News from Auburn: Thurs October 23, 2008
In the last newsletter I wrote that I had an
uneventful week. Oops ...
Health
update
As I wrote last week, I was weaned
off of steroids. Last Friday was my last dose. Unfortunately,
beginning last Friday, I began to have symptoms that reminded me of when I had
walking pneumonia back in 6th grade. On Tuesday the symptoms were so bad
that I went to my primary doctor, who promptly admitted me to the
hospital.
I was visited by three
doctors on my first morning in the hospital. Their consensus is
that
- I do not have pneumonia.
- I most likely have pneumonitis,
whose untreated symptoms are consistent with what I experienced
Friday-Tuesday.
- Pneumonitis requires weeks
to months to heal; steroids are needed in the
meantime.
Conclusion: I'm back on steroids,
and so the PFT (lung test) and the Bone Marrow Transplant procedures are on hold
for awhile.
However, I can breathe now,
so that's good. I'm still getting a CT scan on Nov 4 to track tumor size.
At least one doctor suspects that the tumor is dead because the symptoms
associated with a growing tumor haven't shown up yet. We can't verify that
with a PET scan at this time because both tumor cells and inflamed tissue cells
have higher glucose uptake; they're not distinguishable.
Right now the doctor expects to
send me home on Saturday afternoon. This afternoon I was able to walk
several laps of my hospital room. Still on oxygen, but I didn't need to
rest. This is a big improvement compared to Tuesday, when I was afraid
that I'd pass out from
coughing.
We'll wait to see what the
future holds!
The
news
My friend since first grade, Sean,
came to visit me over the weekend. We don't get to see each other nearly
as much as we'd like, but Sean's been there for us throughout our crises of this
decade - he even came to my brother's memorial service in Atlanta! I
have several other friends from home who want to visit here; my schedule has
been and continues to be so variable that it's hard for me to tell someone when
it's safe to plan to travel here! Viva and I am very grateful for the
devotion of all of our friends, new and old(er), near and
far.
Adam wrote on his blog this week
that he expects his first college "B" this semester. Kayla says that
"B's are the home-schooler's failure." Sheesh, my kids are more committed
perfectionists than I am! [I'm not convinced that Adam's right, but on the
other hand, even with B's his GPA will still be much better than mine
was!]
Kayla sent me this text message:
I'm doing some research. There's a new pizza place downtown that has a
thick crust. I'll report back once I get a quality rating on
it. Those of you who have tasted Papa Dell's with me will
understand the importance of this investigation. I'll let you know what we
find out.
The
humor
A couple of conversations I had
this week made me laugh, especially taken in
tandem.
Which medical procedure
should I pursue?
Doctor a
couple of patients I've treated had a similar experience to yours. In fact
they weren't able to get a bone marrow transplant and were told they didn't have
much time left. That was 10 years ago and I still see
them.
Me Well, if those
guys can do it, then there's hope for me,
right?
Doctor They weren't guys,
they were women.
Me Hey,
that means that I'm going for the wrong procedure! I don't need a bone
marrow transplant, I need a sex
change!
Later in the
day:
Viva (After I told
her this story) When men get a sex change, to they get common sense
too?
Ouch.
Are
you sure?
I've noted in the past that I
often have odd conversations with Viva, her friends, and other women I meet.
The conversations have the
pattern:
Woman (asks
question about something I may want or
prefer)
Me (I give an honest
answer to question)
Woman (is
apparently unsatisfied with my answer; says some thing like "are you sure?" or
offers other choices)
If my opinion doesn't
matter, then why do they
ask?
Apparently these strange
conversations get amplified when dealing with nurses. Here are three
examples:
At the oncologist's office
in Auburn I was wheeled just outside the clinic entrance where
Viva was going to come to meet
me.
Nurse Is it too hot out here?
I can wheel you inside until she comes
back.
Me I'm just fine. It
feels good here.
Nurse Are you
sure?
Me I only answer each
question
once.
---
At
the hospital admitting area One of Viva's co-workers came out and
thought that I was cold beneath a blanket Viva had brought to
me.
Nurse Would you like me to
bring another blanket?
Me No, I'm
fine. [Viva says "You were shivering under the one
blanket!"]
Nurse Are you
sure?
Me (decided not to say
anything; she didn't know me and she's Viva's
friend)
Nurse I'm going to get
you one. (she came back with two - and they were very toasty and
warm!)
---
In
my hospital room
Nurse You
only have one pillow and it doesn't look comfortable. Would you like
another one?
Me No, I'm
fine.
Nurse Are you sure?
I'm going to get you
one.
Me (I related the two
conversations above to
her)
Nurse Ok, I am definitely
NOT going to get you another pillow, even if you ask. (We
laughed)
Posted: Thu - October 23, 2008 at 04:52 PM
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