of ill. I have had either a headache, body ache, sore mouth, or fatigue at some point over the last couple of days. I feel pretty good today though and was able to eat a big scrambled egg, bacon, and toast breakfast.
When my mail came today, though, any gloom and doom left me as soon as I saw the huge package that came for me from Valerie DeRuiter. (A little background for those who don't know her, Val is a total sweetheart, and she's also the wife of my mother's cousin, Randy. They live in Texas. Val is an amazingly talented quilter, as you're about to see!)
Here's a picture of Val and her beautiful family:
It's always fun to receive surprise packages, and this one was no exception. After I anxiously and carefully had Lee cut the tape apart on the box, I reached in to find the most beautiful, thoughtful gift I could have received -- A gorgeous, hand-made by Val, quilt... made JUST FOR ME! Tears filled my eyes as I read the note which accompanied it.
Valerie -- thank you SO very much. I absolutely LOVE my quilt and I am speechless that you thought so much to send it to me. I will be sure to take it with me to my chemotherapy treatments... and I can guarantee you it's my new "lovey" for when I'm watching television in my recliner!
It's GORGEOUS -- I just LOVE the colors and patterns! Thank you, Valerie and Randy, too!!
When my mail came today, though, any gloom and doom left me as soon as I saw the huge package that came for me from Valerie DeRuiter. (A little background for those who don't know her, Val is a total sweetheart, and she's also the wife of my mother's cousin, Randy. They live in Texas. Val is an amazingly talented quilter, as you're about to see!)
Here's a picture of Val and her beautiful family:
It's always fun to receive surprise packages, and this one was no exception. After I anxiously and carefully had Lee cut the tape apart on the box, I reached in to find the most beautiful, thoughtful gift I could have received -- A gorgeous, hand-made by Val, quilt... made JUST FOR ME! Tears filled my eyes as I read the note which accompanied it.
Valerie -- thank you SO very much. I absolutely LOVE my quilt and I am speechless that you thought so much to send it to me. I will be sure to take it with me to my chemotherapy treatments... and I can guarantee you it's my new "lovey" for when I'm watching television in my recliner!
It's GORGEOUS -- I just LOVE the colors and patterns! Thank you, Valerie and Randy, too!!
Thursday, January 1, 2009
1 Chemo Treatment Down, 3 More To Go!
I know I've been slacking in updates on the blog. For that, I apologize. It's been rather hectic around here with the Christmas holidays, family in town, and starting chemotherapy and not feeling "up" to posting. But all is well, and here I am, back with the latest news!
BIG NEWS FIRST! Logan celebrated his 2nd birthday on December 20th! Happy Birthday, Logan! Mama's little boy is getting so big! Here he is with his birthday cake, and HERE is a link to his birthday pictures!
Let me just say, I had an absolutely fantastic Christmas holiday. I got to see my parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, tons of cousins, and even my brother and his girlfriend came up to see us for a few days. It was so wonderful to have all of us together, just like old times when we were kids. Logan had a BLAST opening gifts. And before you go worrying about him, please know he's among the most spoiled of 2-year-olds you'll ever meet. The number of toys that child received is out of this world. He's happy as a pig in... mud!
HERE is a link to all of our Christmas Eve and Christmas Day pictures!
I am so glad I was able to begin my chemo after Christmas because it really wore me out. I went on Monday, the 29th, for treatment #1. They checked my blood cell counts first, to watch their progress along the way. Then a bit later they brought me back to the treatment room to get me all hooked up. This will sound really odd to say, but I actually had "fun" at chemo. I met so many other people going through cancer and heard their stories. We all shared our trials and treatments and things to expect during the process. It was nice to be in a room with other people who knew what it feels like to be going through all of this. Yes, sitting in a chair for 4 hours hooked up to an IV drip isn't the most fun thing in the world, but why not make the best of it? I met a sweet lady named Debbie who's fighting mouth cancer and her daughter-in-law, Jane. They were sitting right next to me. Lee and I chatted with them the entire 4 hours or so that we were there and even played a card game of Rummy. I have to say, too, my husband is such a trouper. I don't know many men who'd sit patiently for so long chatting with a bunch of women about everything from hair loss to mouth sores to wigs, etc. You name it, and Lee was right there chiming in. He's such a wonderful husband and I don't give him enough credit. I am so truly blessed to have his support.
The four hour treatment didn't seem to take as long as it should have felt like. Talking and keeping busy with the other patients made the time pass and not seem like such a chore. After that, I went upstairs to the Cancer Resource Center at Memorial Hospital. They have such a lovely area set up for patients going through cancer. There are support groups, free massages, TONS of pamphlets and books you can check out, nurses to answer any questions while you go through side effects of chemo. They even give out free hats and wigs. It is so nice, and I hope to attend a lymphoma support group soon and meet others experiencing what I'm going through.
That night, after getting home from my chemo treatment, I was literally the most exhausted I've ever been. I had a baby 2 years ago and never felt as tired after giving birth as I did after this chemo treatment. I was soooo tired. I'm sure all the chemo drugs were a huge part of my fatigue, but alllll the talking I did there surely didn't help. All in all, it was a jam-packed, totally busy day. I was in bed for the night at 7:30!!!
Tuesday I had to go back down to the oncologist's office for a "growth shot" as they call it... basically, it's a shot to stimulate my bone marrow to produce more white blood cells since the chemotherapy can make the blood cell counts drop too low. They want to be sure I won't be way too overprone to infections. After that, Mom and John and I went shopping to a local beauty supply store where I bought some wig liners and got a great deal on 2 cute wigs, too. Then we went out to eat. I still have my appetite, so that's good!
I have been SO extremely lucky. My body responded well to the first chemo treatment thus far. I got no horrible side effects, no major nausea, just some light-headedness. I attribute that part to the fact that I have some of the best anti-nausea meds on the market. Thank the Lord for good medicines. The worst part has been just how tired it's made me. Today, now 3 days after the treatment, I do have a bit of a sore mouth which is a normal side effect of one of the drugs. Eating popsicles, sherbet, drinking lots of water and taking cough drops seems to help that. For all those wondering or unfamiliar with chemo, YES, I still do have my hair... BUT only for about 2 weeks. My hair will probably all fall out within the next week and a half. I have a few cute hats, a pretty scarf, and a couple of wigs already in place for when I do, inevitably, lose my hair. I'm sure that part is going to be pretty emotional for me, but at least I feel prepared with many options for head gear. I'll do another post sometime soon modeling my wigs and hats! :)
Now that the holidays have passed, I'll try to be better about posting here about how I'm feeling and doing. Thank you all so much for the well-wishes, prayers, thoughts, phone calls, and cards. I love you all so much and realize how much I am loved and I cannot thank you all enough for the support you've given to me when I need it so much!
HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE! Here's wishing you all a happy, healthy, and better year in 2009!
* Edited to add: OK, after much consideration, I've decided these photos are just too funny NOT to share, so without further ado, here are some of me in 2 of my wigs... and my mom wearing one of mine and Lee being supportive wearing a wig of my Mom's, too! Isn't he cute? :)
Me in the first one, both front and back view:
Mom modeling my other, longer wig:
Me, in the same wig Mom had on, pulled half back with a clip:
My cute husband, being supportive as always!
BIG NEWS FIRST! Logan celebrated his 2nd birthday on December 20th! Happy Birthday, Logan! Mama's little boy is getting so big! Here he is with his birthday cake, and HERE is a link to his birthday pictures!
Let me just say, I had an absolutely fantastic Christmas holiday. I got to see my parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, tons of cousins, and even my brother and his girlfriend came up to see us for a few days. It was so wonderful to have all of us together, just like old times when we were kids. Logan had a BLAST opening gifts. And before you go worrying about him, please know he's among the most spoiled of 2-year-olds you'll ever meet. The number of toys that child received is out of this world. He's happy as a pig in... mud!
HERE is a link to all of our Christmas Eve and Christmas Day pictures!
I am so glad I was able to begin my chemo after Christmas because it really wore me out. I went on Monday, the 29th, for treatment #1. They checked my blood cell counts first, to watch their progress along the way. Then a bit later they brought me back to the treatment room to get me all hooked up. This will sound really odd to say, but I actually had "fun" at chemo. I met so many other people going through cancer and heard their stories. We all shared our trials and treatments and things to expect during the process. It was nice to be in a room with other people who knew what it feels like to be going through all of this. Yes, sitting in a chair for 4 hours hooked up to an IV drip isn't the most fun thing in the world, but why not make the best of it? I met a sweet lady named Debbie who's fighting mouth cancer and her daughter-in-law, Jane. They were sitting right next to me. Lee and I chatted with them the entire 4 hours or so that we were there and even played a card game of Rummy. I have to say, too, my husband is such a trouper. I don't know many men who'd sit patiently for so long chatting with a bunch of women about everything from hair loss to mouth sores to wigs, etc. You name it, and Lee was right there chiming in. He's such a wonderful husband and I don't give him enough credit. I am so truly blessed to have his support.
The four hour treatment didn't seem to take as long as it should have felt like. Talking and keeping busy with the other patients made the time pass and not seem like such a chore. After that, I went upstairs to the Cancer Resource Center at Memorial Hospital. They have such a lovely area set up for patients going through cancer. There are support groups, free massages, TONS of pamphlets and books you can check out, nurses to answer any questions while you go through side effects of chemo. They even give out free hats and wigs. It is so nice, and I hope to attend a lymphoma support group soon and meet others experiencing what I'm going through.
That night, after getting home from my chemo treatment, I was literally the most exhausted I've ever been. I had a baby 2 years ago and never felt as tired after giving birth as I did after this chemo treatment. I was soooo tired. I'm sure all the chemo drugs were a huge part of my fatigue, but alllll the talking I did there surely didn't help. All in all, it was a jam-packed, totally busy day. I was in bed for the night at 7:30!!!
Tuesday I had to go back down to the oncologist's office for a "growth shot" as they call it... basically, it's a shot to stimulate my bone marrow to produce more white blood cells since the chemotherapy can make the blood cell counts drop too low. They want to be sure I won't be way too overprone to infections. After that, Mom and John and I went shopping to a local beauty supply store where I bought some wig liners and got a great deal on 2 cute wigs, too. Then we went out to eat. I still have my appetite, so that's good!
I have been SO extremely lucky. My body responded well to the first chemo treatment thus far. I got no horrible side effects, no major nausea, just some light-headedness. I attribute that part to the fact that I have some of the best anti-nausea meds on the market. Thank the Lord for good medicines. The worst part has been just how tired it's made me. Today, now 3 days after the treatment, I do have a bit of a sore mouth which is a normal side effect of one of the drugs. Eating popsicles, sherbet, drinking lots of water and taking cough drops seems to help that. For all those wondering or unfamiliar with chemo, YES, I still do have my hair... BUT only for about 2 weeks. My hair will probably all fall out within the next week and a half. I have a few cute hats, a pretty scarf, and a couple of wigs already in place for when I do, inevitably, lose my hair. I'm sure that part is going to be pretty emotional for me, but at least I feel prepared with many options for head gear. I'll do another post sometime soon modeling my wigs and hats! :)
Now that the holidays have passed, I'll try to be better about posting here about how I'm feeling and doing. Thank you all so much for the well-wishes, prayers, thoughts, phone calls, and cards. I love you all so much and realize how much I am loved and I cannot thank you all enough for the support you've given to me when I need it so much!
HAPPY NEW YEAR, EVERYONE! Here's wishing you all a happy, healthy, and better year in 2009!
* Edited to add: OK, after much consideration, I've decided these photos are just too funny NOT to share, so without further ado, here are some of me in 2 of my wigs... and my mom wearing one of mine and Lee being supportive wearing a wig of my Mom's, too! Isn't he cute? :)
Me in the first one, both front and back view:
Mom modeling my other, longer wig:
Me, in the same wig Mom had on, pulled half back with a clip:
My cute husband, being supportive as always!
Monday, December 22, 2008
GREAT NEWS!!
I went for my oncology appointment this afternoon... Dr. Voelzke walked in the room and said, "I have an early Christmas present for you!" and I said, "I take it that means you have some really good news for us?"
The PET scan came back with nothing more than the CT scan from a couple weeks ago showed... the lymphoma is only in the nodes on both sides of my neck. And... my bone marrow biopsy came back clean! He said I am only considered to have Stage 1A cancer...basically the lowest stage you can have. It was caught super early! Praise the Lord!
I'll still undergo chemotherapy, just not as much as we were originally thinking... so that is GREAT news. I will only do 2 rounds of chemo and then have some radiation when finished with the chemo. A "round" of chemo is basically 28 days (1 month) -- so I'll have 2 months of chemo where I go every 2 weeks. In basic terms, this means I'll have 4 actual times of going for chemotherapy treatment. He said each treatment lasts approximately 4 hours. My first chemo treatment will be next Monday, December 29th.
He's already prescribed the BEST anti-nausea meds on the market... he said they are one of the newest approved, and best... apparently they must be super because the cost of them sure is. If you don't have insurance, the retail cost is about $400 for THREE pills. That's insane. I have GOOD insurance... my copay -- you won't believe it: $9.00!
Oh, another excellent thing: Because I'll only undergo 2 (possibly 3 at most) rounds of chemo, this means my chances of remaining capable of having more children are really good and my eggs shouldn't be affected... The doc told me that I could possibly try to have another baby as early as 3 months after going into remission. I'm so excited to hear this since I was worried what the chemo would do to my eggs and if we'd be able to have another baby someday!
Praise God for this wonderful news and for excellent health insurance. I am so blessed. Even more than the insurance, I am blessed to have so many supporters praying for me and sending me tons of good vibes. Thank you all!!!
The PET scan came back with nothing more than the CT scan from a couple weeks ago showed... the lymphoma is only in the nodes on both sides of my neck. And... my bone marrow biopsy came back clean! He said I am only considered to have Stage 1A cancer...basically the lowest stage you can have. It was caught super early! Praise the Lord!
I'll still undergo chemotherapy, just not as much as we were originally thinking... so that is GREAT news. I will only do 2 rounds of chemo and then have some radiation when finished with the chemo. A "round" of chemo is basically 28 days (1 month) -- so I'll have 2 months of chemo where I go every 2 weeks. In basic terms, this means I'll have 4 actual times of going for chemotherapy treatment. He said each treatment lasts approximately 4 hours. My first chemo treatment will be next Monday, December 29th.
He's already prescribed the BEST anti-nausea meds on the market... he said they are one of the newest approved, and best... apparently they must be super because the cost of them sure is. If you don't have insurance, the retail cost is about $400 for THREE pills. That's insane. I have GOOD insurance... my copay -- you won't believe it: $9.00!
Oh, another excellent thing: Because I'll only undergo 2 (possibly 3 at most) rounds of chemo, this means my chances of remaining capable of having more children are really good and my eggs shouldn't be affected... The doc told me that I could possibly try to have another baby as early as 3 months after going into remission. I'm so excited to hear this since I was worried what the chemo would do to my eggs and if we'd be able to have another baby someday!
Praise God for this wonderful news and for excellent health insurance. I am so blessed. Even more than the insurance, I am blessed to have so many supporters praying for me and sending me tons of good vibes. Thank you all!!!
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Surgery, Scans, Tests, Biopsy... Ugh... Thankful this week is over!
This week has been busy, busy, busy for me... but the good news is, I made it through and can enjoy the next few days doctor-appointment-free! I don't go for another appointment until I meet on Monday with my oncologist, Dr. Voelzke, again.
Tuesday afternoon I went to Hutcheson and had the surgery for my port-o-cath. It went smoothly, as expected. My aunt Claudia and cousin Ryan took me there since Lee had something he had to be at for work early in the afternoon and then Lee showed up a bit later to be with me and then to drive me home. I got to the hospital at 1:30 and they did an EKG and started my IV and all that pretty early... most of the time there I spent just waiting in the day surgery room watching t.v. and waiting for them to take me to surgery.
Me sportin' my snazzy hair net before the surgery
Tuesday afternoon I went to Hutcheson and had the surgery for my port-o-cath. It went smoothly, as expected. My aunt Claudia and cousin Ryan took me there since Lee had something he had to be at for work early in the afternoon and then Lee showed up a bit later to be with me and then to drive me home. I got to the hospital at 1:30 and they did an EKG and started my IV and all that pretty early... most of the time there I spent just waiting in the day surgery room watching t.v. and waiting for them to take me to surgery.
Me sportin' my snazzy hair net before the surgery
My IV... eeew
Me & Claudia
After the surgery, I was in recovery for about an hour waking up... then they put me in a hospital room for an hour or so to monitor me and let me eat some dinner finally. I was soooo hungry as I hadn't eaten since midnight the night before. It was brutal not eating for so long! Lee and I filled my pain meds Rx on the way home and I went home and went to bed pretty early.
Wednesday morning we had to get up super early and had to be at Memorial Hospital at 6:45 for registration and my first test, a PET scan at 7:00. Before the PET scan, they started an IV and gave me the glucose stuff in the IV. I had to lie down for an hour before they could do the scan and let the stuff get absorbed into my body so the images would turn out correctly. After falling asleep there for a while then lying awake waiting for them to come and get me, it was time for the scan. It was only about 20 minutes, but it was kind of tough. The PET scan machine had a larger "tunnel" than the one I had gone in for the CT scan a week or so ago... so I started feeling a little claustrophobic. I just kept my eyes closed and kept praying that I wouldn't have a major panic attack and kept thinking happy thoughts of Logan. It seemed to help and before I knew it, then it was over.
After that, they wheeled me up to the respiratory testing area for a Pulmonary Function Test -- basically, I had to breathe in and out of a machine and they check your lung function. It's a pre-test for screening your lungs before beginning chemo.
Then I got wheeled to the Pathology department for the worst part of the day... and probably the most horrible thing I've endured so far since learning I had cancer: the bone marrow biopsy. After more blood work (yay, so much fun... as if I haven't been poked with enough needles and given enough blood for lab tests thus far) I had to wait for an hour in the waiting area. Once they finally called me back, they let Lee be in the room for the beginninig part of the procedure, then for the "nasty" part they made him leave. I had to lie on my stomach and the doctor put lidocaine (numbing stuff) on the area to be tested... and that hurt just a pinch, but nothing bad... then he put another shot of lidocaine deeper to the membrane just over the bone and that hurt kind of bad since it was much deeper in the tissue. The next parts really didn't take very long, but hurt like hell. I was fairly numb, but the pain from the pressure and pulling was intense. I thought I was going to cry, but I toughed it out and didn't cry, just groaned a little bit. I could feel the suction of the pulling of bone marrow out... it felt creepy and icky. Then he had to get a small sample of bone so he kind of twisted around for a bit getting some bone particles... yeah, it was nasty... thank God it was over pretty fast... it was sore as heck afterward and is still pretty sore. I spent the rest of the day in a wheelchair at the hospital since it hurt so badly to walk.
Lee and I hit up the cafeteria and had some lunch... I was so hungry at this point since, again, I hadn't eaten since midnight the night before. I chowed down some pizza and a sub sandwich.
My echocardiogram wasn't scheduled until 3:00 but at 1:00 we headed to that department anyhow since a nurse at another area had told us that we could probably get in there earlier. They let me in for the echocardiogram at about 1:30 and it wasn't bad at all. It was just a basic ultrasound of the heart. After that, we finally got to leave.
I pretty much went to sleep as soon as we got home. I was exhausted and took a 4 1/2 hour nap from 3:30 til 8:00. I got up and ate some dinner and watched a movie with Lee until 2 a.m. even though I have no idea how I stayed awake that long to watch it. I kept feeling like I was going to doze off since I'd taken a pain pill... man, I slept so great once my head hit the pillow.
I've been pretty sore today still where I had the port-o-cath put in... my chest is very sore still... and my backside where I had the bone marrow biopsy is sore too. I feel like an elderly person the way I'm walking around all crippled-like. At least now the tests and scans and things are behind me... my staging is all done. Now I just meet with Dr. Voelzke on Monday to see when I start chemo and see how long my treatment will be.
Thank you for all of the cards you've sent to me and for the sweet words and much-needed prayers. You all are the best friends and family a girl could ask for!
Monday, December 15, 2008
Met with the surgeon today...
I met with Dr. Heithold today for a pre-surgical consult. He's the general surgeon that will be doing my surgery to insert the port catheter IV thingy (like my technical name for it!?)
He went over the procedure and even brought in one of the things to show Lee and I what it looks like. It will be completely under the skin, on my left side of my upper chest, right under my collarbone. In the center there's this "gel-like" feeling pad with little nobby things so when I go for chemo the nurses will be able to find it very easily and know where to insert the needle.
The doctor was going out of town later this week and my oncologist wanted this done before I meet with him on Monday... so I have surgery scheduled for tomorrow afternoon at Hutcheson to get this thing put in place. I can't eat or drink anything after midnight tonight and the surgery won't be until 3:00 or so tomorrow afternoon. I'm going to be starving by tomorrow night! Luckily I ate a huge dinner fairly late this evening so I hopefully won't be ready to chew my own arm off tomorrow morning! I have to have a ride home from the hospital, obviously, since I'll be put under with a light anasthesia... so I'm sure Lee will have a good ole time messing with me and my drugged-up, groggy self tomorrow.
I'll keep you all posted on how it goes and I'll get a picture of it in my chest to show off what it looks like. It's the hottest accessory to have, and, I guarantee, you'll all want to be sporting one of your own after you see mine!!
As always, thanks so much for all the prayers, cards, comments, e-mails, phone calls, etc. It means so much to know I have so many friends rooting for me during this difficult time. I love you all.
He went over the procedure and even brought in one of the things to show Lee and I what it looks like. It will be completely under the skin, on my left side of my upper chest, right under my collarbone. In the center there's this "gel-like" feeling pad with little nobby things so when I go for chemo the nurses will be able to find it very easily and know where to insert the needle.
The doctor was going out of town later this week and my oncologist wanted this done before I meet with him on Monday... so I have surgery scheduled for tomorrow afternoon at Hutcheson to get this thing put in place. I can't eat or drink anything after midnight tonight and the surgery won't be until 3:00 or so tomorrow afternoon. I'm going to be starving by tomorrow night! Luckily I ate a huge dinner fairly late this evening so I hopefully won't be ready to chew my own arm off tomorrow morning! I have to have a ride home from the hospital, obviously, since I'll be put under with a light anasthesia... so I'm sure Lee will have a good ole time messing with me and my drugged-up, groggy self tomorrow.
I'll keep you all posted on how it goes and I'll get a picture of it in my chest to show off what it looks like. It's the hottest accessory to have, and, I guarantee, you'll all want to be sporting one of your own after you see mine!!
As always, thanks so much for all the prayers, cards, comments, e-mails, phone calls, etc. It means so much to know I have so many friends rooting for me during this difficult time. I love you all.
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