Feeling Better

 Monday, October 22, 2012

It's been a long time again since updating this blog. But, I've been enjoying myself with a little crocheting, reading (which I haven't done for ages) and napping. And, I've been not enjoying myself with some extra office work that requires phone calling and online bother. Jim has to do some of my phone calling, but I am getting so if I talk slowly and keep my mouth wet, I can talk for awhile. It's still hurts to talk too long. Talking isn't fun yet, though I had a doctor's appointment this morning to see my oncology doctor and had blood taken and a chest x-ray. I was hoping they could take the blood from the port and flush it since it is supposed to be flushing about once a month. But, it didn't work, as usual...I'm ready to have the thing out and forget about it. It has had to have some fancy medicine put in every time to dissolve some web thing that covers the tube and doesn't let the blood come out. So, they did that again and we talked to our doctor about having the port out since it doesn't work.

We asked the same question of our Omaha Doctor last week. and he was of the mind to wait to see if we would want to use it again, but our doctor today said if there was treatment done again it would be totally different and we might not need a port at all. So, he's in favor of having it out after I have my MRI which should be done in a couple of weeks in Omaha.

I was supposed to have the MRI done this time, but I'm still producing plenty of mucus from my sinuses so he wanted to wait. That's a good thing. It is hard to lie flat for that long with mucus in your head. I'm not sure I'll be ready in two weeks either. 

I'm getting better for sure, but it is slow going and sometimes hard to believe it is happening at all. I now I am though because I am getting more strength all the time. It is hard to know what to start thinking about first. Mostly now, it is of work and it is hard to think about all the thigs I sued to do so effortlessly and I need to be starting some of them up. 

I'm not sure what I should start on first. 

October 22, 2022 -- I had the port put in because the chemo medicine would be somewhat irritating to my skin to have a regular IV every time. The problem was, that this web thing would have grown over the little tube that went into my blood vessel and it wouldn't work. So, every time I went in for chemo they would poke me with a big curved needle through my skin into the port, find out it didn't work, put this really expensive medicine into it, wait 45 minutes for it to clear out. While this was going on they would put the regular IV in to get started. Then, after the 45 minutes they would poke me again into my port, and by this time the topical numbing medicine would have worn off and I would be set for the rest of the day. I think I was good for the rest of the session, the next two days, but the next month this same process would be repeated. 

8 comments:

Brenda said...

So glad you are doing better, bit by bit!

October 22, 2012 at 4:07 PM

Anonymous said...

It was so good to hear from you! I guess no news is good news, but I had been wondering...not to make you feel guilty about not writing or anything! I'm thankful that you are feeling better and gaining strength...keep on enjoying yourself. You deserve it!

Sending love from Wisner!

October 22, 2012 at 5:35 PM

Oleva said...

Good to hear from you again, and glad for every "bit of better" and that you are aware of it yourself. 

Think of you every day.

Love, 

C. and O.

October 22, 2012 at 10:07 PM

Anonymous said...

Shelley, you are amazing!! I can hardly imagine you making phone calls at this point, but you've amazed me all the way through this ordeal! Again, I love your attitude and spirit through all this! It was good to see your sis-in-law, Dorothy at a funeral last week---gad a wee visit with her and got her perspective on your situation. You are fortunate to have such caring sisters-in-law, not to mention a wonderful and caring husband---also a host of family and friends! Thanks, again, for keeping us posted and we're hoping that things will keep improving for you. 

Barb K.

October 22, 2012 at 11:49 PM

gkey said...

Dear, dear friend, 

Thinking of you all today @ the Kleeb house.

Words fail in expressing how much we care for all of you!

Please feel hugged by us today.

Love,

From me & mine here. 

October 23, 2012 at 10:03 AM

Dan & Cyndie said...

Just loving that you are sounding more like our Shelley once again. :)

With much love & care from us both.

October 23 2012 at 7:42 PM

The J's said...

So good to hear from you again!

Time, time, time! That was some pretty hefty stuff your body went thru and it will take time to get yourself back to feeling, thinking and doing normally again.

Take care my friend!

October 24, 2012 at 10:30 PM

Anita said...

And I hope the upward motion has continued!!

So many things I wouldn't have thought of - like the MRI with a head full of mucus...sounds horrible. I do hope you'll have significantly less of that by the time you have the MRI...xo

October 27, 2012 at 3:10 PM