Patrick went out this morning to spend time with his grandparents, who came to visit for a while. Dad came to sit with me so I wouldn't be alone, and we watched a bunch of History channel documentaries on food until Ivy and Kim came by after the races. It was good to see them since I haven't seen either of them really since I got sick. I got to say hi to Kim at Claire's wedding, but I was busy during most of the reception doing bridal party stuff and not mingling as much as I could have been.
Apparently Brown sucked this year, which is sad. But at least Will Rice didn't sweep. Hooray GSA!
Our Iolanthe auditions were this afternoon, and I did okay, not great, and Patrick thinks he did terribly, though I'm sure he's just being hard on himself. We still get to be in the chorus if we didn't make leads, so it's all good no matter what happens.
We went out to dinner at Marini's with Patrick's family. It was super tasty and I haven't had it in a while, though I think his grandparents, who are from Minnesota and don't generally have much South American food, didn't really know what to think of empanadas.
Saturday, March 31, 2012
Day 53
Alayne, Eric, and Erin came to visit me this morning! Alayne and Eric were in town for Beer Bike weekend. It was fun to catch up with them. Mom came by a little later and picked up some stuff to take to Pope John for me, since I didn't make it into work last night because of the transfusion that took forever.
We went to the Galleria for me to try on some clothes before I bought them online and I got a good amount of walking in. We also got a good amount of liquids in me because we stopped at the Sonic in the food court and got half-price slushes, and Patrick convinced me I needed a large. So getting closer to getting 2-3 liters a day!
We went to the Galleria for me to try on some clothes before I bought them online and I got a good amount of walking in. We also got a good amount of liquids in me because we stopped at the Sonic in the food court and got half-price slushes, and Patrick convinced me I needed a large. So getting closer to getting 2-3 liters a day!
Day 52
Today was spent ALL DAY back and forth to MD Anderson because they decided to give me a blood transfusion. Even though my hemoglobin was 8.2, which isn't technically below the level where they give me transfusions, the nurse that was filling in for my normal nurse decided to give me one anyways, just in case it fell over the weekend. Never mind that it'd been between 8.4-8.7 for like 3 weeks so it probably wouldn't fall below 8 in three days. She tells us it'll take a couple of hours to get blood up from the blood bank, so we can go home and they'll call me when it's ready.
As soon as we get home, we get a call from the ATC saying that they didn't have a blood type test recent enough for them to use, so I needed to come back to the hospital, have them draw the blood to test, and then I could go home again and wait because the test would take about 4 hours to run. I finally started getting my transfusion around 8 pm. So we used up our whole parking chip for the day and spent WAY too much time there. Hopefully this is the only transfusion they're going to make me get from now on.
As soon as we get home, we get a call from the ATC saying that they didn't have a blood type test recent enough for them to use, so I needed to come back to the hospital, have them draw the blood to test, and then I could go home again and wait because the test would take about 4 hours to run. I finally started getting my transfusion around 8 pm. So we used up our whole parking chip for the day and spent WAY too much time there. Hopefully this is the only transfusion they're going to make me get from now on.
Friday, March 30, 2012
Day 51
Today I spent a lot of time doing work for school (Pope John) and school work (Gonzaga). And I did a lot of reading. Not much else.
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Day 49
This morning at like 4 am I woke up and suddenly had to get sick. I ended up getting sick three times in the morning before mom and I went to my appointment and once in the ATC. Aside from the nausea though, I'm doing well and the doctors are happy. I finally saw MY doctor, who was back from vacation or a conference or wherever he was, and he's starting the vidaza shots back up next week. So I'm on the plan and that's good.
Day 48
Today was a lazy Sunday for the most part. When Patrick's mom came to clean, we got the costumes out of the way and into their van so they could be moved to the storage unit. Debbie sat with me while Patrick went to the Iolanthe sing through - apparently for the second time there were way more guys than girls, so maybe we'll have lots of spaces for new girls this year. I wonder if some of the older women who were nearing the chorus retirement age are leaving this year since we're not allowed to wear kneepads when we kneel because they won't be hidden under the fairy costumes. I guess we'll find out once rehearsals start.
I took my grammar test for the writing course they signed me up for with my grad school class. I got a high enough score so that I get to skip to the end of the course and just write the final essay instead of having to do all the exercises and quizzes and such in between. It was a really stupid test though - one of the questions was this:
Which sentence is punctuated correctly?
The teacher stood at the door and called her students' names.
The teacher stood at the door and called her students names.
Both of those are correctly punctuated sentences! Just in one, it's a really crappy teacher calling her kids fat and butthead and the other one's the "right" answer where she's shouting for Jimmy and Billy and Mary and so on.
Claire came over to visit tonight while Patrick went over to her and Jack's place for gaming. It was fun because I haven't actually seen her since I went into the hospital.
I took my grammar test for the writing course they signed me up for with my grad school class. I got a high enough score so that I get to skip to the end of the course and just write the final essay instead of having to do all the exercises and quizzes and such in between. It was a really stupid test though - one of the questions was this:
Which sentence is punctuated correctly?
The teacher stood at the door and called her students' names.
The teacher stood at the door and called her students names.
Both of those are correctly punctuated sentences! Just in one, it's a really crappy teacher calling her kids fat and butthead and the other one's the "right" answer where she's shouting for Jimmy and Billy and Mary and so on.
Claire came over to visit tonight while Patrick went over to her and Jack's place for gaming. It was fun because I haven't actually seen her since I went into the hospital.
Saturday, March 24, 2012
Day 47
Today we went to IKEA to get a clothing rack to hang up the exploded closet's RLOS costumes (we woke up one morning this week and found that the shelf/rod had pulled out of the wall and everything was all over the floor). It wasn't very busy, which was good, though there were a lot of kids proportionate to the number of people. I guess it's a kid-friendly store? We ended up finding what we wanted fairly easily, which is nice since sometimes it's a giant maze.
Then we took them to Patrick's parents house because the racks (one for us, one for them) are going into their new storage unit they're renting while they declutter their house to put it on the market, as they've decided to move. They're not going far, but the subdivision they're moving into is a bit nicer and the house has a better floor plan - most of the bedrooms on the first floor - which means whenever Patrick's grandparents come to stay, his parents don't have to move to the guest room upstairs because his grandmother can't use stairs. Patrick helped his dad move some boxes around while I sat and got my magnesium/fluids infused.
We went to visit my parents too and had a game night. We played bananagrams and duck duck go and I got fed steak and onion potatoes and really good pineapple and canteloupe and strawberry yogurt pie and it was fun to be able to go somewhere other than home or the hospital for more than just a little bit. Patrick's parents were going to join us, but they got distracted by yardwork and decided to be party poopers.
Then we took them to Patrick's parents house because the racks (one for us, one for them) are going into their new storage unit they're renting while they declutter their house to put it on the market, as they've decided to move. They're not going far, but the subdivision they're moving into is a bit nicer and the house has a better floor plan - most of the bedrooms on the first floor - which means whenever Patrick's grandparents come to stay, his parents don't have to move to the guest room upstairs because his grandmother can't use stairs. Patrick helped his dad move some boxes around while I sat and got my magnesium/fluids infused.
We went to visit my parents too and had a game night. We played bananagrams and duck duck go and I got fed steak and onion potatoes and really good pineapple and canteloupe and strawberry yogurt pie and it was fun to be able to go somewhere other than home or the hospital for more than just a little bit. Patrick's parents were going to join us, but they got distracted by yardwork and decided to be party poopers.
Day 46
The home health started today, which basically means that the home health services pharmacy is giving me my iv fluids the days that I'm not at the hospital instead of the hospital pharmacy. I like it better this way because they deliver and their iv bags are in pressurized bottles instead of needing to use the beeping pump from the hospital. So it's easier and quieter. I also can walk around a lot more easily when I'm on the bottle ivs because there's only one thing to hold - the hospital pump and bag are separate and difficult to maneuver around with.
I've been doing gala things on and off all day - it's tomorrow! Hopefully everything works out well. The chairs seemed stressed but positive and happy, so I think things will go all right.
Bobby and Sarah came to visit tonight after dinner, which was fun as I hadn't seen either of them in a while. Dad was here because he had brought me dinner and was sitting with me while Patrick went to the Candide-didn't-happen cast party (the Candidn't party, for short). It's always kind of funny when I have visitors while one of my parents is here because I don't remember who they've met and who they haven't.
I've been doing gala things on and off all day - it's tomorrow! Hopefully everything works out well. The chairs seemed stressed but positive and happy, so I think things will go all right.
Bobby and Sarah came to visit tonight after dinner, which was fun as I hadn't seen either of them in a while. Dad was here because he had brought me dinner and was sitting with me while Patrick went to the Candide-didn't-happen cast party (the Candidn't party, for short). It's always kind of funny when I have visitors while one of my parents is here because I don't remember who they've met and who they haven't.
Day 45
The big exciting thing for today was going in to work in the evening after everyone had gone home (or so I thought) and ending up sitting with the gala chairs as they worked on their last minute auction-item-sorting and I did my data entry. It was nice to sit for a couple of hours at work with people around even if I needed to wear my mask the whole time.
I saw a different doctor today since mine's been out of town for a couple of weeks. She was nice, but only sees people in the afternoons so I got to sleep in a bit before my appointment, which was pushed back to around 1 instead of the usual between 9-10. My platelets are totally normal now! And my hemoglobin stopped falling - it's the same as Monday at 8.4, so hopefully it'll start going up as well and I'll be out and back and ready to go places/do things soon.
I saw a different doctor today since mine's been out of town for a couple of weeks. She was nice, but only sees people in the afternoons so I got to sleep in a bit before my appointment, which was pushed back to around 1 instead of the usual between 9-10. My platelets are totally normal now! And my hemoglobin stopped falling - it's the same as Monday at 8.4, so hopefully it'll start going up as well and I'll be out and back and ready to go places/do things soon.
Wednesday, March 21, 2012
Day 44
On the days that I don't go anywhere it's hard to remember what I did. Really today all I did was check up on some stuff for my class, do some work, and watch the new episodes of South Park and Ugly Americans. I half-watched some Simpsons with Patrick, as he's been going through and watching them on DVD, but I don't like it as much as he does. There are some really good ones, and lots of them are funny, but I'm not interested in watching like 10 episodes in a row.
I had potato skins with bacon on them for dinner, so hopefully that'll make Jeffrey's blood grow better.
I had potato skins with bacon on them for dinner, so hopefully that'll make Jeffrey's blood grow better.
Day 43
Spent a long time doing last-minute gala stuff today, especially since I did the long setup call with Auction Star. I didn't really do much else.
We got our 3DS in the mail today (we used our Costco bonus to buy one for us instead of keeping borrowing Brett's) so Patrick's been playing around with it a lot.
We got our 3DS in the mail today (we used our Costco bonus to buy one for us instead of keeping borrowing Brett's) so Patrick's been playing around with it a lot.
Monday, March 19, 2012
Day 42
Mom took me to the hospital again today, and we were still out all day even though we were done with the ATC entirely by noon. It took 2 hours of waiting before I could get my dressing changed in infusion therapy for some reason. Then Mom and I were starving so we stopped off at Buca di Beppos for a fully-cooked, garnish-free lunch. If you go at 3 pm on a weekday, there's hardly anyone there!
I started work for class today; just a little bit of reading (I probably should have read more) and I did my "introduction" on the discussion board. I had a bit of a problem trying to find a "recent, professional picture" as I haven't really been taking any pictures sans-mask recently and the ones that I have (like Claire & Jack's wedding or the family Christmas picture) aren't particularly professional. I ended up using the auditions headshot from Patience two years ago, so I still look like I have lots of long blonde hair. I figure since I probably won't actually be meeting anyone in person for the class they won't know the difference.
Barnes & Noble emailed me back and let me know that they'd refunded the money to my gift card so I could re-buy Moby-Duck in English, but that there wasn't any way for them to take the Spanish one back, so I get to keep it for free. I guess I can use it to help me learn nautical terms in Spanish, just in case I ever get stuck on an El Salvadorian fishing vessel.
I started work for class today; just a little bit of reading (I probably should have read more) and I did my "introduction" on the discussion board. I had a bit of a problem trying to find a "recent, professional picture" as I haven't really been taking any pictures sans-mask recently and the ones that I have (like Claire & Jack's wedding or the family Christmas picture) aren't particularly professional. I ended up using the auditions headshot from Patience two years ago, so I still look like I have lots of long blonde hair. I figure since I probably won't actually be meeting anyone in person for the class they won't know the difference.
Barnes & Noble emailed me back and let me know that they'd refunded the money to my gift card so I could re-buy Moby-Duck in English, but that there wasn't any way for them to take the Spanish one back, so I get to keep it for free. I guess I can use it to help me learn nautical terms in Spanish, just in case I ever get stuck on an El Salvadorian fishing vessel.
Day 41
Allie came over to visit today while Patrick was at game night. It was really fun to catch up since I haven't seen her since around Thanksgiving. We watched some Frozen Planet and adorable penguins and polar bears and caught up. Apparently since her parents live in Katy and her family's Catholic, her mom had heard about the drama at Pope John earlier so I filled her in on the short version for her to tell her parents.
Went to Kroger while Patrick's mom vacuumed; they're mostly done with construction now so I was good to go.
Went to Kroger while Patrick's mom vacuumed; they're mostly done with construction now so I was good to go.
Saturday, March 17, 2012
Day 40
Mom came over to sit with me this afternoon while Patrick went out and finished doing our taxes with his dad in Cypress. We went to Crate and Barrel in the Highland Village to get a shower present for Allie, who's coming to visit tomorrow, and didn't realize that there's apparently now an Apple store next door. Which had huge crowds. Because something called the iPad 3 came out yesterday. So I got in my exercise, walking a few blocks to/from the store after we parked in the neighborhood.
I started reading for my classes, which start Monday, and realized that one of the books I bought to read for fun while I was buying my textbooks I accidentally bought in Spanish. So I tried emailing Barnes & Noble to see if they'd swap out the books so I can actually read it. We'll see if they let me.
I started reading for my classes, which start Monday, and realized that one of the books I bought to read for fun while I was buying my textbooks I accidentally bought in Spanish. So I tried emailing Barnes & Noble to see if they'd swap out the books so I can actually read it. We'll see if they let me.
Friday, March 16, 2012
Day 39
I had visitors! Lauren, Mikey, Jack, Jeff, and Evil Eye came over after Friday celebration and dinner to sit and talk. It was nice and almost like normal, even since they went to Mongolian Hot Pot for dinner beforehand and I wouldn't have gone to dinner there anyways since it's sort of buffet-ish and I'm not a fan of their vegetable options. We did a lot of talking about Mass Effect 3 since everyone but me and Jack have been playing it and I've been at least watching Patrick's game mostly, so there was a lot of "what happened when you did _______" because the choices you made in your first two games (1 and 2) affects what happens and who the characters in the missions are.
I got sick all of a sudden for the first time in over a week (I don't count the pentamadine because I know why that happened) tonight. I think it was the potstickers because the last time I got sick I had eaten potstickers for dinner too. Maybe I won't have those again for a while.
I did get fruits with big rinds/skins back, though, so I've been eating cantaloupe all this week. It's very good. Especially because I hadn't eaten it for so long, and I had been eating it like candy before the listeria scare. And then I stopped for a long time.
I've been worrying about the gala at school not going well, so much that I've been having dreams about weird things going wrong. Like everyone deciding to show up on Sunday instead of Saturday, or the athletics director accidentally booking a basketball game at the same time (never mind that the basketball season ended like a month ago) and the moms get into a fight over who gets to use the gym. I'm assuming since the parents aren't worrying over email or asking me any questions that it's all going okay.
I got sick all of a sudden for the first time in over a week (I don't count the pentamadine because I know why that happened) tonight. I think it was the potstickers because the last time I got sick I had eaten potstickers for dinner too. Maybe I won't have those again for a while.
I did get fruits with big rinds/skins back, though, so I've been eating cantaloupe all this week. It's very good. Especially because I hadn't eaten it for so long, and I had been eating it like candy before the listeria scare. And then I stopped for a long time.
I've been worrying about the gala at school not going well, so much that I've been having dreams about weird things going wrong. Like everyone deciding to show up on Sunday instead of Saturday, or the athletics director accidentally booking a basketball game at the same time (never mind that the basketball season ended like a month ago) and the moms get into a fight over who gets to use the gym. I'm assuming since the parents aren't worrying over email or asking me any questions that it's all going okay.
Day 38
My hemoglobin keeps dropping and I'm not really sure if there's anything I can do about it. The nurse didn't seem to think there was anything in particular that I could do. I'll just keep eating as much as I can, I guess, and cross my toes.
We didn't do much today, and I went to bed earlier than I have been, though I got distracted by a Chopped episode where everything in the basket was leftovers. It's amusing to watch chefs go crazy over what to do with already-made items.
We didn't do much today, and I went to bed earlier than I have been, though I got distracted by a Chopped episode where everything in the basket was leftovers. It's amusing to watch chefs go crazy over what to do with already-made items.
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Day 37
Patrick's mom came over to visit with us a bit today as she's on her spring break and was down near us anyways. After my fluids finished and rush hour was over, Patrick drove me out to school so I could do some work at my desk and check on things. It was nice to seem normal and do work, even if I was there from like 7-8 pm. The whole office is covered in gala items, including a giant painting of a pirate ship (which I'm not sure why anyone would have, but cool, I guess), so that seems to be going well.
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Day 36
Today I slept in until 11:30. I think getting lots of sleep is good for me, even though it messes with my pills and food scheduling. I feel a lot better today than I did yesterday, though I also don't have pentamadine in my system anymore.
My foot hurts less, too, which is good, since Lyn the APN didn't know what would have caused my foot to hurt and since it wasn't bone she couldn't say "oh, you might have a fracture, let's get an xray."
Watched Patrick play a lot of Zelda and watched the new episodes of Top Gear/Top Shot. I am quite a fan of History Channel's "Top Tuesdays." Mom and Brett came over to visit tonight while Patrick was going to be at game night, but it got cancelled so they ended up just sitting with me while Patrick went to the sorta-under-construction Kroger instead.
My foot hurts less, too, which is good, since Lyn the APN didn't know what would have caused my foot to hurt and since it wasn't bone she couldn't say "oh, you might have a fracture, let's get an xray."
Watched Patrick play a lot of Zelda and watched the new episodes of Top Gear/Top Shot. I am quite a fan of History Channel's "Top Tuesdays." Mom and Brett came over to visit tonight while Patrick was going to be at game night, but it got cancelled so they ended up just sitting with me while Patrick went to the sorta-under-construction Kroger instead.
Day 35
Mom took me to the hospital again today so Patrick could go to work - Monday is meetings day. We got to the ATC and I had a surprise pentamadine day! Which sucks because it always makes me sick. It's to prevent some specific kind of pneumonia that transplant people often get, though I didn't get it last time and I'm not sure if it's because of the medicine or if I was healthy.
We went to Target after the hospital to get me some chicken broth and more juice and bandaids, since we'd run out, and a little boy saw me and shouted "it's a monster!" So I wiggled my fingers at him. Apparently even polka dot hats don't take away from the scariness of the mask.
The HGS board meeting was tonight and Tim was nice enough to skype me in so I could listen to people complain about change for an hour and then watch them eat cake balls without me. It was nice to know what's going on though, and that I haven't missed a bunch since I haven't gone to a meeting since January, and even then I was late because I got lost and went to the wrong house.
We went to Target after the hospital to get me some chicken broth and more juice and bandaids, since we'd run out, and a little boy saw me and shouted "it's a monster!" So I wiggled my fingers at him. Apparently even polka dot hats don't take away from the scariness of the mask.
The HGS board meeting was tonight and Tim was nice enough to skype me in so I could listen to people complain about change for an hour and then watch them eat cake balls without me. It was nice to know what's going on though, and that I haven't missed a bunch since I haven't gone to a meeting since January, and even then I was late because I got lost and went to the wrong house.
Sunday, March 11, 2012
Day 34
I dislike the spring time change. Everything's really off for me in terms of sleeping/pills/timing/etc since I slept in late. Woke up at what I felt like was 10:30ish but was actually 11:30 and didn't get myself out of bed and up until almost noon. Which means my pills were taken late and my fluids started pretty late and I ate breakfast at noon, lunch around 3:30 and was not hungry at all for dinner. I think I managed to eat enough but it definitely wasn't 3 normal meals, more like 2 meals and 2 snacks.
Mom came over while Patrick went to game night and we watched some Hoarders to make ourselves feel better about ourselves and our laziness re: cleaning before giving up on tv and watching Blue Planet on bluray, which is really pretty. I want a pet dumbo octopus. Next week I'll be watching the newest in the series, Frozen Planet, and probably feeling sorry for penguins and polar bears.
Pope John's spring break starts tomorrow, so I'll be able to go in and check a few things out for the gala later this week when no one's there. Gonzaga's term also starts tomorrow, so I should be getting more work from them! I ordered my books and they're on their way and it feels like it's really starting now.
Mom came over while Patrick went to game night and we watched some Hoarders to make ourselves feel better about ourselves and our laziness re: cleaning before giving up on tv and watching Blue Planet on bluray, which is really pretty. I want a pet dumbo octopus. Next week I'll be watching the newest in the series, Frozen Planet, and probably feeling sorry for penguins and polar bears.
Pope John's spring break starts tomorrow, so I'll be able to go in and check a few things out for the gala later this week when no one's there. Gonzaga's term also starts tomorrow, so I should be getting more work from them! I ordered my books and they're on their way and it feels like it's really starting now.
Day 33
Didn't do too much today. Slept in, read a bit, watched Patrick play a bunch of Zelda and Mass Effect. We stayed inside pretty much all day because of the thunderstorms, and ended up not actually going to the bank like we'd planned.
Friday, March 9, 2012
Day 32
One of the big things that I don't really notice when I'm in quarantine is weather. Unless it's a day like today with lots of thunder and lightning, it could be cold or hot or rainy or sunny and I wouldn't really know about it. We don't really go anywhere except on hospital days, and even the small times Patrick leaves to take out the trash or get the mail, I'm far enough away from the door I don't feel the temperature outside.
It was really thundery today though, and I could hear the rain enough outside that I didn't even feel bad at all about the fact that I was missing Friday celebration at Rice - even if I'd been healthy, we probably would have stayed home.
I've finished the second of two books this week - The Red Pyramid, the first book in the Kane Chronicles series by Rick Riordan. It's the same guy who wrote the Percy Jackson books, but these are about the Egyptian gods and mythos, which makes it better for me. Not that I like Egypt more than Ancient Greece, but it's just that I don't know hardly any of the mythology behind Egypt, and so the book was much less predictable. One of the Percy Jackson books was sort of a modernization of the Odyssey, which I've read multiple times, so it was easier to guess what happened next. I've got its sequel, so I'll probably start on that pretty soon, and the third book in the trilogy is supposed to come out either this month or next, so I'll make sure that one of our trips out when my counts are up is to go to Barnes & Noble and get it.
My hemoglobin's been slowly falling over the past couple weeks. I think Jeffrey wants some bacon.
It was really thundery today though, and I could hear the rain enough outside that I didn't even feel bad at all about the fact that I was missing Friday celebration at Rice - even if I'd been healthy, we probably would have stayed home.
I've finished the second of two books this week - The Red Pyramid, the first book in the Kane Chronicles series by Rick Riordan. It's the same guy who wrote the Percy Jackson books, but these are about the Egyptian gods and mythos, which makes it better for me. Not that I like Egypt more than Ancient Greece, but it's just that I don't know hardly any of the mythology behind Egypt, and so the book was much less predictable. One of the Percy Jackson books was sort of a modernization of the Odyssey, which I've read multiple times, so it was easier to guess what happened next. I've got its sequel, so I'll probably start on that pretty soon, and the third book in the trilogy is supposed to come out either this month or next, so I'll make sure that one of our trips out when my counts are up is to go to Barnes & Noble and get it.
My hemoglobin's been slowly falling over the past couple weeks. I think Jeffrey wants some bacon.
Day 31
Today was another hospital day, and it was full of waiting because they closed two of MD Anderson's 5 ATCs for renovations on Monday, making the ones that stayed open (including the stem cell one I go to every day I'm there) take on extra patients. Hopefully I won't be going there long enough to see the newly renovated ones because they're going to be closed until next January.
The phlebotomist was careless today and might have introduced an infection into my line when she was working on drawing blood. She alcohol-wiped off my yellow line and then turned to grab a syringe to draw blood out of it, but when she turned back she attached it to my red line instead, which she hadn't sterilized. I wasn't paying close enough attention to stop her before she got it on, but I corrected her as soon as I noticed, which was probably only a few seconds, but still. It'd be really annoying to get an infection and end up in the emergency room because someone was careless. I told the ATC nurses about it and they changed the caps on my lines to help stop an infection from growing if some bacteria or something had attached to the plastic inside, and they basically told me that unless I start having symptoms, there's nothing they can do about it because they wouldn't know what drugs to give me. Hopefully nothing happens from this.
The phlebotomist was careless today and might have introduced an infection into my line when she was working on drawing blood. She alcohol-wiped off my yellow line and then turned to grab a syringe to draw blood out of it, but when she turned back she attached it to my red line instead, which she hadn't sterilized. I wasn't paying close enough attention to stop her before she got it on, but I corrected her as soon as I noticed, which was probably only a few seconds, but still. It'd be really annoying to get an infection and end up in the emergency room because someone was careless. I told the ATC nurses about it and they changed the caps on my lines to help stop an infection from growing if some bacteria or something had attached to the plastic inside, and they basically told me that unless I start having symptoms, there's nothing they can do about it because they wouldn't know what drugs to give me. Hopefully nothing happens from this.
Wednesday, March 7, 2012
Day 30
I'm in the thirties now! And I've been okay for the past few days in terms of eating and drinking and such. I gained at least one pound since my appointment on Monday, which is good. I need probably about five more pounds to get to where I want to be but it's at least a start in the right direction. Not throwing up for the past few days helps, I'm sure.
I ordered awesome light green shoes for Jeff and Lauren's wedding today. I'm quite excited - they should match my hat. http://www.zappos.com/product/7921101/color/159512
I ordered awesome light green shoes for Jeff and Lauren's wedding today. I'm quite excited - they should match my hat. http://www.zappos.com/product/7921101/color/159512
Day 29
Being able to stay at home and do my fluids helps a lot with me feeling better during the day, because I get to sleep in later than 7:30. Slept in until about 10 today which caught me up on sleep pretty well. I did end up still taking a nap around 10:30ish at night, when I should have been heading to bed, but was distracted by Colbert and fell asleep during one of the commercials.
I feel like I haven't been communicating that well with people at school, but I'm also not sure if they have anything to tell me anyways. So who knows what's happening, really? Things seem to be going okay even though I'm not there, though I'm sure they'd be going better if I was there.
We've been watching lots of Top Gear on Netflix and are almost through with the episodes they've got on demand. We'll need to find another show to watch soon. I'm going to vote for Warehouse 13.
I feel like I haven't been communicating that well with people at school, but I'm also not sure if they have anything to tell me anyways. So who knows what's happening, really? Things seem to be going okay even though I'm not there, though I'm sure they'd be going better if I was there.
We've been watching lots of Top Gear on Netflix and are almost through with the episodes they've got on demand. We'll need to find another show to watch soon. I'm going to vote for Warehouse 13.
Monday, March 5, 2012
Day 28
Today I spent all day with Mom at the hospital. We got there around 8:20 for my blood test and left around 4 after getting my dressing changed. We then took the scenic route home and drove by Rice to see the azaleas since I missed spring last year from being in the hospital for all of March and I went in during winter and got out and it was already summer.
Dr. Delima is happy with me but wants me to gain a couple of pounds and eat more, which is really everyone's goal for me right now so it's okay. I'm working on eating and getting a bit better.
Blood counts for today were hemoglobin 9.7, white cells 2.9, platelets 86.
Dr. Delima is happy with me but wants me to gain a couple of pounds and eat more, which is really everyone's goal for me right now so it's okay. I'm working on eating and getting a bit better.
Blood counts for today were hemoglobin 9.7, white cells 2.9, platelets 86.
Day 27
Today I went on my second excursion to places that aren't home/MD Anderson with a trip to Randall's for ice cream while Patrick's mom vacuumed at our place. She's been nice to help come once a week and do heavy-duty cleaning so our place stays really nice and sanitary and so Patrick has less to do since taking care of me is kind of annoying and like taking care of a kid that's totally capable of doing everything themselves, just won't. I'm avoiding the kitchen and bathrooms as much as possible to minimize my exposure to germs, but that also means no cooking for myself and no doing my own dishes and etc.
We discovered when we got home that one of the smells that brings on my nausea is cigarette smoke, which we did't notice the first time since I don't really spend time around any smokers. Someone had been smoking outside in our complex's parking lot though, and I managed to walk right through the smoke cloud.
Mom sat with me tonight while Patrick went to game night and reminded me that I hadn't put in my blog that I got into graduate school. It starts next week and I'm going to be getting my master's in communications from Gonzaga online. Hopefully this will be a way to make sure I do something useful with all of my time at home in quarantine.
We discovered when we got home that one of the smells that brings on my nausea is cigarette smoke, which we did't notice the first time since I don't really spend time around any smokers. Someone had been smoking outside in our complex's parking lot though, and I managed to walk right through the smoke cloud.
Mom sat with me tonight while Patrick went to game night and reminded me that I hadn't put in my blog that I got into graduate school. It starts next week and I'm going to be getting my master's in communications from Gonzaga online. Hopefully this will be a way to make sure I do something useful with all of my time at home in quarantine.
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Day 26
I keep having the issue of waking up in the middle of the night, starving. Which doesn't make any sense because I go long periods of time during the day and never have this problem - it wakes me up because I'm so hungry it hurts, and then I feel like I'm going to throw up, which doesn't help anything, because then I just need anti-nausea drugs and can't eat anything anyways. I've taken to drinking protein shakes early in the morning and taking a zofran with them to make sure I feel okay to get up.
Dad and I watched some hgtv renovation shows this afternoon, which made me want to live in a new house and make it all pretty and decorated the way I want. Moving while still doing treatment would probably be a no-no. Patrick went out to his parents to finish work on the cabinet doors.
Got some reading done today, but I still have tons more books to go through.
Dad and I watched some hgtv renovation shows this afternoon, which made me want to live in a new house and make it all pretty and decorated the way I want. Moving while still doing treatment would probably be a no-no. Patrick went out to his parents to finish work on the cabinet doors.
Got some reading done today, but I still have tons more books to go through.
Friday, March 2, 2012
Day 25
I'm one quarter done with my hundred days! Which means one-quarter done with being babysat and hopefully one-quarter done with having my line in.
Today, even though I didn't have an ATC appointment, I still went to the hospital for my first after-transplant bone marrow biopsy. This time they let me have the full dose of versed, which was good because they needed to take a bone chip for these tests and not just the normal marrow goop. The bone chip takes a bigger needle... I think. They do it on the back of my hip and so I am lying on my stomach and don't see what they're doing back there, but it feels like they have something big and drill-like for the bone chip part.
I am now sore from the poke and it's uncomfortable to do lots of walking and turning, so I'll be watching lots of tv this weekend, I think.
Mom took Patrick and me out to lunch today after my bone marrow test, which counts as the first time I've been out to eat AND the first time I've been somewhere not home or the hospital since I went into the hospital in January. We went to Raising Cane's because everything there's fried so I can eat it pretty safely. I sat in the corner booth hiding from people and enjoyed being out, but didn't really fully enjoy it as I was still doped up on the versed. BUT I did eat pretty well and I was super proud of my eating prowess, even if I didn't finish the whole meal.
Dad's coming over tomorrow to sit with me while Patrick runs errands. I'm missing Claire and Jack's congrats-you-haven't-killed-each-other-yet party, but Claire said she might come visit me sometime this weekend and bring over the David Tennant Much Ado, which would be quite enjoyable.
Today, even though I didn't have an ATC appointment, I still went to the hospital for my first after-transplant bone marrow biopsy. This time they let me have the full dose of versed, which was good because they needed to take a bone chip for these tests and not just the normal marrow goop. The bone chip takes a bigger needle... I think. They do it on the back of my hip and so I am lying on my stomach and don't see what they're doing back there, but it feels like they have something big and drill-like for the bone chip part.
I am now sore from the poke and it's uncomfortable to do lots of walking and turning, so I'll be watching lots of tv this weekend, I think.
Mom took Patrick and me out to lunch today after my bone marrow test, which counts as the first time I've been out to eat AND the first time I've been somewhere not home or the hospital since I went into the hospital in January. We went to Raising Cane's because everything there's fried so I can eat it pretty safely. I sat in the corner booth hiding from people and enjoyed being out, but didn't really fully enjoy it as I was still doped up on the versed. BUT I did eat pretty well and I was super proud of my eating prowess, even if I didn't finish the whole meal.
Dad's coming over tomorrow to sit with me while Patrick runs errands. I'm missing Claire and Jack's congrats-you-haven't-killed-each-other-yet party, but Claire said she might come visit me sometime this weekend and bring over the David Tennant Much Ado, which would be quite enjoyable.
Day 24
Went in for my second ATC trip of the week today, and saw the APN and pharmacist again, who are both really nice and told me that I'm doing okay enough to only have to come in twice a week (Mondays and Thursdays) and I can do my fluids at home the other days.
I wonder when my hair will start to come back. My head hasn't quite figured out what to do with itself yet temperature-wise. I'll go from being too hot with a hat on to too cold without one and end up just wearing the hat and then occasionally taking it off and fanning my head off with it. It's especially annoying when sleeping though because not only does my head not know what to do with itself, hats come off by themselves on my pillow.
I got sick again today after we got home and spent the afternoon napping and finishing up the grant application for work that was due. I hope my stomach figures out what to do with itself soon so I can start gaining weight back. I weighed myself tonight and was 112, which is TOO SMALL. I need at least 5 more pounds. My hips and such are poking out too much and I feel like they're going to break if I run into something.
I wonder when my hair will start to come back. My head hasn't quite figured out what to do with itself yet temperature-wise. I'll go from being too hot with a hat on to too cold without one and end up just wearing the hat and then occasionally taking it off and fanning my head off with it. It's especially annoying when sleeping though because not only does my head not know what to do with itself, hats come off by themselves on my pillow.
I got sick again today after we got home and spent the afternoon napping and finishing up the grant application for work that was due. I hope my stomach figures out what to do with itself soon so I can start gaining weight back. I weighed myself tonight and was 112, which is TOO SMALL. I need at least 5 more pounds. My hips and such are poking out too much and I feel like they're going to break if I run into something.
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