After my post last Friday I had another weekend with continued low counts. They did let me go home after clinic on Saturday but I was back in Richmond by Sunday evening. It is a lot less nerve-wracking when you are just down the street from your doctors and nurses. The 24 hour visit home was worth it though. Just to be with the kids and Brant in our home feels so good. I know it has to be therapeutic!
On Monday morning at clinic I was very dizzy and had low blood pressure. My platelet count was below 5 and I was having some bleeding again. They were talking about admitting me again....ugh! But they gave me a unit of blood and a unit of platelets and then did a re-check of my platelet level. They bounced up to 27 - woot woot! That was good enough to let me go back to the Hospitality House and to keep my biopsy on schedule for today. This morning my lab work showed my platelets at 28...it is the first time they have held in a while - yea!! My HgB and WBC count also inched up a little. I'm trying not to get too excited, but I am hopeful that this is a sign my counts are on the rise.
They did my biopsy today. It was probably the worst one I have had because it took several tries to get a good sample. They gave me good drugs, but they aren't that good and it was pretty uncomfortable. Of course, it made me worry that something is wrong with my marrow since it has never been a problem before getting a sample.... I know, I know....worrying is a waste of time and does no good so I have tried to let it go. I probably won't have results until next week. Waiting is hard, but we are used to it.
Since my counts were so good, they let me have a day off from clinic tomorrow. I look forward to sleeping in. Other than a very sore hip, I felt pretty good this afternoon. Mom and I took a walk around the Coliseum - it has been a while since we could do that. I enjoyed seeing the knockout rose bushes that are STILL covered in blooms. I am tempted to plant some in our yard when I make it home, but I have a sneaking feeling they won't do as well under my care.
Well it is off to bed for me. Today was the first day in a while that I didn't have a transfusion...so I didn't get any steroids either. I am actually sleepy before midnight!
This blog was started in Jan '07 as a way to update family and friends on my fight against relapsed Hodgkins Lymphoma. I underwent chemo and a stem cell transplant at Sloan Kettering in 2007 and then spent six years in remission. The blog went dormant as life became less about cancer and more about living. Now I am facing Acute Myelogenous Leukemia (AML) that has developed from previous chemo. So I have dusted off the old Blog (still very un-tech-savvy). Time to get up and fight again!
1 comment:
Hey Rachel, Just wanted to remind you that i think and pray for you, the doctors, nurses and your family everyday. It is hard for me not to be nervous and worried while I wait for news, so I can only imagine the emotions you have! Then I take a breath and remember, oh yeah we gave it to God, and here comes the peace . Michelle told me that Miss Pat has been having back problems cuz i haven't seen her out lately. I miss chatting with her. Anyway, enjoy the good days and love ya! kandi
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