Day Plus 1

So I made it. It was actually a lot more anti-climactic than I thought. I just slept through infusion. Today I'm feeling weak, my stomach hurts from time to time, but I feel relatively good considering everything.

On Monday I get another spinal tap where the docs will inject more chemo to my brain to get rid of the CNS which stands for central nervous system. I think I mentioned in the last post that there's a little leukemia in the brain, which is why I was having those headaches. I'm not saying that I'm going to win 7 Tour Du Frances, but does my story sound like anybody else's???

All in all, I'm feeling good and am thankful for all the support.

Go giants!

Today is the big day

I just finished my first round of radiation and then have one more in the early afternoon. After that, it's the stem cell transfusion. I am so nervous. I want this to go flawlessly. I actually want to be better than I was before. I am not a prayer guy, have never felt religious, but if you're praying for me, thank you!

An update

So since I last posted, there have been a few developments. I'm not if I'd mentioned that I was having headaches, but three days ago I had a CAT scan to see if there were any irregularities in my brain. From the CAT scan the answer was no, unless you thought I was lacking in that department (ha!). But the headaches kept persisting. So I urged my doctor to give me an MRI. First off, let me say that an MRI is a claustrophobic persons nightmare. It took many muscle relaxing pills to get me into that machine. Yesterday, one of the doctors on my team came by to say that they did find an abnormality in the brain and that it's either an infection or CNS which is where the leukemia makes its way into the central nervous system. To determine this I had to do a spinal tap. So last night I had the pineal tap done...it was painful. When the needle gets stuck in the spine, it can snag a nerve and that's what happened a couple of times. So during this procedure, the doc removed 20 cc's of brain fluid and injected 5 cc's of chemo. This morning I was told that it is CNS. Rest assured though. This is very treatable and I'm working with the best team in the country. Just in case you weren't aware, years ago most to all bone marrow transplants never survived. But there was a doctor in Seattle who kept at it and revolutionized this practice. The team of doctors that are working with my fight have all studied under this doctor.

In short, I'm not changing my timeline and look to be better than ever soon enough.

Thank you for all the support. And I will continue to provide updates.

Much love!

Z

Day 1 of radiation is done

So I've gotten through the first day of radiation. Not the most pleasant experience. And it's not because of the radiation but instead because I have to sit still on a bicycle for close to 30 mins.

My main struggle right now are all the headaches. I keep getting them and at night they become more and more intense. Hopefully they'll soon go away. Not sure if it's stress or not, but the staff is monitoring.

On a brighter note, I ran a mile today and did a bit of the insanity work out from memory. While doing this I came up with an idea for all of us. My idea is to achieve my goals but also see if there's a way I can help you achieve yours. So you know my goals from my first post. But of course my main goal is to get healthy and enjoy my life with my wife, family and friends. What I ask is, what are your goals? If you care to share them with me, I will do what I can help you get there.

Chemo's done

Just finished the chemo today and then start radiation on Tuesday. Thankfully I have energy through this and rode 30 mins on the stationary bike. I'm going to have the physical therapists work with me everyday so that I have extra motivation to get back into shape. Pretty wiped now so I'm signing off.

The new norm

Now that I'm back in the hospital and have had about 10 hrs to get acclimated a lot of my feelings from my last hospital stay are coming back. The big feeling is helplessness. And what I mean by that is I'm a control freak. I want to be in control of whatever situation I'm in. I also want to help affect family and friends in a positive way. But when I can't be home to help my wife out, that takes a lot away from me. Or if I can't be there for a friend or someone in my family it drives me nuts. I know, I always seem so even keel. Ha ha.

There hasn't been a time when I couldn't control or at least have the ability to control a situation. This is going to be the new normal for a while.

Back in the hospital

So, I'm back. I just got admitted the presbyterian st lukes (PSL) today. As much as I was a fan of porter hospital, this place has got some great amenities, such as a flat screen tv, a stationary bike, access to a gym and I can eat fruit and vegetables. it's amazing how little things like this make such a big difference. I start chemo in about 2 hrs. I'll let you know tomorrow how I feel.

It's on!

Tomorrow

It's been a while is my last blog, but tomorrow I get my catheter placed and on Saturday I get admitted. After being admitted, I start chemo. Not exactly the type of weekend I'm hoping to have.

This thing is happening. I'll be keeping up with the posts to let you know about my progress.

I'm gonna need your help

As you're all aware, I will be going back to the hospital in the next week. The big challenge is once I get released. It appears that I'm going to need close to 24/7 supervision to make sure that I take all my meds, that I don't fall and hurt myself, to cook my food and to get me to my appts, which will be three times a week. This is a lot to ask for and my wife, in laws and dad are going to help out (primary caregivers). What I'm asking for is if you are planning on being in town for some time in dec or Jan and can take over for a day here or there that will help my caregivers out tremendously. So what I ask is that if you will be in town and can help out, please reach out to me or anyone previously mentioned to let them know when you'll be here in Denver and can help out. I want to relieve my primary caregivers of as much stress as possible. So, if you can help, I really appreciate it. And if you can't, I understand.

Thank you!

Postponed

So it appears that the date of my admittance back into the hospital is being postponed by about 6 days. The rationale is that my doctor and the psychologist I met with during my work believe I have a high anxiety level (whatever would give them that idea) and they want me going in as calm and level headed as possible, which I agree with. This doesn't affect my brothers work up schedule for donating the stem cells and since the transfusion will be delayed a few days, the docs will just freeze SAMs stem cells til we're ready to use them. I'll be honest, I do have quite a bit of anxiety. I could definitely do what is needed even if I were admitted tomorrow, but I want to be in the right frame of mind.

So that is my update. I still have the same goal of being out of the hospital by thanksgiving.

Sunday

So I get admitted into PSL this Sunday and start radiation on Monday. My stress level is definitely rising, quickly. When I was taking a shower yesterday, my hair just fell out, so I bicked my head. Just little things like shaving my head down to the scalp makes this seem very real. And come Monday, it will be real.

So I have a few days of freedom and then things will be changing. Would like to say I'll be the same person on the other side, but I'm not sure. I'm not sure my drs know how I'll be when this all goes down. Everyone's different. No two patents are going to have the same experience.

Well it's been a while since I last gave an update. More to come.