In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit.
~Albert Schweitzer
Dr. McDreamy was just the burst of flame that I needed....he made me hopeful again (during a time when there was a lot of uncertainty and fear of the unknown path ahead) and he certainly rekindled my inner spirit.
The TheraSphere procedure went as expected on Tuesday, September 13th. We arrived at 6:30am and by 7am I was prepped and in the operating room. I again had to have a 6 hour recovery period where I literally had to lay flat and keep my legs straight in order to seal the puncture sight. We finally left the hospital after being there about 9 hours. Again, the doctor said the procedure was successful in that they were able to get to all of my tumors in the liver. Now we are just waiting and praying that the little glass beads of radiation are doing what they were designed to do.
Over the course of the next few days I began experiencing flu-like symptoms, nausea, fatigue and I had a fever off and on...all was expected. The doctor informed us that my fevers were indicating the radiation was killing the cancer cells, so that was a wonderful side effect to have! That weekend my symptoms started to become worse (dehydration, severe discomfort and vomiting), so on Monday I was advised to go to the oncology floor at the hospital and get blood work and fluids through an IV. Apparently I was extremely dehydrated and there were concerns with some of my levels being low (gathered from my blood work results)....so they decided to admit me into the hospital a block away. This was the same hospital I gave birth to my youngest son three years ago, so it certainly brought back many wonderful memories. I was hospitalized from Monday-Wednesday.
My mom was absolutely wonderful and stayed with me both nights while I was in the hospital...while Kevin and my dad took care of the boys. There is just something about having your mom by your side - nursing you back to good health. I am extremely grateful and fortunate.
On a side note, the week before Dr. McDreamy personally emailed the neuroendocrine specialist we were planning to see at Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston....he referred to him on a first name basis and certainly pulled some strings. I received a phone call within a few hours from the Boston office offering to move up my appointment immediately. It certainly is nice to have connections from time to time! We were suppose to head to Boston last Monday, but due to being hospitalized our trip to see the neuroendocrine specialist was cancelled for the time being. A trip out East will be in the works again once I am fully recovered from the TheraSphere procedure.
Since being released from the hospital last Wednesday, I have been ordered to rest and take it easy. The fatigue could last anywhere from 2-4 weeks. I have noticed I can only do house work/pick up after the boys/go to the store/etc... for a maximum of 5-10 minutes before I hit a wall and am suddenly extremely fatigued and literally have to sit or lay down and regroup. Because of this, I have pretty much been confined to the bed or the couch most of the day. It is nothing like I have ever experienced before. The doctor had said I would experience fatigue, but I didn't really know what that consisted of until now. Certainly different than chemo fatigue....in my case, more debilitating.
Planning to rest as much as possible this week....in hopes of gaining my strength and energy back before we leave for a prearranged trip to DisneyWorld with the boys on Sunday. I certainly don't want to miss out on any of the excitement from the viewpoint of the boys....they "can't wait to go to Mickey's house" and I clearly will need all of the energy possible being at Disney.
What's next....currently we are just letting the little glass beads do their magic. I go in for an MRI and then consult with Dr. MrDreamy on Tuesday, October 11th. This is also when we will discuss my next step regarding my gall bladder. So on the 11th, we will have an idea of how successful the procedure was....hoping the tumors will be gone completely. :)
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| Recovery period after the TheraSphere...it's hard to tell in the photo, but I still have a lot of hair. It never fell out completely with the chemo treatments....in fact I have actually had to shave it 4 times since the first initial haircut. Had I know my thick locks were going to be so stubborn, I probably would have opted for a short "Halle Berry" haircut. In the meantime, the hair I did lose during this process is coming in full force. The boys love feeling it and keep asking "why does it feel so fuzzy, like a caterpillar"? |
Peace, Love and Miracles!
dawnbfox@hotmail.com
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