...and DoctorsStarted the day at the U with an 8am appointment with Dr. C. dp had another x-ray, and her lung looks a lot better than it did last week. Still, she's not feeling fully recovered from the surgeries, so we decided to move the start of chemo to Friday.
Then we went off to let Dr. H. look at me -- my ears have been weird since I got sick. Sure enough, one is ruptured (and healing) and the other is full of fluid. She gave me a couple things to clear stuff up.
A little late lunch, and then we were off to meet with Dr. A., Diana's new primary care doc. Diana's known her for awhile, and feels good about her. She's also at the U, and since it looks like that's going to be Diana's main healthcare hangout for awhile, it makes sense to have a doctor who's plugged in there. She listened a lot, suggested mindfulness meditation and reframed the 'what's Kevin done for himself today' question to 'what have Kevin and Diana done for themselves today?' All in all, a fine start.
Both she and Dr. C. encouraged Diana not to be so quick to get off the painkillers. A chest tube is a serious trauma, and pain control is to be expected for more than two weeks. Diana gets around okay during the day, but she's not sleeping through the night. We'll see if we can fix that tonight.
Me? I still think I'm doing okay. I'm settling in for the long haul, and appreciating the 'good days,' which are still way outnumbering the 'bad days.' And in spite of fate's sending a couple of knees to our rhetorical gonads in the past month, I remain doggedly optimistic. Diana is younger and a lot healthier than most lung cancer patients, and treatment options are developing rapidly. If we can't cure it now, we'll manage it until we can.
The photo is of one of the indigo buntings that stopped by a couple weeks ago.
8 comments:
And please do remain doggedly optimistic, Diana can beat this, Patty's Dad had advanced to a secondary cancer of the bone and was cured of both the original lymphoma and bone cancer 25 years ago. I firmly believe mental attitude is responsible for more medical miracles than anything. At least the Turpen family seems to be able to survive almost anything (Every bone in Ricky's body being broken by Hawaiian goons, Chris being ground between two semi trailers when he drove the wrong way down an expressway, Aunt Ellen surviving over 50 years of cancer, and Patty's Dad.)...the list is almost inexhaustable.
Patty's looking at June 19th or so for going to Iowa, will let you know when anything's set.
We Love you guys,
Carl & Patty
*blinks at the dawn's light*
*realizes she's slept almost six uninterrupted hours*
*enjoys a leisurely stretch*
Thanks for posting last night, Kevin! I was clearly too exhausted *sighs* And, you were absotively correct about the pain meds faciliting a good night's sleep. (Am also sure that two sleepless nights prior contributed a bit...)
Now, in addition to how 'healthy' I'm feeling, we need to be sure that Kevin is even healthier. We've heard that he can expect to wait a couple weeks to feel the effects of the meds that were prescribed *sighs*
It was wonderful seeing Dr. H again! And, while I won't be in her Primary Care any longer, Kevin will.
Dr. A is someone we met through Uncle Shorty's being placed in Hospice last August. Her specialties are specifically related to what we anticipate our future needs will be in managing a chronic illness; I feel very fortunate that she had room in her patient load for us.
In addition to catering to each other, Dr. A reminded us that we need to update our wills, powers of attorney, etc. ...not something totally foreign to us, but... *looks at all the back burners that are already full* *takes a refreshing deeeeeep breath*
Another doctor we spoke with yesterday is helping us locate information and expertise with regards to henna tattoos. *yeah* Will keep you posted on what we learn...about that, as well as the suggested meditation techniques.
*counts more blessings*
Thanks, Kevin! *hugs* You know I love you, and so much more...
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*MichiganderWaves*
*hugs Carl and Patty*
...been hearing and reading a lot over the years about positive thinking and attitude in general. Thanks for the anecdotal support! I'd forgotten that Aunt Ellen was also a member of the CancerSociety -- good reminder!
Anytime any of you can be here will be wonderful. Just tell us when and where we can pick you up.
*goes Blue*
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*heads out to do her five loops and think about her next blog post*
Hi dp and Kevin,
I finally sent a DVD copy of the yoga in the mail today. I tried to buy you your own copy (at the Gaiam website) but I guess the a.m. yoga is no longer made.
I sent a letter with the DVD, so I won't write much now. I, unlike my daughter, suffer from a bit of stage fright in this forum. I'm sure I'll get over it.
I agree with all of you who believe a positive attitude goes a long way. You are surrounded by love.
Love,
Colleen
Well Dr. Kevin, you were right about your eardrum after all. Hope the meds work quickly to make daWoods sound normal again.
dp, congrats on 6 hours of sleep, and do it again tonight. I like what I'm hearing(reading) about Dr. A, she'll be a good addition to our team.
Back to the previous post, I'm pretty sure the mystery wildflower is a lupine. I found a web source the said there are many different lupines that have different "looks", so they are difficult to identify. But this one looks more like a lupine than anything else.
Thanks for the reminder about taking a picture of it. I thought of doing just that, but by the time I finished my work week the flowers were mostly gone. I took a couple pics anyway so I'll send them by email.
Here's to the power of positive thinking!
*hugsColleen*
...how odd that today I got a catalog from a company called Gaiam...had never heard of them before. Found a CD for an exotic looking meditation along with a number of 'Seventh Generation' products. Then I read your post about their website. *blinks*
...sorry, Co...that post wasn't completed when it posted and I haven't yet learned how to edit comments without deleting them in their entirety. FWIW, I'm as uncomfortable in this forum as anyone.
Thanks for making and sending the CD. I'll let you know when it arrives.
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NancyTurtle!
I'm not having to be as careful about which side of his head I'm talking to, so there must be some progress. It's been a couple weeks now; we'll be glad when that relief arrives.
Looking forward to the photos. We can post them *heh*
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*positively thinks positively*
Kevin's head is full of junk. What a revelation! (Sorry, can't be nice very long.)
...so, that's an improvement from his pants being full, right????
*tunahugs*
*grins*
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