Dealing with
changes:
Before my stem cell transplant
they told us there might be some “bumps in the road” in the recovery process,
but some of them seem more like pot holes. The most recent challenge required
returning to the hospital for two weeks (pneumonia and graft vs. host disease
in the liver) and then transfer to the rehab center so insurance could cover the
expenses of infusions and physical therapy, as home care was not an option. I
have had many experiences documented in recent blog entries about life in the
rehab center. I am still here and it has been over 2 ½ months!
Last Friday I was scheduled to
travel to OHSU for blood tests and Dr. evaluations of progress and changes to
my liver. We had noticed that I-5 Bridge over the Columbia was going to be closed from 11 PM
until 7AM Sunday but thought no problem as we were not going to use that route
until about 8 AM. Imagine our surprise when it was still closed after 8AM. That
required a detour to the I-205 Bridge, and back to I-5, adding distance and
time to our schedule but we managed to make it without being too late.
The blood tests continued to show
improvement and the doctor stopped the 4 hour middle-of-the-night (3:30-8 AM) daily
infusions which allows me to sleep through the night, which is sure nice. I
still have an hour infusion just before going to bed and the Dr. said I must
continue to drink 2 liters of water a day to keep flushing the kidneys and
liver. Only problem is the number of times that requires me to pee! They scheduled
another evaluation in a couple of weeks, but I remain in the rehab center until
then. Insurance benefits run out for rehab June 17th so Drs. are
working on a plan to switch to a pill version before that happens. Of course we
are pulling for that so I can go home. Counting hospital time, it’s been over 3
months since I’ve been home, except for short visits.
I take approximately 20 meds a
day and Nancy was
glad to let rehab take over that task of keeping track and dispensing the meds.
The nurses crush the pills and mix them with applesauce or pudding to make it
easier for me to take so many at one sitting. They also check my blood sugar
and give me insulin. Nancy
works it into her schedule to visit daily and often we are able to have lunch
and dinner together as well as check out for some change of pace. We can go out
shopping or for lunch or dinner or spend some time at home. Last week we were
able to visit Brett and Cecilia at Brett’s new place. He fixed a fine dinner for
us and we enjoyed spending time with them. Their place is old, and close to the
freeway, but has a lot of charm and character, plus big old trees,
rhododendrons and other neat older homes in the neighborhood. Cecilia had to
show us the “fairy garden” she and her 6-year-old neighbor and “best friend”
have been working on. I think we mentioned that Halen is the daughter of an old
friend of his from Roseburg
days. And her grandparents, Mike and Rosemary, have been long-time friends of
ours (35 years).
The weather is getting nicer and
warmer and the flowers have been gorgeous this year. We had a couple of big
thunderstorms with tons of rain this past week. We watched one storm from
Brett’s house and waited for it to let up before we headed home. Cecilia was so
excited she was jumping up and down, but said she was excited and scared! She
will be 5 next month and she is getting so big, and smart, and lots of fun, of
course we are hoping I will be released from rehab next week
No comments:
Post a Comment