Wednesday July 27 -
So I got to the point where I needed to go to my apartment and grab some clothes and toiletries that I didn't have before it gets all packed up and put in storage. I also decided to do a little laundry. I got up the 3 flights of stairs and had to lay down for several minutes. Aghhhh. I did a little laundry. Took a nap. Grabbed some clothes and shoes. Took a nap. Gathered toiletries. Took a nap. Called Ken to come pick me up. Took a nap. Love feeling tired. It's my favorite!
The day was pretty uneventful. Got a little more energy towards the end of the night and got packed up to go to the Hope Lodge with Heather in the morning. Why does it feel like I am taking everything but the kitchen sink! :-)
Thursday July 28 -
I got up and ate my breakfast and took my plethora of drugs and got going with getting ready for the day. I actually have to get ready today. What the heck. I also finish up getting everything I needed. By the time I was done my central line was on fire. It still is a little painful and bleeding. Ow!
I took some good stuff and laid down while I waited for Heather to pick me up.
Heather has the first round as caregiver for me at the Hope Lodge. In my mind I like to think of them as Amysitters. We got to SLC in good time and we were able to get checked right at the beginning of check ins. So we were able to see our room, get food in our assigned area, and then get some lunch before heading of to the hospital.
Ladies and Gentlemen let me tell you that the Hope Lodge is the coolest place ever. It only opened in October and before that receiving care in SLC was a huge financial strain for cancer patients living outside of the SLC Valley. Over 800 patients have benefited from the serves since it opened. Thousands of dollars have already been saved by the generous donations that have been given to operate this facility FREE to it's guests. Seriously I want to cry. It is so homey. So nice and so much appreciated. We just have to bring our own food and clean up after ourselves! Wowza!
Heather and I headed to my Dr's appointment. I get my central lines cleaned! Yay. Get blood drawn. Still...yay... I have a central line and there are no needles! Then I head back to wait in a room for the PA and the Dr to visit.
I get a visit from Barb and a student from the U. She sees how I've been doing since I left and notice my finger. Yes I chewed on a hangnail before I left the hospital on Sunday and it is infected. I. AM. GOING. TO. DIE. FROM. A. HANGNAIL. Seriously though it is not good. That is what cancer does to ya. I'm at my weakest right now and the hangnail is serious. It is supper comical though. So I have to go on antibiotics for my hangnail. Bwahhhaaaa!
Doctor comes in later and brings the results from my labs and all is going well. I am not in need of transfusions at this point. She feels around my node sites and THEY ARE ALREADY SHRINKING!!!! YAY! Good signs!
All is well in Amyland we just have to get this hangnail under control! LOL!
After the appointment we get the rest of our stuff up to the room and then decide we need a few more things from the store now that we know what the facilities are like. We take a trip to Harmon's in downtown SLC. What an interesting adventure. Big city life is really different! There is no parking lot, just a parking garage. It was not easy to find. Now we know. Once we were parked it was hard to know how to get to the store. Oh...you have to take an elevator up to the grocery store. So cool. It was like going to Ikea up to the shopping area with a cart. The elevators are big enough to walk in with a cart and they open from both the front and back for those coming and those going. I am sure it really isn't all that bizarre but I thought it was an interesting big city experience.
We got back and unpacked the food and then went to orientation. Then we ATE orientation was at 7 and it was time to eat. We had a lovely taco salad. Thank you Lauren for posting the cheese sauce fountain on face book. That taco looked good and this was close enough!
Now Heather and I are chillin' in the room. It may be time to head down for ICE CREAM! Ice Cream makes everything better!
Thursday, July 28, 2016
Tuesday, July 26, 2016
Blood work and a Hair Cut
Tuesday July 26 -
I went in for blood work at Logan Regional this morning. It took just a minute. While I was having that done Cindy got me set up with a hair appointment. It has been really hard taking care of my hair while I have been in the hospital. My central line makes it really hard to move my right arm up and down so it is painful to wash that side of my hair. It is always in the way and I don't feel like doing it at all, so I usually look pretty special.
So off I go to salon. I wear my mask so I get some pretty strange looks from people. They were prepped that I was cutting it because I am having chemo and I need it shorter so I don't have to deal with long strands of hair falling off my head. So I show the gal the picture I found on pinterest.
Does it look the same....not really but it will do!
My hair is really thick. So things just never look the same! I have to give it the benefit of the fact that I haven't washed and styled it myself. But it is still something funny to look at. I am think a flower in my hair every day will make it bearable! LOL! I am just going to have to say this is not my style. I will grow it back out when all is said and done. But isn't it fun to try new hair cuts when you know you will just be bald in a few weeks! Hallie suggested we dye it hot pink.
I went in for blood work at Logan Regional this morning. It took just a minute. While I was having that done Cindy got me set up with a hair appointment. It has been really hard taking care of my hair while I have been in the hospital. My central line makes it really hard to move my right arm up and down so it is painful to wash that side of my hair. It is always in the way and I don't feel like doing it at all, so I usually look pretty special.
So off I go to salon. I wear my mask so I get some pretty strange looks from people. They were prepped that I was cutting it because I am having chemo and I need it shorter so I don't have to deal with long strands of hair falling off my head. So I show the gal the picture I found on pinterest.
Does it look the same....not really but it will do!
My hair is really thick. So things just never look the same! I have to give it the benefit of the fact that I haven't washed and styled it myself. But it is still something funny to look at. I am think a flower in my hair every day will make it bearable! LOL! I am just going to have to say this is not my style. I will grow it back out when all is said and done. But isn't it fun to try new hair cuts when you know you will just be bald in a few weeks! Hallie suggested we dye it hot pink.
Blood work came back good I am still stable. Just have to wait to go back to SLC on Thursday. I am nursing a cold. It started the day I went in to my oncology appointment. We are at full force now. What are the odds. Is chemo kicking my butt....oh no! Just my cold!
Monday, July 25, 2016
A Non Drugged Version of July 22 and 23 and Discharge Day and HOME!
Apparently I already did post for these days while I was in my delirium, but I just spent time writing it. So I will post it anyways. Sometime it is fun to see a non drugged perspective. I feel my posts are better when I can be witty!
Friday July 22 -
I got a visit from one of my other Dr's today. He is a really cool guy and he explained to me the drug they would be giving today. They did not give it to me yesterday because most people have some sort of reaction to it. So it is given a day after the others so it can be monitored.
It is the last drug in this round of chemo. I will first get pumped full of tylenol and benadryl to offset some of those reactions. It can cause a rash, itching and in my case something else!
I have visitors today. Dee McKoy, Debbie Bingham and Karen Budge from the ward come up to visit. They have a cute bag full of goods from the experts. Candy for keeping the nasty metal taste out of my mouth, a cute pillow case to fit the hospital size pillow, CHOCOLATE, the cutest eye mask to darken the blink light filled room {fake eyelashes and all}, note books and magazines. All of this was put in such a cute bag that Karen had made. I Heart Bags! Way to hook a girl up! We had a good chat and then round two came.
Eric and Heather have brought Sadie and Abby to visit. I love visitors! They have come down for Friday and Saturday to celebrate my Birthday. The nurse holds off the drugs until they leave so that I am not dopey while they are there. The nursing staff has been amazing! After a bit of chit chat and hanging out the girls get restless so they leave. They are going to go stay at Jessica's for the night and will be back tomorrow.
It's go time. I get the Tylenol and Benadryl in me and they let it activate. Then the drip starts off slow to allow the body to process it. Then they will ramp it up a few times to get it going quicker. The tech does frequent vital checks during this process.
I am doing fine with the super slow drip. So lets get the party started....they ramp it up a bit. I get vitals taken and the tech and nurse leave and Sam say's he will be back in 15 minutes for more vitals. The door shuts and my teeth start chattering and then my arms start seizing up. I quickly hit the nurse aid button and tell them that I am shaking. They come rushing back in. The nurse says, "well your body doesn't like this stuff does it! You poor dear let's stop the drip and stabilize you." My entire body is spasming. I mean just every muscle group had their own little dance going on. Dance off! My lower jaw and teeth were going nuts. Holy cow it hurt. Oh it was so painful afterwards. It felt like I just hit the gym after not being there in forever. That was the worst dance off ever!
So they re-administer the benadryl and I will only get the slow drip. It would take well into the next morning to get that in.
Saturday July 23 -
I get all the mess in me and they take my blood to assess it. Interestingly enough my platelet count dropped immediately. Usually it takes a few days. So I will need to have a blood transfusion and I will get two quarts of blood. Kidneys are still kickin' it. So is my heart. Things are good. My color and energy comes back after the transfusion.
I meet with Barb another Dr. on the team and she is getting me prepped for what the next 2 weeks may be like. She and Dr G are concerned about me going to Logan because of the holiday weekend and whether or not Logan Regional will be able to handle my needs. Later they decide that I can go home to Logan on Sunday and then get blood work at Logan Regional on Tues and any transfusions that may be needed. Then I will be doing out patient stuff back at LDS Hospital. I will be living at Hope Lodge which is a place for patients to stay with a caregiver while they are going through treatment. What a God send!
Family is arriving today. Eric, Heather, Abby and Sadie arrive with the biggest Happy 40th Birthday balloon ever and gifts! Yay! Happy Birthday to me! They decorate my IV pole and hang some things here and there. I get some Birthday buttons that the staff thought were hilarious. My family has chipped in to fill a bag full of 40 gifts. So much fun to open! Also I get the best Birthday video from lots of family members wishing and singing me happy birthday! So Awesome! Devin assures me the making of video will be released soon and will be epic as well.
Cindy, Ken, Natalie and Bryan come next. They brought me some gourmet cookies from a cute shop in SLC and some fresh clothes! Barbara and Kristi Rands come for a visit too. Good times to be had! Right about the time everyone was leaving I was getting my second pint.
All the partying wiped me out, but it was so worth it! No fun to be in the hospital during my Birthday, but everyone made it fun!
Sunday July 24 - Discharge Day!
Barb was setting up my meds and the pharmasist came in with my meds yesterday when Natalie and Cindy were still there so they got the low down on my crazy amount of meds I need to take to deal with everything.
So I was set to get ready to go home to LOGAN today. Like I said in another post it wasn't the best plan to send me to Logan. But they finally figured it would be okay. I was finally off any IV's and it was amazing finally being free of George {My name for the IV stand} I was able to shower and go to the bathroom with out his presence. Devin and Beth are on there way to come get me and bring me to Logan. So I have until about noon to get ready. My favorite Nurse starts getting the last drugs in me and gets my discharge papers ready. I also get another follow up visit from Barb to make sure I understand what is happening over the next few days.
Devin and Beth arrive and then I get discharged and then I get a shot as an outpatient. Red tape and hoops. Insurance won't pay for it as inpatient, but they will outpatient. Whatev's It's time to go home!
Devin and Beth rest a minute at the Harper's. They will take my car up to Debbie who will be my first round of caregiver at the Hope House. I can't be there with out some one to be my care giver.
So far so good. I can't imaging doing this with out my host of angels.
Monday July 25 - Home for the first time. No George. No vitals being taken all the time. I have kids running around and happy home noises. Life is good. I try to work a little and run into password issues that I will get sorted out. I took all my drugs and lost my chance to work. I will get that going when I am in a better drug state.
Ryan Raguskus hooked me up with a co-worker that is taking her last rounds of chemo. He gave her my number and I got to chat with her this afternoon. She thought at the end of her ordeal that one of the best things she can do to help people out, is just be there as a person who's been through it, to vent to and ask questions. That would be her cause. I will meet up with her when I am at the hope lodge and meet her face to face. Just added another member to my village. WooHoo!
I got a call for my Lab appointments and we will see how my blood counts are doing with the chemo. May need an infusion on Weds and we will go from there!
Friday July 22 -
I got a visit from one of my other Dr's today. He is a really cool guy and he explained to me the drug they would be giving today. They did not give it to me yesterday because most people have some sort of reaction to it. So it is given a day after the others so it can be monitored.
It is the last drug in this round of chemo. I will first get pumped full of tylenol and benadryl to offset some of those reactions. It can cause a rash, itching and in my case something else!
I have visitors today. Dee McKoy, Debbie Bingham and Karen Budge from the ward come up to visit. They have a cute bag full of goods from the experts. Candy for keeping the nasty metal taste out of my mouth, a cute pillow case to fit the hospital size pillow, CHOCOLATE, the cutest eye mask to darken the blink light filled room {fake eyelashes and all}, note books and magazines. All of this was put in such a cute bag that Karen had made. I Heart Bags! Way to hook a girl up! We had a good chat and then round two came.
Eric and Heather have brought Sadie and Abby to visit. I love visitors! They have come down for Friday and Saturday to celebrate my Birthday. The nurse holds off the drugs until they leave so that I am not dopey while they are there. The nursing staff has been amazing! After a bit of chit chat and hanging out the girls get restless so they leave. They are going to go stay at Jessica's for the night and will be back tomorrow.
It's go time. I get the Tylenol and Benadryl in me and they let it activate. Then the drip starts off slow to allow the body to process it. Then they will ramp it up a few times to get it going quicker. The tech does frequent vital checks during this process.
I am doing fine with the super slow drip. So lets get the party started....they ramp it up a bit. I get vitals taken and the tech and nurse leave and Sam say's he will be back in 15 minutes for more vitals. The door shuts and my teeth start chattering and then my arms start seizing up. I quickly hit the nurse aid button and tell them that I am shaking. They come rushing back in. The nurse says, "well your body doesn't like this stuff does it! You poor dear let's stop the drip and stabilize you." My entire body is spasming. I mean just every muscle group had their own little dance going on. Dance off! My lower jaw and teeth were going nuts. Holy cow it hurt. Oh it was so painful afterwards. It felt like I just hit the gym after not being there in forever. That was the worst dance off ever!
So they re-administer the benadryl and I will only get the slow drip. It would take well into the next morning to get that in.
Saturday July 23 -
I get all the mess in me and they take my blood to assess it. Interestingly enough my platelet count dropped immediately. Usually it takes a few days. So I will need to have a blood transfusion and I will get two quarts of blood. Kidneys are still kickin' it. So is my heart. Things are good. My color and energy comes back after the transfusion.
I meet with Barb another Dr. on the team and she is getting me prepped for what the next 2 weeks may be like. She and Dr G are concerned about me going to Logan because of the holiday weekend and whether or not Logan Regional will be able to handle my needs. Later they decide that I can go home to Logan on Sunday and then get blood work at Logan Regional on Tues and any transfusions that may be needed. Then I will be doing out patient stuff back at LDS Hospital. I will be living at Hope Lodge which is a place for patients to stay with a caregiver while they are going through treatment. What a God send!
Family is arriving today. Eric, Heather, Abby and Sadie arrive with the biggest Happy 40th Birthday balloon ever and gifts! Yay! Happy Birthday to me! They decorate my IV pole and hang some things here and there. I get some Birthday buttons that the staff thought were hilarious. My family has chipped in to fill a bag full of 40 gifts. So much fun to open! Also I get the best Birthday video from lots of family members wishing and singing me happy birthday! So Awesome! Devin assures me the making of video will be released soon and will be epic as well.
Cindy, Ken, Natalie and Bryan come next. They brought me some gourmet cookies from a cute shop in SLC and some fresh clothes! Barbara and Kristi Rands come for a visit too. Good times to be had! Right about the time everyone was leaving I was getting my second pint.
All the partying wiped me out, but it was so worth it! No fun to be in the hospital during my Birthday, but everyone made it fun!
Sunday July 24 - Discharge Day!
Barb was setting up my meds and the pharmasist came in with my meds yesterday when Natalie and Cindy were still there so they got the low down on my crazy amount of meds I need to take to deal with everything.
So I was set to get ready to go home to LOGAN today. Like I said in another post it wasn't the best plan to send me to Logan. But they finally figured it would be okay. I was finally off any IV's and it was amazing finally being free of George {My name for the IV stand} I was able to shower and go to the bathroom with out his presence. Devin and Beth are on there way to come get me and bring me to Logan. So I have until about noon to get ready. My favorite Nurse starts getting the last drugs in me and gets my discharge papers ready. I also get another follow up visit from Barb to make sure I understand what is happening over the next few days.
Devin and Beth arrive and then I get discharged and then I get a shot as an outpatient. Red tape and hoops. Insurance won't pay for it as inpatient, but they will outpatient. Whatev's It's time to go home!
Devin and Beth rest a minute at the Harper's. They will take my car up to Debbie who will be my first round of caregiver at the Hope House. I can't be there with out some one to be my care giver.
So far so good. I can't imaging doing this with out my host of angels.
Monday July 25 - Home for the first time. No George. No vitals being taken all the time. I have kids running around and happy home noises. Life is good. I try to work a little and run into password issues that I will get sorted out. I took all my drugs and lost my chance to work. I will get that going when I am in a better drug state.
Ryan Raguskus hooked me up with a co-worker that is taking her last rounds of chemo. He gave her my number and I got to chat with her this afternoon. She thought at the end of her ordeal that one of the best things she can do to help people out, is just be there as a person who's been through it, to vent to and ask questions. That would be her cause. I will meet up with her when I am at the hope lodge and meet her face to face. Just added another member to my village. WooHoo!
I got a call for my Lab appointments and we will see how my blood counts are doing with the chemo. May need an infusion on Weds and we will go from there!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
