Okay, it is past one in the morning and I figure I am as loopy as mom so this should be good. Mom came home on the 20th and had a very bad day. She was very out of it and extremely tired. Dad and I had a very hard time getting her to eat or use the bathroom or even get ready for bed. It was a lot of work and neither one of us thought it was a good idea to have her at home.
Tuesday morning came and it was just as bad. After a little breakfast and a two hour shower, no kidding, we got mom into the car so we could head up to Seattle to see what the cancer Dr's would say up there. Heather and I had to feed mom once in the car and it was harder than feeding a new born baby. Once in Seattle we got mom settled. It was dinner time so Heather ran across the street to a restaurant and got mom some clam chowder. Mom loved it! She ate the whole bowl and two slices of bread. She thought it was the hottest item in Seattle.
After mom got done eating Joe and Michelle came over to visit. They live in Seattle. Joe Michael has a way with my mom. He was able to get her to move around in the wheel chair. Only a little because there wasn't much room. And he got her to get up and walk around with him as her walker. She did awesome! It was an amazing thing. He also got her to flip him off. Joe made the comment that there was a Hooters across the street and he was going to take dad there as soon as mom got into bed and fell asleep. Without even changing her expression she just turned her head to see him and gave him the bird! Joe laughed harder than I have seen in a while. Mom then proceeded to scowl at him the rest of the night. Just when you think it is okay to say something my mom reappears and shocks us all. I hope none of you are offended, mom means this in good fun and really, Joe just brings it out in her.
The next morning, Wed the 21st, I think I witnessed a slight miracle. Mom woke up around 7:30-8am and she looked like she was going to lay back down and try to sleep some more. Instead she pulled her legs under her and sat crossed legged and asked what we were doing today. This way of sitting is how my mom always sits. It is her favorite position and she even sits this way in the car. From that moment on it was a go day. Mom wouldn't let Heather and I help her much. We stabilized her as she walked to and from the bathroom and helped her dress but she was on the go and wanted us out of her way. She stayed awake until 2pm when we finished lunch and she interacted with us and talked and laughed and teased. It was so great to have my mom back if only for a day. She also walked all over the house with her walker when we got back from Seattle. To and from the living room to the bathroom several times. That is traveling the entire length of my parent's home.
The Dr's in Seattle basically confirmed what we already know. They suggested a pill form of Chemo, but it interferes with one of her three seizure medications and her neurologist doesn't want to take her off the Dilantin. So, we decided to keep the carbo/taxall chemo going. The only difference is they stepped down the taxall a little. The Dr in Seattle, Dr Eaton, would not have felt comfortable giving mom this chemo because it does break down the muscle and mom has a hard enough time without the chemo taking some of her strength. However, after some test results from Dr Rado's office, the oncologist in Kennewick, Dad and I felt the Chemo she is on now will give us better results. Like Dr Rado said if we are going to do Chemo then we need to do one that will work. Those test results confirmed, finally, that we are for sure dealing with one form of cancer. It is lung cancer, adenocarsinoma. This is good news because the carbo/taxall she is getting will be a good match for treatment of this. Since the pill form is not available for now. The pill form would be a great one to use and if you know someone with lung cancer who has never smoked you might want to ask about it. It is called Tarseva.
Anyway, mom had a treatment today. It only took us four hours to get it. Mom slept, Dad slept, I tried and failed.
Speaking of sleep, I am falling into it right now. I will post some pictures when I get back to UT and give another update then.
Friday, April 24, 2009
Thursday, April 16, 2009
A Wedding and Jet Lag Meds
Sorry it has been a whole week from the last update. Really there hasn't been much to report. Mom still was sleeping a lot and doing her physical and occupational therapy and doing well. She is still a pleasure to be around and can hold a fair conversation. Dad still goes every night to be with her and to hold her hand. I hope I still love holding hand when I've been married 35 plus years. They also put mom on some Jet Lag medication. Don't ask me what it is called because I don't know. But it does seem to be keeping her awake and alert during the day. This we are very grateful for.
Stacey, mom's Visiting Teacher, has given me some updates and I thought I would put some of her comments in. "I didn't get into the hospital today until noon but was pleasantly surprised to see your mom awake and trying to eat some lunch. I loaded the spoon for her and handed it over... she did a great job. I was commenting on the 'food groups' on her tray... pasta (carbs), meat sauce (protein) carrots and orange sections (fruit and vegetables) and chocolate pudding... your mom piped right up and said, 'Chocolate of coarse is the most important food group !' Her tray also contained coffee... I asked her if she was drinking coffee now (ha)... she told me no that she didn't but she sure loved the smell of it! We had such a fun visit... no simple answers of yes or no...full sentences, smiles, laughter, and even good natured sarcasm, she had therapists Audra (OT) and Erika (speech) rolling with laughter. They were thrilled to see the improvement. Audra was telling a story and your mother apparently was visualizing it and couldn't stop laughing...it was a hoot! Later I asked her about this morning (she took a stroll with Justin using her walker) she said 'Therapy was her favorite thing to do" and then rolled her eyes and put that coy little look on her face...what fun!!! A great day!!"
And the next days updates: "Your mom continues to amaze the therapists. She walked 60 feet with her walker in one direction down the hall (she took off like a rabbit) and then maneuvered her wheelchair with her hands and feet another 70 feet... Impressive!!! Phyllis popped in...'naughty' is the best word to describe those two when they are together."
Editors note: Phyllis is my "Aunt." She and mom look so much alike that they could almost pass for twins. There is no blood relation, but there really could have been with their looks. In fact I got asked a lot in High School if Phyllis was my mom because even my close friends had a hard time sometimes. Phyllis also drives bus, so that made it hard as well. Phyllis fuels my mom like no-one else. They are the best of friends and act like school girls and yes sometimes they are 'naughty' but only in good natured fun. I can't even tell you how much my mom loves being with her. Phyllis and Merlin (her husband) have been long time friends of mom and dad's.
Currently mom will be coming home from the rehab center on Monday the 20th. She will have one wonderful night at home and then she will travel to Seattle where the Seattle Cancer Center Alliance will be looking into her case on Wednesday the 22nd. Once we find out their opinion mom will be coming home and she will start Chemo again on Thursday. I'll be up in WA on Sunday to help with the transition home and all the traveling. Heather will of course be there helping as well.
We also had a little wedding in our family. My take is simple. I wasn't there but I find it more than funny that my Catholic Brother got married by a Mormon Bishop in a chapel at the Kadelek Rehab Center! Now try to explain that to your religious friends. Joe and Michelle had a lovely ceremony so mom could see them married. She will most likely not be able to attend the formal wedding on May 2nd. Joe has assured me he will make a post about all the mishaps and fun they had last Saturday. So please bug him through the comments so he'll do it. We also need to hear about the hair cutting party a few weeks ago Joe.
Now for some comic relief. I love when movie gets really intense and then suddenly a little comment is made and sometimes you get it and sometimes you don't but if you do it makes you laugh. Well, my family gets to be that relief today. Two days ago now I was getting my little troop of three, Jacob (5), Sarah (3), and James (18 mos) ready for pre-school. (Thomas was already at school.) This day was special for several reasons. Jacob just got off spring break and he was heading back to the grinding stone after a well deserved break. Pre-school is very hard you know. Sarah on the other hand is potty training and she is working toward getting a new My Little Pony. James is just 18 mos and into everything. I had to, I mean have the privilege, of helping in Jacob's class once a month and two days ago it was my turn. So after lunch I put Sarah on the potty. This usually gives me enough time to run down stairs and change out the laundry so I went down stairs to do that. I pulled out the whites so I was making sure the Sunday shirts didn't get wrinkled and spent a few extra minutes pulling those out and laying them flat. I hear someone run from one end of the room to the other up stairs and then I heard Sarah scream, "No James!! Stop that!!" This is not unusual so I didn't worry too much until Jacob yelled down the stairs that James had emptied the TP roll. I still wasn't too concerned. It's just TP and I calmly walked up the stairs to see what was happening.
I get up the stairs and hear James laughing gleefully and Sarah's still screaming for him to stop and that he was getting her wet. By this time I am sure you can imagine I was concerned with what I was hearing. Wet is never good in the bathroom. I walked into the worst scene ever. Sarah is sitting on the toilet and James has indeed taken off all the TP from a half full roll. However, James decided he needed to put that TP in the toilet. Sarah didn't like that so James took it out of the toilet and put it on the floor. He then had taken some of the TP and put it back in the toilet. THEN, yes it gets better, (do your sides hurt yet?) James took his favorite no, no toy, the toilet brush, and was shoving the TP down the whole in the bottom. Not only was he clogging the toilet, but he was getting pee water all over the bathroom! I had about 20 minutes before I had to leave to pick up the car pool kids for pre-school. I was not a happy mom at this time. I did however manage to get two kids in the tub, scrub down the bathroom and dry hair all before I was late for pre-school. I dare you to top that for the week.
Have a great one!
Stacey, mom's Visiting Teacher, has given me some updates and I thought I would put some of her comments in. "I didn't get into the hospital today until noon but was pleasantly surprised to see your mom awake and trying to eat some lunch. I loaded the spoon for her and handed it over... she did a great job. I was commenting on the 'food groups' on her tray... pasta (carbs), meat sauce (protein) carrots and orange sections (fruit and vegetables) and chocolate pudding... your mom piped right up and said, 'Chocolate of coarse is the most important food group !' Her tray also contained coffee... I asked her if she was drinking coffee now (ha)... she told me no that she didn't but she sure loved the smell of it! We had such a fun visit... no simple answers of yes or no...full sentences, smiles, laughter, and even good natured sarcasm, she had therapists Audra (OT) and Erika (speech) rolling with laughter. They were thrilled to see the improvement. Audra was telling a story and your mother apparently was visualizing it and couldn't stop laughing...it was a hoot! Later I asked her about this morning (she took a stroll with Justin using her walker) she said 'Therapy was her favorite thing to do" and then rolled her eyes and put that coy little look on her face...what fun!!! A great day!!"
And the next days updates: "Your mom continues to amaze the therapists. She walked 60 feet with her walker in one direction down the hall (she took off like a rabbit) and then maneuvered her wheelchair with her hands and feet another 70 feet... Impressive!!! Phyllis popped in...'naughty' is the best word to describe those two when they are together."
Editors note: Phyllis is my "Aunt." She and mom look so much alike that they could almost pass for twins. There is no blood relation, but there really could have been with their looks. In fact I got asked a lot in High School if Phyllis was my mom because even my close friends had a hard time sometimes. Phyllis also drives bus, so that made it hard as well. Phyllis fuels my mom like no-one else. They are the best of friends and act like school girls and yes sometimes they are 'naughty' but only in good natured fun. I can't even tell you how much my mom loves being with her. Phyllis and Merlin (her husband) have been long time friends of mom and dad's.
Currently mom will be coming home from the rehab center on Monday the 20th. She will have one wonderful night at home and then she will travel to Seattle where the Seattle Cancer Center Alliance will be looking into her case on Wednesday the 22nd. Once we find out their opinion mom will be coming home and she will start Chemo again on Thursday. I'll be up in WA on Sunday to help with the transition home and all the traveling. Heather will of course be there helping as well.
We also had a little wedding in our family. My take is simple. I wasn't there but I find it more than funny that my Catholic Brother got married by a Mormon Bishop in a chapel at the Kadelek Rehab Center! Now try to explain that to your religious friends. Joe and Michelle had a lovely ceremony so mom could see them married. She will most likely not be able to attend the formal wedding on May 2nd. Joe has assured me he will make a post about all the mishaps and fun they had last Saturday. So please bug him through the comments so he'll do it. We also need to hear about the hair cutting party a few weeks ago Joe.
Now for some comic relief. I love when movie gets really intense and then suddenly a little comment is made and sometimes you get it and sometimes you don't but if you do it makes you laugh. Well, my family gets to be that relief today. Two days ago now I was getting my little troop of three, Jacob (5), Sarah (3), and James (18 mos) ready for pre-school. (Thomas was already at school.) This day was special for several reasons. Jacob just got off spring break and he was heading back to the grinding stone after a well deserved break. Pre-school is very hard you know. Sarah on the other hand is potty training and she is working toward getting a new My Little Pony. James is just 18 mos and into everything. I had to, I mean have the privilege, of helping in Jacob's class once a month and two days ago it was my turn. So after lunch I put Sarah on the potty. This usually gives me enough time to run down stairs and change out the laundry so I went down stairs to do that. I pulled out the whites so I was making sure the Sunday shirts didn't get wrinkled and spent a few extra minutes pulling those out and laying them flat. I hear someone run from one end of the room to the other up stairs and then I heard Sarah scream, "No James!! Stop that!!" This is not unusual so I didn't worry too much until Jacob yelled down the stairs that James had emptied the TP roll. I still wasn't too concerned. It's just TP and I calmly walked up the stairs to see what was happening.
I get up the stairs and hear James laughing gleefully and Sarah's still screaming for him to stop and that he was getting her wet. By this time I am sure you can imagine I was concerned with what I was hearing. Wet is never good in the bathroom. I walked into the worst scene ever. Sarah is sitting on the toilet and James has indeed taken off all the TP from a half full roll. However, James decided he needed to put that TP in the toilet. Sarah didn't like that so James took it out of the toilet and put it on the floor. He then had taken some of the TP and put it back in the toilet. THEN, yes it gets better, (do your sides hurt yet?) James took his favorite no, no toy, the toilet brush, and was shoving the TP down the whole in the bottom. Not only was he clogging the toilet, but he was getting pee water all over the bathroom! I had about 20 minutes before I had to leave to pick up the car pool kids for pre-school. I was not a happy mom at this time. I did however manage to get two kids in the tub, scrub down the bathroom and dry hair all before I was late for pre-school. I dare you to top that for the week.
Have a great one!
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Judy's Hugs and Kisses
Mom now gives Hugs and Kisses to anyone who is nice to her in Rehab. Our good friend and mom's visiting teacher went to visit yesterday and not only decorated mom's room with Easter things but made a cute basket with Hersey's Hugs and Kisses in it that mom now gets to give to anyone she feels is worthy of one. Knowing mom she is giving them out left and right. That is exactly like something my mom would do and love. Thanks Stacey.
I also now have an honorary Aunt. Stacey didn't have the heart to tell the nurses that she was not related to mom. Of course we couldn't be happier to have Stacey as one of mom's "sister in laws." She has been spoiling our family since this whole thing began. What a wonderful way our Heavenly Father sets things up for us to help and love one another before the crisis hits so that our burden is lighter. Stacey has been one to make our burden seem bearable. Mom also told her to spoil dad and it sounds like she is taking great care of him this week.
I have to admit that I have had a hard time not being able to go up to WA and help this last week. My whole family decided to get strep throat. Yes, every single one of us. Luckily we found out before I left and so we were able to keep all of these germs from Mom and for that I am grateful.
There wasn't much to report the last few days. Mom has been working at her physical therapy and sleeping. The Dr's are not sure why she sleeps so much. The medication she is on does cause drowsiness, but mom shouldn't be this tired. She tends to sleep until noon or a little earlier, does some therapy, takes a short nap and then by six when Dad and Heather get to the hospital to visit her she is tired again and doesn't say much. That concerns all of us because it is not typical. Not typical of mom or of her condition. Of course nothing is typical with mom.
The Dr's did another scan of the brain and found one of the ventricles open again so they will back off one of the seizure meds and see what happens. So much could and could not happen. There is a possibility that there is some brain damage caused by one of three things, the tumors/cancer, the radiation, or the seizures. This is not extensive brain damage if it is, but it will cause some relearning to have to happen. Of course it could not be brain damage. There are so many unknowns it is very frustrating. The Dr's also checked the levels of the seizure meds in her system and found two of the three are at therapeutic levels which is good. One we won't know about for ten days because it takes that long to check it out.
As far as her physical therapy goes she is doing well and making some progress. She needs lots of cues to help her do some very simple tasks. For example: When she goes to put on a shirt she has to be reminded of each step. The same with brushing her teeth. We would like to see this get better quicker, but that all depends on the brain and mom's willingness.
Heather and I think a few things can happen to help with all of this. I truly believe, after reading President Deiter F. Uchtdorf's talk "Happiness, Your Heritage," that mom needs something to do. President Uchtdorf talked about how we are all more happy when we are creating something. For some of us that is baking breads, for others it is keeping a clean house, and still for others it is a form of art. For my mom crafts were her life two months ago. She was constantly working on a problem to solve in regard to some project she wanted to do. Even while driving bus she would be thinking of some way to make a Santa, Raggedy Anne, or Snowman just a little cuter so it would sell better or just be better. I believe some of her sleeping is simply because she has nothing to look forward to and nothing to get up for so why bother. (President Uchtdorf's talk can be found at www.lds.org if you would like to read it.)
On this note we would like to make a request to anyone who might be visiting mom. Heather will be bringing some things by that can help mom in the regard. (As long as it is okay with the Physical Therapist. We don't want to do anything to detract from that progress.) We are hoping to have some books that can be read to mom. She can't read herself because of the cataracts. And some craft projects that mom can work on. If you would like to help mom with that we would love the help. Like I said, if it is brain damage we have to get new pathways working so mom can do all of the things she loves best.
Again, I thank all of you for your help, love and prayers for our family. It is amazing to feel others praying for you. I have never been the recipient of that before and I can testify that every one of those prayers are heard and they help. I appreciate all the visits to mom and the extra things for my dad and extended family. Being 600 miles away makes it hard to take care of mom and there have truly been Angels on Earth helping us. So thanks from us all.
I also now have an honorary Aunt. Stacey didn't have the heart to tell the nurses that she was not related to mom. Of course we couldn't be happier to have Stacey as one of mom's "sister in laws." She has been spoiling our family since this whole thing began. What a wonderful way our Heavenly Father sets things up for us to help and love one another before the crisis hits so that our burden is lighter. Stacey has been one to make our burden seem bearable. Mom also told her to spoil dad and it sounds like she is taking great care of him this week.
I have to admit that I have had a hard time not being able to go up to WA and help this last week. My whole family decided to get strep throat. Yes, every single one of us. Luckily we found out before I left and so we were able to keep all of these germs from Mom and for that I am grateful.
There wasn't much to report the last few days. Mom has been working at her physical therapy and sleeping. The Dr's are not sure why she sleeps so much. The medication she is on does cause drowsiness, but mom shouldn't be this tired. She tends to sleep until noon or a little earlier, does some therapy, takes a short nap and then by six when Dad and Heather get to the hospital to visit her she is tired again and doesn't say much. That concerns all of us because it is not typical. Not typical of mom or of her condition. Of course nothing is typical with mom.
The Dr's did another scan of the brain and found one of the ventricles open again so they will back off one of the seizure meds and see what happens. So much could and could not happen. There is a possibility that there is some brain damage caused by one of three things, the tumors/cancer, the radiation, or the seizures. This is not extensive brain damage if it is, but it will cause some relearning to have to happen. Of course it could not be brain damage. There are so many unknowns it is very frustrating. The Dr's also checked the levels of the seizure meds in her system and found two of the three are at therapeutic levels which is good. One we won't know about for ten days because it takes that long to check it out.
As far as her physical therapy goes she is doing well and making some progress. She needs lots of cues to help her do some very simple tasks. For example: When she goes to put on a shirt she has to be reminded of each step. The same with brushing her teeth. We would like to see this get better quicker, but that all depends on the brain and mom's willingness.
Heather and I think a few things can happen to help with all of this. I truly believe, after reading President Deiter F. Uchtdorf's talk "Happiness, Your Heritage," that mom needs something to do. President Uchtdorf talked about how we are all more happy when we are creating something. For some of us that is baking breads, for others it is keeping a clean house, and still for others it is a form of art. For my mom crafts were her life two months ago. She was constantly working on a problem to solve in regard to some project she wanted to do. Even while driving bus she would be thinking of some way to make a Santa, Raggedy Anne, or Snowman just a little cuter so it would sell better or just be better. I believe some of her sleeping is simply because she has nothing to look forward to and nothing to get up for so why bother. (President Uchtdorf's talk can be found at www.lds.org if you would like to read it.)
On this note we would like to make a request to anyone who might be visiting mom. Heather will be bringing some things by that can help mom in the regard. (As long as it is okay with the Physical Therapist. We don't want to do anything to detract from that progress.) We are hoping to have some books that can be read to mom. She can't read herself because of the cataracts. And some craft projects that mom can work on. If you would like to help mom with that we would love the help. Like I said, if it is brain damage we have to get new pathways working so mom can do all of the things she loves best.
Again, I thank all of you for your help, love and prayers for our family. It is amazing to feel others praying for you. I have never been the recipient of that before and I can testify that every one of those prayers are heard and they help. I appreciate all the visits to mom and the extra things for my dad and extended family. Being 600 miles away makes it hard to take care of mom and there have truly been Angels on Earth helping us. So thanks from us all.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Another day, an old problem.
Talked to Dad tonight and got an update on mom. She is doing well. She is settled into the rehab center and started the work to get better. She is definitely more aware of her surroundings. Heather told me yesterday that when she came to visit after the surgery mom asked where dad was. Heather said he was on his way and would be there soon. Mom proceeded to tell her, "Well, he was supposed to be here a half hour ago to take me out of this damn place." Heather then said she promptly fell asleep. When she woke up she was as pleasant as could be, saw dad and visited and was happy, and never said one more word about going home. It's nice to know she is realizing she is in a hospital and wants to go home.
Dad said my Uncle Jim is in town. It is Jim's birthday today so all the adults went to dinner. I'm glad. I think dad needed a little time away from it all. He said it was a nice dinner and they had a good time. It's also great for my Uncle to see mom. He seems to have gotten a lot of bad news lately. My Grandpa passed away last year. He lives farther away than any other sibling of mom's and only gets the news from phone calls. I'm glad he is there.
Dad did however tell me of an old problem. I say old in relative terms. Mom had two more seizures in the last 24 hours. One during the night and one while taking a bath. Why do those things always happen in the bathroom? The Dr's took mom off one of the three seizure medications she is on. Now we will be upping that dose again to keep them under control. We were all hoping mom could get off some of this particular medication because it makes her very groggy and loopy. That is okay, we now know what to do. They took another scan of the brain to check on things and see if we need to change something. No word on that scan yet, probably we will hear on Monday.
Another new thing is no Chemo until after physical therapy is done. The Dr's want mom as strong as possible. Derrick said Mitra, Dr Rado's NP, is comfortable with this because mom is in no immediate danger. Again, a relative term. This time relative if you are related or not. Mom has smaller masses and is in no pain according to Mitra so holding off on Chemo is fine. The larger concern has been and remains to be the brain. Please keep that particular request in your prayers for mom. We need to get the brain under control then we will be able to move more aggressively to other parts of the body.
And on the prayer note I would like to share an experience I believe my whole family has had. We decided to pray in particular that mom would be strong enough and cognisant enough to be admitted to the rehab center she is currently in. That obviously came true. My kids all made sure they prayed that Grandma would be able to get stronger with the Dr's help. I'm sure my sister's and brother's all had that great feeling that comes from an answered prayer when the call came in that mom had indeed been accepted and that our prayer was answered; just like I did. It seems such a small thing to pray for, but I know Heavenly Father heard us and helped mom to pass the evaluation. And I'm just very grateful. Thomas, my oldest, was very excited and just said, "See mom, Heavenly Father came through again!"
Thanks so much for all of your comments. They have helped me a lot and my family has enjoyed them as well. Please keep them coming.
Dad said my Uncle Jim is in town. It is Jim's birthday today so all the adults went to dinner. I'm glad. I think dad needed a little time away from it all. He said it was a nice dinner and they had a good time. It's also great for my Uncle to see mom. He seems to have gotten a lot of bad news lately. My Grandpa passed away last year. He lives farther away than any other sibling of mom's and only gets the news from phone calls. I'm glad he is there.
Dad did however tell me of an old problem. I say old in relative terms. Mom had two more seizures in the last 24 hours. One during the night and one while taking a bath. Why do those things always happen in the bathroom? The Dr's took mom off one of the three seizure medications she is on. Now we will be upping that dose again to keep them under control. We were all hoping mom could get off some of this particular medication because it makes her very groggy and loopy. That is okay, we now know what to do. They took another scan of the brain to check on things and see if we need to change something. No word on that scan yet, probably we will hear on Monday.
Another new thing is no Chemo until after physical therapy is done. The Dr's want mom as strong as possible. Derrick said Mitra, Dr Rado's NP, is comfortable with this because mom is in no immediate danger. Again, a relative term. This time relative if you are related or not. Mom has smaller masses and is in no pain according to Mitra so holding off on Chemo is fine. The larger concern has been and remains to be the brain. Please keep that particular request in your prayers for mom. We need to get the brain under control then we will be able to move more aggressively to other parts of the body.
And on the prayer note I would like to share an experience I believe my whole family has had. We decided to pray in particular that mom would be strong enough and cognisant enough to be admitted to the rehab center she is currently in. That obviously came true. My kids all made sure they prayed that Grandma would be able to get stronger with the Dr's help. I'm sure my sister's and brother's all had that great feeling that comes from an answered prayer when the call came in that mom had indeed been accepted and that our prayer was answered; just like I did. It seems such a small thing to pray for, but I know Heavenly Father heard us and helped mom to pass the evaluation. And I'm just very grateful. Thomas, my oldest, was very excited and just said, "See mom, Heavenly Father came through again!"
Thanks so much for all of your comments. They have helped me a lot and my family has enjoyed them as well. Please keep them coming.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
A shot in the Arm or maybe the Brain?
Yesterday we got a shot in the arm, to the brain. Let me explain. The doctors came in and said they were going to place a shunt in mom's brain. This is to help take care of the pressure in her brain caused by the swelling from the radiation and the tumors. They were worried mom might sucomb to a coma and the shunt was the best way to avoid this. The shunt was placed and the results are like night and day. We have a large portion of mom back. Before the surgery she was so lethargic and non responsive we wondered what to do next. She couldn't feed herself and she couldn't hold on a converstaion. She slept almost non stop with only a few glimpses of her coming out.
One such occasion was when my sister Heather was talking to a few visitors and saying how nice it was to have my brother Derrick and his wife Catherine there because they brought the baby and Heather loves to hold the babies, mom opened her eyes and glared at Heather like, "Don't you take my baby from me!" and shook her finger at her. That is typical mom. They always fight over who gets to hold the baby, no matter which one it is, first.
The surgery went very well and when mom woke up she was ready to face a day. By the end she was swearing at dad and the President of the US. Talking even about how wrong the stimulus packages are and how Obabma needs to go away. This made us all very happy. Mom is very vocal about her politics. And I'm sure dad loved being called mom's favorite nickname for him. (If you want to know that nickname you'll have to ask dad.)
Today she is doing even better. She no longer needs a patient sitter. (Someone who litterally sits with a patient 24/7 because the patient is that bad off.) And she in no longer on a bed pan. Which I'm sure my mom is more than grateful for. She sat in her recliner in her room for a few hours thus getting out of a bed for the first time in four days. She can answer almost any question, but chooses to believe it is January 2009 because she needs another birthday.
The Dr that put in the shunt is very pleased and happy with the results and how everything is healing. Mom would like to take a shower, but has to wait till a little more healing happens. She has grown to love chocolate malts and shakes. And today she asked Derrick to bring her as much hot food as he could. When asked what she really wanted mom said BBQ and hot rolls.
The nurses feel she is a very good canditdate for the in house rehab center at Kadlek Hospital. In fact Dr Chou, the rehab Dr, just told us he was going to work it all out so that she gets in. This is the place we want mom the most right now. They will be able to help her got strong without her to go home leaving and she will be well taken care of. The first thought was to put her in a nursing home, bad idea. This is much, much better. I just got off the phone with Dad and he is very pleased with the outcome of the day.
And on that note, I need to apologize. It has been brought to my attention that I never even mentioned my dad in the first blog. For this I am truly sorry. My dad is the most amazing man you will ever meet. He loves my mom more than I can ever describe. Mom in fact told me on the first night I was home four weeks ago when this all began, that she was realizing how much my dad loves her. She feels of his love when she thinks of him and it lights up her face. I think we all know in our hearts how we feel about our husbands, wives, children, and even siblings, but my parents are rediscovering all the little things that make a marriage strong. I have experienced things with my dad in the last few weeks that are too hard for me to talk about. But know this, you will never meet a more generous, kind, caring, stern, loving father than my own. He has been with my mom every step of this journey so far and he will be with her each step she takes. I am very grateful that I have had the chance to see, not just know, but see my parents love for each other. I hope you feel about yours how I feel about mine.
One such occasion was when my sister Heather was talking to a few visitors and saying how nice it was to have my brother Derrick and his wife Catherine there because they brought the baby and Heather loves to hold the babies, mom opened her eyes and glared at Heather like, "Don't you take my baby from me!" and shook her finger at her. That is typical mom. They always fight over who gets to hold the baby, no matter which one it is, first.
The surgery went very well and when mom woke up she was ready to face a day. By the end she was swearing at dad and the President of the US. Talking even about how wrong the stimulus packages are and how Obabma needs to go away. This made us all very happy. Mom is very vocal about her politics. And I'm sure dad loved being called mom's favorite nickname for him. (If you want to know that nickname you'll have to ask dad.)
Today she is doing even better. She no longer needs a patient sitter. (Someone who litterally sits with a patient 24/7 because the patient is that bad off.) And she in no longer on a bed pan. Which I'm sure my mom is more than grateful for. She sat in her recliner in her room for a few hours thus getting out of a bed for the first time in four days. She can answer almost any question, but chooses to believe it is January 2009 because she needs another birthday.
The Dr that put in the shunt is very pleased and happy with the results and how everything is healing. Mom would like to take a shower, but has to wait till a little more healing happens. She has grown to love chocolate malts and shakes. And today she asked Derrick to bring her as much hot food as he could. When asked what she really wanted mom said BBQ and hot rolls.
The nurses feel she is a very good canditdate for the in house rehab center at Kadlek Hospital. In fact Dr Chou, the rehab Dr, just told us he was going to work it all out so that she gets in. This is the place we want mom the most right now. They will be able to help her got strong without her to go home leaving and she will be well taken care of. The first thought was to put her in a nursing home, bad idea. This is much, much better. I just got off the phone with Dad and he is very pleased with the outcome of the day.
And on that note, I need to apologize. It has been brought to my attention that I never even mentioned my dad in the first blog. For this I am truly sorry. My dad is the most amazing man you will ever meet. He loves my mom more than I can ever describe. Mom in fact told me on the first night I was home four weeks ago when this all began, that she was realizing how much my dad loves her. She feels of his love when she thinks of him and it lights up her face. I think we all know in our hearts how we feel about our husbands, wives, children, and even siblings, but my parents are rediscovering all the little things that make a marriage strong. I have experienced things with my dad in the last few weeks that are too hard for me to talk about. But know this, you will never meet a more generous, kind, caring, stern, loving father than my own. He has been with my mom every step of this journey so far and he will be with her each step she takes. I am very grateful that I have had the chance to see, not just know, but see my parents love for each other. I hope you feel about yours how I feel about mine.
Tuesday, March 31, 2009
Mom's Story
This blog is about my mom. I thought I would tell you about her. She is 59. She loves to live. She loves to laugh. She loves to smile and make others smile around her. She loves a good joke. She loves her family. Her family is the reason she does most things. She loves to craft and create. She has several original craft pieces in her repertoire. She makes Santa's, Snowmen, and Raggedy Anne's. Her favorite color is Green, rich deep green. She loves Christmas and spoils her kids and grand kids shamelessly. She adores my dad. He is the love of her life. She always told us growing up that she loved us, but dad always comes first. And he did. She drives school bus. She loves to keep tabs on the kids on her route. She lives on a farm. A city girl turned country. She is a sports fanatic. She watches the Tri-City Americans Hockey team any chance she gets. And has admitted to watching Hockey on TV in the last few years. She also loves to watch my niece Kiaya in Gymnastics. She is always telling me how Kiaya is doing. She loves her home. She is religious and loves her Father in Heaven. She knows of His kind and tender mercies. Most of all she is my mom and now she is my mom with Cancer.
My mom's medical problems started a few months ago. She found out she had high blood pressure. High blood pressure in and of itself is nothing to be too worried about. She started on medication and seemed as if all was fine. Then she got a sinus infection. She hates doctors so to get her to even go in for an antibiotic was like dragging an elephant over a sand dune. But she finally did and the meds made her very sick. From there, she figured she got the flu because she started throwing up. She threw up for three weeks before going in and finding out what was wrong. That elephant thing again. During this time as well she found out she has cataracts so she can't see anything either. We found out her gall bladder needed to be taken out so the surgery happened and she was feeling better for two whole days before she started to throw up again. She went back into the hospital and realized that her bowels had not been working for the three weeks she was sick. She lost 35 pounds in those three weeks from lack of eating. So, they did a lower body scan to make sure there was not an obstruction. During this scan they found a mass in her lower back by the tail bone and a mass in the lung. (I don't know which lung, I don't really think it matters, it's there and a spot as well.) During the next week that mom spent in the hospital trying to get her bowels to work again the Dr's did more scans to see what we were dealing with. They did a biopsy on the lung and told us we were dealing with Adenocarcinoma Cancer (soft tissue cancer) that is in the lung. So now you're thinking my mom is a smoker. Well, she isn't. Never has. Unfortunately about 10-15% of lung cancer happens in people who have never smoked or been around smokers.
We also found out she had some striations and lesions on the bones. So we knew for sure we were dealing with a cancer that has spread to multiple places in the body. At this time it came out that mom has cataracts and that some of her pressure points didn't add up with the eye doctor so he could do the cataract surgery. That sent off alarms for the Dr's at the hospital and they did a Head CT. They found three tumors in the frontal lobe of mom's brain. She did not present normally for brain tumors, especially since she had three of them. She has had headaches off and on for a while. They tend to go up and down in their intensity. Most people with tumors get a low grade headache and that headache never goes away, it just gets worse and worse as the pressure from the tumors builds in the head. Mom never had this problem. Non the less, the tumors are still there. In fact when she started the blood pressure medication the headaches became less frequent. We figured we had that problem licked because headaches can be a sign of high blood pressure. We were wrong. The Dr's started her on Radiation for fifteen days. She has had a high dosage and aggressive form of radiation. She is now done with that as of today.
After more scans and looking for more information we also found some nodules on the Thyroid. The Dr's then biopsied the Thyroid to see if we had lung cancer that had spread that far or if we were dealing with two kinds of cancer. This is very rare by the way. Most people only have one form of cancer and that cancer spreads to the lymph nodes and then throughout the body like mom's has. However, my mom likes to be unique and so is the case with her medical condition. They found out we were dealing with two forms of cancer, Lung and Thyroid. The problem we were having at this point is trying to figure out which one started first and which one had spread or if both had spread. During this time mom started to have some Jackson Seizures. These seizures are fairly severe. They wear her out and make her whole body go rigid. I was with her when she had one of the first ones. It was scary to say the least. We got her into the hospital again and ran some more tests to make sure we weren't dealing with something new. We weren't and the Dr's gave her more meds to take. (At this point she has had more and more instead of less and less. She is currently on three types of seizure medication. My brother Joe was with her last week and the worse day mom had she had eight seizures. The Dr's are 95% sure these seizures are caused by the tumors and the toxicity of the radiation treatments.)
Since mom kept having headaches and they kept getting worse Dr Geiver, radiologist, did another head scan. That scan told us some news none of us wanted to hear. Mom has Leptomeningial spread. That means she has free floating cancer cells in her brain fluid. This form of spread is very aggressive and if the chemo does not work we could be looking at only a few months with my mom. I choose to believe we can beat anything with the right attitude. I think my family feels the same way, but we are all very realistic. We know not everyone beats cancer. We just choose to believe we can be one of those families that does.
A PET Scan (from the neck down) was done to make sure we didn't miss anything. We didn't. That is the extent of the masses, striations, nodules, things in her body. Unfortunately that is not the end of her diagnosis. After doing a blood test to see what protein the cancer was giving off the Oncologist found out we are dealing with breast cancer. Breast Cancer? There is nothing in the breast!! Well again, my mom likes to be unique. In very rare instances breast cancer will settle in the Lymph Node system first instead of the breast. This seems to be the case with my mom. At the same time this blood work was done mom had a back puncture done to biopsy the mass in the lower back, place a chemo plug in the spine and drain a little spinal fluid to help with the sever headaches she was then experiencing. Intrathecal Chemo Therapy is the only way to do chemo on the brain to get rid of the free floating cancer cells. We won't know for a few weeks yet if that did any good or not or if she will need more.
After the breast cancer was found the Oncologist finally decided we had enough information to start Chemo Therapy. They are giving her a special cocktail that should catch the lung and the breast cancer. Yes, lung cancer has not been totally ruled out yet and I'm not sure we know what was found out about the mass in the lower back. I'm just glad the chemo has started. As for the Thyroid cancer the Oncologist now believes it is a spread from the breast cancer. So now you know the story.
Today the latest is this. She went into the hospital again on Sunday night (March 29, 2009) because she had three seizures in a row. Dr Washington (neurologist) wanted to get a seizure on an EEG. That didn't happen. But again, they are 95% sure the seizures are due to the tumors and the radiation. These two things cause swelling and pressure in the brain and in two weeks time we should see a difference as the side affects go away. She is however too weak to come home. She is going through physical therapy in the hospital to get her legs stronger and the rest of her body. My brother Derrick who is with her this week said she is to the point that she can't even roll over in bed by herself. This so so not my mom. She is a mover and a shaker and if she was aware of her surroundings and the fact she is in the hospital she would not be happy. All of the medications she is on have made her groggy and a little more than a little out of it. We are hoping this will subside as the side affects of radiation subside. However, she is so much better being where she is. She is done with radiation as I mentioned and she has weeks of chemo left, but we are on our way to helping mom get better. All prayers and thoughts are appreciated and we thank you in advance for your love and support. This blog is set up mainly to let our family and friends know what is happening on a regular basis, but we appreciate your participation and insight.
Funny Things Mom has said or talked about:
Chocolate Covered Pickles. Yes, mom wanted Chocolate Covered Pickles and she was sure my Aunt Vickie had the recipe. While trying to find out what mom was talking about my sister Heather asked several questions including the shape of these chocolate covered pickles. Needless to say my mom told her they were the same shape and size as a certain male body part. Sorry if this makes you blush, but it is the truth. On top of that she called my aunt to get the recipe and make us all sorry we were questioning her. In the conversation a family dinner was being planned because my sister Ketra was in town, to take care of mom, and so mom needed Vickie's help to organize the troops. She asked Vickie about the pickles and Vickie knew they had made some chocolate covered pretzels at Christmas time and proceeded to tell mom the recipe for those. It took Almond Bark and pretzels. So mom said great we can have chocolate covered pickles, almond bark and a few salads for the family dinner. And as they were ending the conversation mom decided Cream Cheese would go well with all of that. Needless to say my sister Ketra was laughing her head off listening to this conversation. The funniest part of this whole story is the fact that my mom does not want to become her mom. My grandmother has dementia. She is currently in a nursing home for people with Alzheimer's. This little moment about Chocolate Covered Pickles has brought out the Grandma in mom. A little more to the story is that my son's friend was over for dinner the day after this conversation took place. We were having grilled hamburgers and hot dogs. So we had pickles on the table. My daughter Sarah was asking for the third time if she could have a pickle and Courtney made the comment that we knew Sarah would never go crazy. I asked why that was? Because of the pickles? Courtney informed me that pickles are high in vitamin K and that helps with not going crazy. Without missing a beat my husband, Bruce, said, "No wonder why your mom wanted pickles." And in the immortal words of Paul Harvey, "Now you know the rest of the story."
In a lucid moment with our good friend Stacey mom explained what she was talking about. She remembered making pretzels with Vickie and my cousin who was there grabbed a pickle off a relish tray they were snacking on and a chocolate covered pretzel and popped them both in her mouth at the same time and made the comment, "Wow, that was pretty good." Mom was just stuck on that part of the memory and couldn't get the rest of the information out. I figure Heavenly Father knew we would need moments like this to keep the humor in our lives. Like I said, mom loves to laugh and when we tell her of this experience there will be much rolling in the isles, and shaking of bellies.
My mom's medical problems started a few months ago. She found out she had high blood pressure. High blood pressure in and of itself is nothing to be too worried about. She started on medication and seemed as if all was fine. Then she got a sinus infection. She hates doctors so to get her to even go in for an antibiotic was like dragging an elephant over a sand dune. But she finally did and the meds made her very sick. From there, she figured she got the flu because she started throwing up. She threw up for three weeks before going in and finding out what was wrong. That elephant thing again. During this time as well she found out she has cataracts so she can't see anything either. We found out her gall bladder needed to be taken out so the surgery happened and she was feeling better for two whole days before she started to throw up again. She went back into the hospital and realized that her bowels had not been working for the three weeks she was sick. She lost 35 pounds in those three weeks from lack of eating. So, they did a lower body scan to make sure there was not an obstruction. During this scan they found a mass in her lower back by the tail bone and a mass in the lung. (I don't know which lung, I don't really think it matters, it's there and a spot as well.) During the next week that mom spent in the hospital trying to get her bowels to work again the Dr's did more scans to see what we were dealing with. They did a biopsy on the lung and told us we were dealing with Adenocarcinoma Cancer (soft tissue cancer) that is in the lung. So now you're thinking my mom is a smoker. Well, she isn't. Never has. Unfortunately about 10-15% of lung cancer happens in people who have never smoked or been around smokers.
We also found out she had some striations and lesions on the bones. So we knew for sure we were dealing with a cancer that has spread to multiple places in the body. At this time it came out that mom has cataracts and that some of her pressure points didn't add up with the eye doctor so he could do the cataract surgery. That sent off alarms for the Dr's at the hospital and they did a Head CT. They found three tumors in the frontal lobe of mom's brain. She did not present normally for brain tumors, especially since she had three of them. She has had headaches off and on for a while. They tend to go up and down in their intensity. Most people with tumors get a low grade headache and that headache never goes away, it just gets worse and worse as the pressure from the tumors builds in the head. Mom never had this problem. Non the less, the tumors are still there. In fact when she started the blood pressure medication the headaches became less frequent. We figured we had that problem licked because headaches can be a sign of high blood pressure. We were wrong. The Dr's started her on Radiation for fifteen days. She has had a high dosage and aggressive form of radiation. She is now done with that as of today.
After more scans and looking for more information we also found some nodules on the Thyroid. The Dr's then biopsied the Thyroid to see if we had lung cancer that had spread that far or if we were dealing with two kinds of cancer. This is very rare by the way. Most people only have one form of cancer and that cancer spreads to the lymph nodes and then throughout the body like mom's has. However, my mom likes to be unique and so is the case with her medical condition. They found out we were dealing with two forms of cancer, Lung and Thyroid. The problem we were having at this point is trying to figure out which one started first and which one had spread or if both had spread. During this time mom started to have some Jackson Seizures. These seizures are fairly severe. They wear her out and make her whole body go rigid. I was with her when she had one of the first ones. It was scary to say the least. We got her into the hospital again and ran some more tests to make sure we weren't dealing with something new. We weren't and the Dr's gave her more meds to take. (At this point she has had more and more instead of less and less. She is currently on three types of seizure medication. My brother Joe was with her last week and the worse day mom had she had eight seizures. The Dr's are 95% sure these seizures are caused by the tumors and the toxicity of the radiation treatments.)
Since mom kept having headaches and they kept getting worse Dr Geiver, radiologist, did another head scan. That scan told us some news none of us wanted to hear. Mom has Leptomeningial spread. That means she has free floating cancer cells in her brain fluid. This form of spread is very aggressive and if the chemo does not work we could be looking at only a few months with my mom. I choose to believe we can beat anything with the right attitude. I think my family feels the same way, but we are all very realistic. We know not everyone beats cancer. We just choose to believe we can be one of those families that does.
A PET Scan (from the neck down) was done to make sure we didn't miss anything. We didn't. That is the extent of the masses, striations, nodules, things in her body. Unfortunately that is not the end of her diagnosis. After doing a blood test to see what protein the cancer was giving off the Oncologist found out we are dealing with breast cancer. Breast Cancer? There is nothing in the breast!! Well again, my mom likes to be unique. In very rare instances breast cancer will settle in the Lymph Node system first instead of the breast. This seems to be the case with my mom. At the same time this blood work was done mom had a back puncture done to biopsy the mass in the lower back, place a chemo plug in the spine and drain a little spinal fluid to help with the sever headaches she was then experiencing. Intrathecal Chemo Therapy is the only way to do chemo on the brain to get rid of the free floating cancer cells. We won't know for a few weeks yet if that did any good or not or if she will need more.
After the breast cancer was found the Oncologist finally decided we had enough information to start Chemo Therapy. They are giving her a special cocktail that should catch the lung and the breast cancer. Yes, lung cancer has not been totally ruled out yet and I'm not sure we know what was found out about the mass in the lower back. I'm just glad the chemo has started. As for the Thyroid cancer the Oncologist now believes it is a spread from the breast cancer. So now you know the story.
Today the latest is this. She went into the hospital again on Sunday night (March 29, 2009) because she had three seizures in a row. Dr Washington (neurologist) wanted to get a seizure on an EEG. That didn't happen. But again, they are 95% sure the seizures are due to the tumors and the radiation. These two things cause swelling and pressure in the brain and in two weeks time we should see a difference as the side affects go away. She is however too weak to come home. She is going through physical therapy in the hospital to get her legs stronger and the rest of her body. My brother Derrick who is with her this week said she is to the point that she can't even roll over in bed by herself. This so so not my mom. She is a mover and a shaker and if she was aware of her surroundings and the fact she is in the hospital she would not be happy. All of the medications she is on have made her groggy and a little more than a little out of it. We are hoping this will subside as the side affects of radiation subside. However, she is so much better being where she is. She is done with radiation as I mentioned and she has weeks of chemo left, but we are on our way to helping mom get better. All prayers and thoughts are appreciated and we thank you in advance for your love and support. This blog is set up mainly to let our family and friends know what is happening on a regular basis, but we appreciate your participation and insight.
Funny Things Mom has said or talked about:
Chocolate Covered Pickles. Yes, mom wanted Chocolate Covered Pickles and she was sure my Aunt Vickie had the recipe. While trying to find out what mom was talking about my sister Heather asked several questions including the shape of these chocolate covered pickles. Needless to say my mom told her they were the same shape and size as a certain male body part. Sorry if this makes you blush, but it is the truth. On top of that she called my aunt to get the recipe and make us all sorry we were questioning her. In the conversation a family dinner was being planned because my sister Ketra was in town, to take care of mom, and so mom needed Vickie's help to organize the troops. She asked Vickie about the pickles and Vickie knew they had made some chocolate covered pretzels at Christmas time and proceeded to tell mom the recipe for those. It took Almond Bark and pretzels. So mom said great we can have chocolate covered pickles, almond bark and a few salads for the family dinner. And as they were ending the conversation mom decided Cream Cheese would go well with all of that. Needless to say my sister Ketra was laughing her head off listening to this conversation. The funniest part of this whole story is the fact that my mom does not want to become her mom. My grandmother has dementia. She is currently in a nursing home for people with Alzheimer's. This little moment about Chocolate Covered Pickles has brought out the Grandma in mom. A little more to the story is that my son's friend was over for dinner the day after this conversation took place. We were having grilled hamburgers and hot dogs. So we had pickles on the table. My daughter Sarah was asking for the third time if she could have a pickle and Courtney made the comment that we knew Sarah would never go crazy. I asked why that was? Because of the pickles? Courtney informed me that pickles are high in vitamin K and that helps with not going crazy. Without missing a beat my husband, Bruce, said, "No wonder why your mom wanted pickles." And in the immortal words of Paul Harvey, "Now you know the rest of the story."
In a lucid moment with our good friend Stacey mom explained what she was talking about. She remembered making pretzels with Vickie and my cousin who was there grabbed a pickle off a relish tray they were snacking on and a chocolate covered pretzel and popped them both in her mouth at the same time and made the comment, "Wow, that was pretty good." Mom was just stuck on that part of the memory and couldn't get the rest of the information out. I figure Heavenly Father knew we would need moments like this to keep the humor in our lives. Like I said, mom loves to laugh and when we tell her of this experience there will be much rolling in the isles, and shaking of bellies.
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