Today is Wednesday June 30th and things are going great! Chad is still feeling really good. His blood work has come back okay the last two times and other than his blood clotting level still not being where they would like it to be, his levels are good. He still has swelling in his feet and legs and it gets worse as the day goes on but really that's the worst side effect he has right now. If he puts his feet up for a while here and there through the day and at night, the swelling goes way down. Don't get me wrong, he is not feeling 100% by any means. He gets short of breath and tired easy and is on lots of medicine including a steroid, blood thinner, and morphine which all have side effects of their own. All things considered though, and compared to his 20 day stay in the hospital... he is feeling and looking GREAT! His doctors even said it is okay for him to travel to Lynchburg for the 4th of July weekend to visit family & friends and we are all really looking forward to it.
He is scheduled to have his third round of chemotherapy next week. He is supposed to have a CT scan next week too, to check the progress of his treatment. I have a feeling the tumors in his lungs and lymph nodes will be gone or almost gone! Everyone keep those prayers up, they are working!!
Thank you again to all of you for your continued support, prayers, and encouragement. We are so blessed to have so many wonderful people in our lives. People continue to amaze us with their words, cards, gifts and genuine acts of kindness. We will be forever grateful for everyone and everything.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Control Issues, who me?
Today is Wednesday June 23rd and Chad is doing really well. Having him home has been wonderful and we've been enjoying every minute. He had to get another blood transfusion yesterday because his hemoglobin level was back down to 7.4, besides taking 6 hours it went just fine. He has lots of doctors visits scheduled because they are still monitoring his blood levels very closely. It's not that bad though, we live very close to the hospital so it's not a big deal to go and we both feel better after they check everything. He had to double up on his daily blood thinning medicine because his blood is still too thick which means he is still at risk for clots. I am sure they will get it straight soon.
He still hasn't had any sign of nausea after his second round of chemo so that's a huge blessing! He's been able to keep the mouth sores under control with a prescription mouth wash so they haven't been bothering him either. The only real side effects so far have been lot's of swelling in his feet and legs and being tired. They say the swelling is normal from being pumped with so much fluid. He has to keep his feet elevated a lot but the swelling goes down when he does. Overall, he is doing really, really good! He's had a good appetite and has been in great spirits.
Justice is in Lynchburg this week, he is attending camp at Chad's parent's church and is loving it! As much as we miss him, we love that he is having a good time. We talk to him everyday and know he's in great hands. He loves being there as much as Chad's parents love having him.
I am doing better, I won't talk much about myself since this is a blog about Chad's journey but I have to admit I have been having a hard time. They say knowledge is power but it seemed the more I read and the more I researched, the more depressed I got. The Internet can be a scary place and too much information isn't always a good thing. I found that the more I read, the further I felt from that peace that God had given me early on. I found myself trying to control everything like what Chad was eating, when he was eating it, when he took his pills, when he slept and..... well you get the point. I got a little crazy. (poor Chad) I had an awful feeling in the pit of my stomach all the time and was filled with fear and doubt. It was horrible.
SO I stepped away from the Internet and the books and the statistics and put my faith and trust right back where it should be, with God, his son, his book and his spirit. From now on, the only research I'm doing will be found in the BIBLE! To some of you this probably sounds extreme or weird but I am telling you I feel a million times better and have that peace back. The peace that tells me everything will be okay because I am NOT in control of Chad's recovery! Thank GOD haha ;)
He still hasn't had any sign of nausea after his second round of chemo so that's a huge blessing! He's been able to keep the mouth sores under control with a prescription mouth wash so they haven't been bothering him either. The only real side effects so far have been lot's of swelling in his feet and legs and being tired. They say the swelling is normal from being pumped with so much fluid. He has to keep his feet elevated a lot but the swelling goes down when he does. Overall, he is doing really, really good! He's had a good appetite and has been in great spirits.
Justice is in Lynchburg this week, he is attending camp at Chad's parent's church and is loving it! As much as we miss him, we love that he is having a good time. We talk to him everyday and know he's in great hands. He loves being there as much as Chad's parents love having him.
I am doing better, I won't talk much about myself since this is a blog about Chad's journey but I have to admit I have been having a hard time. They say knowledge is power but it seemed the more I read and the more I researched, the more depressed I got. The Internet can be a scary place and too much information isn't always a good thing. I found that the more I read, the further I felt from that peace that God had given me early on. I found myself trying to control everything like what Chad was eating, when he was eating it, when he took his pills, when he slept and..... well you get the point. I got a little crazy. (poor Chad) I had an awful feeling in the pit of my stomach all the time and was filled with fear and doubt. It was horrible.
SO I stepped away from the Internet and the books and the statistics and put my faith and trust right back where it should be, with God, his son, his book and his spirit. From now on, the only research I'm doing will be found in the BIBLE! To some of you this probably sounds extreme or weird but I am telling you I feel a million times better and have that peace back. The peace that tells me everything will be okay because I am NOT in control of Chad's recovery! Thank GOD haha ;)
Friday, June 18, 2010
Home Sweet Home
Chad is HOME!! After 20 days in the hospital, he is home. Chad got to go to Justice's 5th grade graduation yesterday and him being there made Justice beam a smile from ear to ear. He was so proud to have his Dad there. Chad and I fought back happy tears the whole time. It was a beautiful day.
Chad went back a few hours later for his chemo treatment and then he came home for the night. The three of us just hung out last night and watched a movie. We felt "normal" for the first time in a long time. It is amazing how something as simple as watching a movie and eating popcorn with your family can mean so much. I will never take things like that for granted ever again.
Chad is receiving his last day of chemo in the second round today. Then he gets two weeks off! He will still be back and forth to the doctor's office a lot so they can keep an eye on everything but no chemo for two weeks. He is looking forward to some down time.
We plan on spending the weekend just being together and being HOME! I have a feeling this will be one of Chad's best father's days ever.
Chad went back a few hours later for his chemo treatment and then he came home for the night. The three of us just hung out last night and watched a movie. We felt "normal" for the first time in a long time. It is amazing how something as simple as watching a movie and eating popcorn with your family can mean so much. I will never take things like that for granted ever again.
Chad is receiving his last day of chemo in the second round today. Then he gets two weeks off! He will still be back and forth to the doctor's office a lot so they can keep an eye on everything but no chemo for two weeks. He is looking forward to some down time.
We plan on spending the weekend just being together and being HOME! I have a feeling this will be one of Chad's best father's days ever.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Half way there and Almost HOME!!
Today is Wednesday June 16th and Chad is still in the hospital. BUT it looks like he will get to come home in the morning!! YEAH! Dr. May heard that Justice's graduation from elementary school is in the morning and decided to do whatever necessary to get Chad out of here so he can go. Dr. May and all the nurses here are really just amazing. They have treated us like family and really care about their patients. I hope no one else we know has to come here and get to know them, but if Chad had to be in a hospital, I am so glad it was here. We will be forever grateful to all of them.
SO DID I MENTION HE IS COMING HOME!!!! I really believe it will happen this time. Chad looks so good. I think everyone that sees him is surprised at how well he looks and feels. His blood clotting levels are still not exactly right but Dr. May has a plan and will monitor him very closely. Chad has been receiving chemo all week with very few side effects. He has been tired and a little swollen from all the fluids, but other than that he is doing great! He will receive the last two days of chemo this week as an outpatient. He will get to leave for a while in the morning, then come back tomorrow afternoon for chemo.
We are just feeling on top of the world right now and are so thankful for God's strength and love. We never lost faith and never will. After this round of chemo Chad will be at the half way point of his treatments and I truly believe things will go much smoother from here on out!
SO DID I MENTION HE IS COMING HOME!!!! I really believe it will happen this time. Chad looks so good. I think everyone that sees him is surprised at how well he looks and feels. His blood clotting levels are still not exactly right but Dr. May has a plan and will monitor him very closely. Chad has been receiving chemo all week with very few side effects. He has been tired and a little swollen from all the fluids, but other than that he is doing great! He will receive the last two days of chemo this week as an outpatient. He will get to leave for a while in the morning, then come back tomorrow afternoon for chemo.
We are just feeling on top of the world right now and are so thankful for God's strength and love. We never lost faith and never will. After this round of chemo Chad will be at the half way point of his treatments and I truly believe things will go much smoother from here on out!
Monday, June 14, 2010
Code Atlas!! Code Atlas!!
Today is Monday June 14th and day 17 for Chad in the hospital. He is still on the slow drip of blood thinner and hasn't been off since Thursday. He had a great weekend anyway though, had some very close friends visit and his parents were here.
They are starting his second round of chemo today as planned. So he will have the blood thinner going in an IV in his arm and the chemo going through the port in his chest. His blood levels are good. The Hemoglobin is down a little again but not quite low enough to require another blood transfusion, but they will monitor this closely.
We have heard numerous codes called over the intercom while we've been at the hospital. Like code blue, code red, code rapid response. A new one we heard the other day was code Atlas. Chad asked the nurse what it meant and she told him it means a patient is having a break down, losing it, is very emotional upset, becoming a physical threat, could possibly even need restraints! That poor patient we don't know. We said a prayer for the mystery patient. :)
After spending all this time in here with Chad, I can totally understand how a patient can go "code Atlas." In fact, Chad is not far from a code Atlas in here! hahaha (kind of kidding but you never know) He has been so strong and positive and consistently strong in his faith but good lord, he's only human! It just really sucks sometimes and today is one of those really hard days....
So for those of you that don't know, Chad collects LP vinyl records - mostly 60s & 70s Soul, jazz, and funk. I'd love to get some for him to cheer him up. (Thanks Liz for the ones you found him last week!) He usually looks at yard sales and flea markets and Goodwill stores. Since I can't go out on the hunt for them myself too much right now, I am asking for everyone's help. Will you all keep your eyes open for records and pick them up if you find some that aren't too expensive? He normally doesn't pay more than $3 a record, and most are a $1 each or so. Even if it's just one or two records, he loves them all and they would make his day!
Wik's verse picks...
2nd Cor 11:23
"...I'm talking like a mad man - far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. Five times I received 39 lashes..."
2nd Cor 12:10
"For when I am weak, I am strong."
They are starting his second round of chemo today as planned. So he will have the blood thinner going in an IV in his arm and the chemo going through the port in his chest. His blood levels are good. The Hemoglobin is down a little again but not quite low enough to require another blood transfusion, but they will monitor this closely.
We have heard numerous codes called over the intercom while we've been at the hospital. Like code blue, code red, code rapid response. A new one we heard the other day was code Atlas. Chad asked the nurse what it meant and she told him it means a patient is having a break down, losing it, is very emotional upset, becoming a physical threat, could possibly even need restraints! That poor patient we don't know. We said a prayer for the mystery patient. :)
After spending all this time in here with Chad, I can totally understand how a patient can go "code Atlas." In fact, Chad is not far from a code Atlas in here! hahaha (kind of kidding but you never know) He has been so strong and positive and consistently strong in his faith but good lord, he's only human! It just really sucks sometimes and today is one of those really hard days....
So for those of you that don't know, Chad collects LP vinyl records - mostly 60s & 70s Soul, jazz, and funk. I'd love to get some for him to cheer him up. (Thanks Liz for the ones you found him last week!) He usually looks at yard sales and flea markets and Goodwill stores. Since I can't go out on the hunt for them myself too much right now, I am asking for everyone's help. Will you all keep your eyes open for records and pick them up if you find some that aren't too expensive? He normally doesn't pay more than $3 a record, and most are a $1 each or so. Even if it's just one or two records, he loves them all and they would make his day!
Wik's verse picks...
2nd Cor 11:23
"...I'm talking like a mad man - far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. Five times I received 39 lashes..."
2nd Cor 12:10
"For when I am weak, I am strong."
Friday, June 11, 2010
drip...drip....drip
Today is Friday June 11th and day 14 straight for Chad in the hospital. Not much has changed since yesterday's post which isn't a bad thing, we are okay with no major changes...
He is still on the IV drip of blood thinner and they are still just giving it to him super slow. They have not said how long he will have to stay on it. The hardest part is him just being here, he is very ready to come home and we are more than ready to have him there. It has been a very long 2 weeks. Everything else is going well and he feels great! Almost there, I'm sure of it!!
He is still on the IV drip of blood thinner and they are still just giving it to him super slow. They have not said how long he will have to stay on it. The hardest part is him just being here, he is very ready to come home and we are more than ready to have him there. It has been a very long 2 weeks. Everything else is going well and he feels great! Almost there, I'm sure of it!!
Thursday, June 10, 2010
The Chemo is working!!
The chemo is working!! WOO HOOO! Today is Thursday June 10th and it's been a great day. Dr. May told us this morning that the CT scan that they did yesterday to see the blood clot showed that the tumors in his lungs have already gotten smaller! He wasn't due for a follow up CT to see the progress until after his next round of chemo so this was a surprise update. Not that we doubted for a second that the chemo would work, but it was so nice to hear it.
It was/is a new clot in his lung that was hurting so bad the other day. Again, thank GOD we were still here and hadn't went home yet. All Chad's doctors talked this morning and decided it would be ok to put him on a very slow IV of blood thinner to treat the clots. He has had the IV on since 10am this morning and it will go all night. It is very, very slooowww... the bag is still 3/4ths full and it's 10:15pm. They are taking blood every four hours and are watching his levels very close. He feels really good, pain is under control, mouth sores are better, blood levels are all up. His white blood cells are up to 10,000 now! So really, life is good. Just waiting on thinner, clot free blood.
Chad started losing his hair and beard in clumps yesterday and decided to go ahead and shave them both off. His Mom, Justice and I all helped. We had scissors, clippers and razors going! Justice had fun cutting his Dad's hair and I think it made the transition easier on all of us to do it together. Chad never ceases to amaze me, as much as I know it was hard for him to lose his hair and beard, he was the one that made us laugh! I haven't seen him without facial hair in years and we don't think Justice ever has... he may look different but he's as good looking as ever.
The next round of chemo starts on Monday. I am hopeful things will go much smoother this time and that things are settling down. God has and continues to answer our prayers and thank you to all of you that are praying diligently. The prayers, faith and chemo are working!!
It was/is a new clot in his lung that was hurting so bad the other day. Again, thank GOD we were still here and hadn't went home yet. All Chad's doctors talked this morning and decided it would be ok to put him on a very slow IV of blood thinner to treat the clots. He has had the IV on since 10am this morning and it will go all night. It is very, very slooowww... the bag is still 3/4ths full and it's 10:15pm. They are taking blood every four hours and are watching his levels very close. He feels really good, pain is under control, mouth sores are better, blood levels are all up. His white blood cells are up to 10,000 now! So really, life is good. Just waiting on thinner, clot free blood.
Chad started losing his hair and beard in clumps yesterday and decided to go ahead and shave them both off. His Mom, Justice and I all helped. We had scissors, clippers and razors going! Justice had fun cutting his Dad's hair and I think it made the transition easier on all of us to do it together. Chad never ceases to amaze me, as much as I know it was hard for him to lose his hair and beard, he was the one that made us laugh! I haven't seen him without facial hair in years and we don't think Justice ever has... he may look different but he's as good looking as ever.
The next round of chemo starts on Monday. I am hopeful things will go much smoother this time and that things are settling down. God has and continues to answer our prayers and thank you to all of you that are praying diligently. The prayers, faith and chemo are working!!
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