Wednesday 9 May 2012

Signs of progress...

    The date now is August 22nd, 2009. I was continuing to get stronger one day at a time. The previous night I got maybe 45 minutes of sleep, my Mom got the same. I was very restless. The high amounts of morphine that I was on caused me to be very delirious. I was communicating, not appropriately however. I was not aware of my surroundings. I was making up some very interesting stories! It was decided by the doctors that I would slowly be weaned off the morphine.
    I do not remember very much about the medical aspect of my hospital stay, but my hallucinations are clear as day to me! They seemed so real. I find it fascinating how the mind works. It was able to block out the excruciating pain and let me forget that, but for some reason it wanted me to remember my hallucinations. I am very glad I did though, they are quite hilarious. So funny that they deserve a separate post of their own!
    The pressure in my head and headaches that I had been experiencing continue to come and go throughout the day.
    Dr.Rubinger, the first oncologist that saw me, and still sees me to this day came up to my hospital room to check on me. He said that despite all the complications I have experienced I am showing signs of progress in regards to the cancer. The ups and downs were to be expected in a case like mine. This was good news for my family. He continued to say that I am still a very sick person and not out of the woods yet, but he is pleased with my progress.
    My pneumonia was starting to clear up. I was coughing up a lot of material that was on my lungs. I won't describe it because it was quite gross! I was breathing well on my own without the respirator (I told you I was going to prove a point somehow.)
    A physiotherapist also came to visit me early in the afternoon. He instructed me to get up and sit on the side of my bed and do a few simple exercises. He gave me his hand to help me sit up. I pushed it away, I was going to prove another point! Instead of sitting on the side of my bed I tried to get up and walk. "Whoaaaa, one step at a time" he said to me. I propped myself up with one arm and did the exercises. He said that I still have a great deal of strength considering the situation I was in. This was more good news to my family! After he left my room I went back to sleep for most of the day.
    On August 23rd, my morning blood test results came back. My white cell numbers were up quite a bit; 1.4! That is quite an increase from the last time, 0.5. My platelets were 93, the highest level they had been since I was admitted to the hospital! My respirations were strong without the respirator and my pneumonia was almost cleared up. This was very good news and the doctors agreed and deemed me stable enough to be moved back up to D6 (the floor with the amazing nurses.) The nurses from ICU all stopped by my room to say their goodbyes to me. As I was being wheeled out in the wheelchair I whispered that I would NOT be coming back.
   
    When I returned to D6, it was like a homecoming parade. I had a big smile on my face. The nurses stood in the hall and clapped as I was wheeled into my room. My family followed behind me with a armfuls of stuffed animals, posters and stacks of cards. I was put back into room 9, the same one I was in previously. One of the nurses was so excited she was in tears. She whispered privately to my family that she was afraid I wasn't going to make it and that it had bothered her so much.
    Even though my bloodwork was showing signs of improvement and my vitals were stable I was complaining of hurting all over my body. Even in my pinkies! This was a side effect of all the chemo and ATRA. I was especially complaining of neck pain. I was having difficulty holding my neck up. The doctors and nurses said this was probably due to my positioning in bed for so long. This was treated with Tylenol 3's, ice and neck support.
    The physiotherapist came late in the afternoon. I told him I was too tired from all the excitement of the day and promised to exercise later.
    As Dr.Rubinger warned the previous day, I was not out of the woods yet. My clotting factor was proving to be an issue. Too high and it can cause more strokes, too low and it can cause excessive bleeding. The doctors were having difficulty stabilizing it and this was of great concern because of the bleeds in my head.
   

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