July 29,2011 Friday Long Time No See July 29, 2011
Posted by peanut in : Regular News , add a commentHey all,
I bet you thought I won the lottery and took off to parts unknown! Well, I’m still here, just been busy with life. I was real sick with a sinus infection that developed into the beginnings of pneumonia. I haven’t been that sick since before the transplant. It took about a month to really get over it.
My brother and I went back home for our nephew’s wedding. It was very simple and very nice. The food was great and the weather cooperated. Got to see alot of friends from the fire department where I was a member of. The good news was that they will be having a baby girl in November. They have a name picked out, and I just can’t remember what it is.
I saw all four of my nephews and they are doing well. One nephew has the cutest kids, a girl and a boy, 6 and 3. Very polite and not afraid to talk to you. Another nephew is getting his doctrate in music and we were able to meet up with him in New Jersey.
It has been horrible down here with the heat, humidity and no rain. Lawns and crops burning up in the heat. The roadside farm stands are just as pricey as the grocery stores. I’ve only had sweet corn a couple times.
My brother had his MRI earlier this week. I’ll talk to him the weekend and maybe he’ll have some news.
Work is the same, busy and slow.
My checkup with the transplant doctor is August 11th. I’ll catch you again after that. Stay safe and cool.
Tuesday, June 14,2011 June 14, 2011
Posted by peanut in : Regular News , add a commentHey gang,
How have you been doing? I’m doing ay now. I had been terrible sick, sinus infection and the beginning of pneumonia. I have not felt that tired and terrible since before my transplant. Thank God, the antibiotic and cough medicine worked.
It has been very hot and humid down here. The lawn is starting to dry up already in spots. We have had a good half inch of rain in the past 4 days from thunderstorms in the evening.
A month from today is my nephews wedding. Looking forward to going to that. Hope it is not too hot and humid.
My brother is doing well. He says he feels well but, still has some neuropathy in his feet. l with time that will go away. He will be having his MRI in August and then hopefully, get the green light to get the port taken out. His last chemo was in December.
We have been busy at work. Hospitals are always busy.
I have a few tomato, pepper and squash plants. They have not gotten any blossoms yet. I never see any bees…I wonder how they get pollinated? I had a hill of cucumber plants, but my male cat decided to use it for his personal use. I really have no hopes of anything giving me any produce.
That’s about all for now. Just wanted to stay updated with you. Oh, my INR is finally 2.7! Yippie!!
Tuesday, May 10,2011 May 10, 2011
Posted by peanut in : Regular News , add a commentHi folks,
How’s everyone doing? I’m doing ok. Went to that ballgame ans enjoyed it. We ate at a pub/restaurant nearby and also had hotdogs,sodas and popcorn at the game. Got my picture taken with the Bull mascot! I’m just a kid at heart!!
My brother is doing well. Enjoying his retirement. His plants are coming along ok. It has been hot out there.
I got my state and federal tax returns back and upgraded my electric in the back bedrooms and furnance/ac to a circuit breaker from an old fuse panel box. Lined up a guy to pump out septic tank, but when he came he couldn’t find where it was. I had several neighbors come over, as I thought maybe they might know as the houses were all built at the same time. No luck. Still waiting to see if the guy who originally built the house will contact me.
I cut alot of brush and some small dead trees and dead azealea bush around the house. My next door neighbor came and cut up the fallen tree from the neighbors property. I got that all cleaned up. I cleaned out the gutters and got the push mower and weed whip started. The pulling on the cord to start them bothers my shoulder, so I have to be careful and not overdo things.
I went to a wake for a former boss whos 18 year old son committed suicide. No reason, no indication anything was wrong. What a waste of a life.
My plants are doing well and I need to get the cukes and zuchini in the ground. I think I am going to leave the tomatoes and peppers in the single pots I have them in.
We have gotten quite a bit of rain the past couple weeks. Thank God we just had bad wind and rain a couple weeks ago when the tornadoes hit south of us. They said 30 tornadoes hit here in North Carolina. Very scary.
Guess that’s about all the news. Hope you all are enjoying the spring. The time is going so quickly. Take care.
Peanut
Friday, April 15,2011 Good News April 15, 2011
Posted by peanut in : Regular News , add a commentHi all! Good news from my brother. Colonoscopy report is normal. They did take 3 or 4 small polyps out but everything looks okay. He doesn’t have to have another one for 3 years. His MRI is set for July. He is feeling stronger every day. He still has some neuropathy in his feet and hands, but some improvement there. He has been working outside, so is enjoying that.
My appointment with the transplant doctor went well. He is very pleased, said I look good. Noticed that my hair seems to be filling in more now. We talked about weening me off the evoxac and prednisone. No more rinse for the dry mouth. That has been doing well..no dry mouth. I go back again in August. Will have the usual blood work and a chest xray. My INR was 2.2, so no change in the warfarin.
I’m going next Thursday to a Durham Bulls baseball game with a couple girls from where I work. Should be fun.
Hope all is well with everyone on here. Take care and catch you soon.
Peanut
April 4, 2011 Happy Spring April 4, 2011
Posted by peanut in : Regular News , 2commentsHi,
Well, just a couple updates. I had my GYN appointment and everything is fine. The doctor was able to do a painless pap smear and all was negative, including the HPV testing. She told me I was “normal” and the narrowing of the canal is from going into menopause so early and no sexual activity. It has nothing to do with the GVHD that I was led to believe from the family doctor and transplant doctor. I guess that is why everyone has a specialty. Anyway, don’t need to have another PAP for 3 years. Yea!!
My brother retired on March 29th. They had a nice potluck for him and lots of gift cards.
My brother had his colonoscopy on March 31st. Everything looks good, although they did remove 2 polyps. No news back on that testing. He will have an MRI later this spring and check things out. I am curious about the spots on the liver. They also haven’t mentioned the chest xray, so I can only assume that it was ok.
He and I are flying back home in July to be at our nephews’ wedding. He is the son of our brother that passed in June 09. They are having it at home, so should be nice.
I didn’t get to Washington, DC last week to see the cherry blossoms. My furnance went out and I also had electrical problems with the fuse box. The panel for the furnace finally came in last Friday, and they put that on. It was nice to have heat again after 48 degrees in the house for almost a week.
The electrician came on Saturday and transfered the fuse panel to circuit breakers. Hopefully that will end any problems with the furnace and the air conditioner in the future. Expensive, but needed to be done. Now I have plumbing things to be fixed and am waiting for a call from a guy. Hope that won’t be too expensive. Septic tank needs to be flushed out and painting outside.
I got 12 trees from the Arbor Foundation and need to get them in the ground somewhere. They had to soak overnight. I’m going out to supper right after work, so may be able to get them in tonight. They are small, so won’t require alot of digging.
That’s all I can think of right now. Hope you are having a good week.
March 12,2011 Saturday March 12, 2011
Posted by peanut in : Regular News , add a commentHi.
I wasn’t going to post until after my GYN appointment, but I had to go back to the orthopedic doctor this week. My elbow has become a real problem. Elbow bursa swelled up to the size of a small plum. Hot,red and sore. Saw the dr on Wednesday after an hour and a half wait after my appointment time. He pulled as much of the blood out of there as he could…over 25ccs. He couldn’t get it all. Gave me antibiotics for 7 days. Keep the area wrapped with an ace bandage during the day and ice it 3 times a day for 15-20 minutes. My elbow felt great on Thursday, but has since filled back up again, although not to the size it was yet.
The doctor told me that he did not recommend surgery as it was difficult to recover from and also it was not a guarantee that the swelling would not come back. So his advice was to live with it. He did not want to draw any more fluid off the elbow as it was more of a risk getting an infection from the needles.
So, we wrap, we ice and we live with it. I am so tired of being shipped from doctor to doctor with all these issues.
On a good note, I’m going to the beach in 2 weeks for 2 days. Two of my closest friends and caregivers are going also. We are just gonna hang out, get some sea food and go to the aquarium. I have never been to this aquarium, but they say even though it is small, it is nice.
In July I’m going back home for my nephew’s wedding. My brother from CA is flying out also. That should be nice and I should get to see a lot of the family. Hope it isn’t unbearable with the heat and humidity.
Okay, check in with you after the 24th, Have a good month.
Peanut
March 4,2011 Friday March 4, 2011
Posted by peanut in : Regular News , add a commentGosh, where does the time go? I have so much to update. My brother finished up his chemotherapy in December. He had a scan and things looked good. Doctor wants to keep an eye on his liver. He will have another colonoscopy this month and probably around June or so another MRI.
He has started his retirement process and I believe he will retire the end of the month.
My colonoscopy went fine. The doctor took out 10 polyps, 4 or 5 were pre-cancerous and the others benign. Because of the history I have to have another colonoscopy in 3 years. My other brother had his colonoscopy done in January, and his was okay.
I had shingles in January. Luckily, we caught them in the early stages. I had such pain in my left leg, I thought I had a blood clot. Ended up going to the ER and had Doppler’s done on both legs and no clots found. The next day I was very sick to my stomach and made an appointment with my family Dr, When I got there I showed her some small clear pimples on my lower back and yes, you have shingles.I was out of work for 2 weeks.
This all happened in the middle of the physical therapy for my shoulder. I went to several appointments and did exercises. Right after the shingles I developed a very sore elbow. Hadn’t hit it that I know of. Woke up the next morning and my arm was black and blue and I had a big knot on the elbow. Things progressed and the swelling and bruising went from just above the elbow into the upper arm to my wrist. It looked so awful and hurt like the dickens. Went to see the orthopedic Dr about my shoulder and he drew some fluid out of the elbow. He said it was a ruptured bursa in the elbow and it had bled into the tissue, thus forming the terrible bruising down the arm. Cool compresses and wrap it with an ace bandage during the day. It is still terribly swollen. He said some times they do surgery and remove the bursa. If it becomes infected, it can lead to .
Work has been very busy and stressful. We are still training the new techs. A couple people have had the flu. I’m working a double now because the 2nd shift person is out sick.
Oh yeah, one more thing. I have an up coming appointment with a gynecologist at Duke to look in to this vaginal narrowing that is from the GVHD. When I had my PAP, the dr couldn’t really do it..she just used the brush and then couldn’t reach the cervix. This could be a real problem if the canal closes off, as my urine will have no way of getting out.
There is always something going on.
I have been able to get some raking done outside. The flower beds anyway. I can’t do alot of raking, as I get out of breath and have to rest. So any physical work takes a great deal of time.
So that the latest. Will update after the dr appointment on the 22nd. Take care.
Happy New Year Everyone! January 7, 2011
Posted by peanut in : Regular News , 4commentsHi all. I hope everyone had a great Xmas holiday and a happy new year. My holidays were very low-key, just how I like them. Spent lots of time with the pets, playing and grooming them. They thoroughly enjoyed it.
My brother finished up his chemo the week after Xmas. The doctor wasn’t there at the clinic, but the nurse said she thought he’d probably follow up with a scan in about a month or so, that is what he usually does. So, let’s hope everything is gone and he is done until his next colonoscopy. Speaking of colonoscopies, mine is coming up, next Friday. Can’t say I’m looking forward to it, but I promised I’d have one done, so I’ll keep my promise.
I had a bad bleed in my left eye and a horrible bruise on my upper right arm, from shoulder to elbow. Not sure how that happened. I think I’d remember if I banged it. I think the bleed in the eye came from a sneeze or blowing my nose. I am off the warfarin for 10 days prior to the colonoscopy, so will have to build that level up again. That’s about all my news for now.
Oh, we did get 4 more techs from a hospital that just closed. Training everyone now, so hectic days. I am so tired when I get home. Catch you after the colonoscopy. Peanut
Wednesday, December 15, 2010…10 days till Xmas!! December 15, 2010
Posted by peanut in : Regular News , add a commentHi all. Well, here we are again. I went to physical therapy today. The first visit, so we did an evaluation for range of motion, strength..stuff like that. I have never had any therapy, so this is all new to me. Very nice therapist. She spent a good hour with me, showed me some exercises to do daily. My shoulder is improved since the shot the dr.gave me. Not much pain at all, so I am able to move my arm more. I will go back on Jan. 3rd as she will be away. I will do the exercises till she comes back and see where we are.
Transplant check up went ok. CBC and chemistries good. The INR is 2.7, so that is good. Continue on present dosages for a month and then repeat INR. The only problem I have is they had to write a new prescription for me as the one I had wasn’t any good any more since I take more pills than was subscribed in the old order. The thing is they made it out for warfarin. Now the co-pay is $10 instead of $30 per month for coumadin, but I have been on warfarin before and they could not get the INR up into the therapeutic range, So, we’ll try it for a month, and if the INR is not staying up where it should, they’ll have to switch it back.
Now I have a secondary problem related to the GVHD. The canal that comes down from the bladder and urethra through the vaginal wall to the outside is narrowing. It has narrowed considerably since I had my last pap. The problem here is that if this keeps narrowing because of the GVHD, I will have a problem with urination..or lack there of. I have to go see a gynecologist. They usually treat this at first with topical hormone creams to soften up the tissue and prevent it from shrinking any more. If things progress they may have to do surgery. There is always something going on. My hands are in very bad shape with 4 finger tips cracked open with the GVHD also. Mouth seems to be doing well and not dry or red. My hands are red and swollen and they hurt. I keep the steroid cream they gave me on them, but darn I have to wash my hands a 100 times a day at work. Hard to keep lotion or anything on them for long.
My brother had his chemo last Friday. He has had 2 days of neupogen shots this week and will rest through the holidays. I think his last chemo treatment is on the 28th. I hope so. Maybe by nice weather, he will feel like his old self again.
I can’t believe Xmas is next weekend. I have been invited to a friends house for Xmas. I may just hang out at home and catch up on some rest. I’ve been working some doubles this week. Monday, today and tomorrow I worked extra shifts. The lady who works second shift, her husband is in the hospital. Hopefully he will come home the weekend. She was the lady I worked Thanksgiving for. Nice lady.
Okay, guess that’s all my news for now. If I don’t talk to you all before Christmas have happy abnd safe holidays. Take care.
Friday, December 10,2010-Posting early December 10, 2010
Posted by peanut in : Regular News , add a commentHi all,
What’s new? I’m sure everyone is all ready for Christmas, right? Ha-Ha. I have a small 3 foot tree up and decorated, candles in the windows, some other lights around the house. Outside is lit up. Boy, has it gotten cold here. Glad I put the lights and stuff up outside when it was still warm. It has been cold in the mornings, between 14 and 24 degrees. We had an inch of snow last Saturday. It was beautiful!
My brother is scheduled to have his 2nd to last treatment today. I hope his wbc and platelet count are up so he can get the chemo. Then one last treatment after Christmas and he is done. Thank the Lord. He’s still planning on retiring this coming year. Good for him.
I ended up going to see an orthopedic doctor for my right shoulder. Lots of pain and limited range of motion. It turns out I have a degenerative, partially torn rotor cuff, tendonitis and bursitis. I could tell something more was going on than just a pulled muscle. My upper arm was swollen and each morning I’d wake up and my whole hand would be swollen and I could hardly close it to make a fist. Underarm pain in armpit and top of shoulder on upper arm. He gave me an injection of corticosteroid and a pain/relaxer. Pain was worse the night of the injection, but much better the next day, just as he said. I start physical therapy next week. He wants to strengthen the deltoid muscle. He said 85% of the time the injection and therapy work. He does not want to do surgery, only as a last resort. Hopefully I won’t be in the 15% that this treatment does not work. I don’t want surgery either with my history of throwing clots. We just got the coumadin level regulated after 3 months.
Have my appointment with transplant doctor on Monday, so will update again. I don’t anticipate any thing changing. Have a great weekend and talk to you after the appointment and physical therapy.