Medical stuff – treatments, outcomes, Dr visits
A ‘Happy Dance’ today as this is the first day since last October that Suzanne is pain med free. Getting her off the narcotic meds has been a goal of her doctors as well as mine, and it’s been a journey When she first started, the pain was minimal and so were her meds. As time went on and the destruction that took place due to the radiation caused her pain to increase, so did her meds. At home, she…
Back tonight from Chicago where we experienced our first really big snowfall of the winter. Not actually why we went there, but it was quite the sight. This afternoon, Suzanne had a procedure that included a biopsy of her throat. Since her PET scan earlier in the month wasn’t definitive, the doctors wanted more info. After the biopsy, the doctor shared what he saw during the procedure but will not have final results for a number of days. Bottom line,…
Do you know a half-glass-full or a half-glass-empty person? Maybe you fall into one of these two categories yourself. Well, all three members of our physician team fall into one of these, two are half-full, one is half-empty. Our day started at 6 am when we left for Chicago in the dark. Once there, Suzanne’s day consisted of Accessing her port, PET Scan, Interventional services to check her feeding tube, CT Scan, and then appointments with her doctors; Radiation, Chemotherapy,…
Who starts all the sayings we are familiar with and how do they become part of our everyday vocabulary. My dad was prolific with these types of sayings and will share that at some point. But, ‘The difference is like night and day’ is the one that is appropriate here. First, let me apologize for not updating you sooner. Sometimes, as my past friend, Lyle would say, “I was up to my waist (not his exact word) in alligators, trying…
Time marches on as we head to mid-January and our next decisive appointment. Arriving home from the hospital last Thursday evening, our challenges with life haven’t subsided yet. With a feeding tube now in place, Suzanne has had some struggles so far. The nutritionist set the amount she was to have administered every day, not considering that she hasn’t been eating well prior. The result, an overstuffed stomach and gastric explosions from both directions; not what she needed. After figuring…
When we make a decision about anything, our experiences help us rate that decision on whether the reward is worth the risk. Whether to pass the car ahead of us; Whether to cook the Roux a little longer (you’ll have to look that one up :); Whether to marry someone; Whether to buy a house. What we decide is based on what we expect the outcome to be. Today was no exception to that concept. Suzanne’s doctor had to decide…
Remember that time you sent your kindergartner to school for their first day? The first time your child went on an overnight campout? When your High Schooler left on their Senior Trip? That’s how I felt yesterday as I dropped Suzanne off at a Hospital that’s 100 miles away and drove off into the distance. For the first time since this all began, I won’t be by her side, I won’t be involved in her recovery, won’t hear what the…
Today was Suzanne’s six-week checkup at Rush Medical Center, six weeks since she finished her treatments. Up early and on the road before 8 am on this brisk December morning. Arriving at Rush around 10:15 to start what turned out to be a long day. COVID was our nemesis today and I will share our experience in an upcoming post. So let’s get to the meat of the matter as that’s what you want to know. Suzanne had a CT…
Did you ever have the feeling that things are going too good? Well, it’s been that way around here. Suzanne eating every meal with me at the counter; spending hours quilting for friends and customers; reading and keeping up with Facebook friends. Sometime mid last week the walls crashed in around her. Reactions to the radiation treatments began to get the best of her as the mucus in her throat worsened, the pain in her throat intensified, and her desire…
Yesterday, another test and follow up visit at Rush Medical was our outing for the week. With Covid finding new and unusual suspects lately, we have been pretty much hermits trying to keep Suzanne safe. First up, a video fluoroscopic swallowing exam. The goal was to see what damage the radiation did to Suzanne’s ability to swallow. It uses a special real-time form of x-ray called fluoroscopy that records what she swallows. I was able to watch as Suzanne swallowed…