MIDDLE-AGED WOMEN 40-60ish
Comments
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So good of you to stop by and ease our minds a bit, Eli~. Don't go being too much of an overacheiver, take care of yourself, and let others take care of you, too.
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Checking in & saw just the person I wanted to see,
E~~
I will keep good thoughts for a very deserving, exemplary pathology report for you.
P.S. I saw a streak that was shaped an awful lot like an alien baby move across the sky Tuesday night. It was a bit on the red side which indicated to me that it was madder than h*ll that it was pulled from its abode & sent on its merry way. LOL LOL
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mac-what a story! A mouse nest-yuck!
Have a great relaxing weekend-all of us need it I am positive!
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Mar - thanks for asking about my son (my one & only). He's reacting the same way he did with the other incident - he's not talking about it. He had an old friend over the other night and they went out for burgers and beer. When they got home, I found out my son didn't even mention it. He also hasn't discussed it with his oldest friend. So I need to make an appointment with a doctor I found who specializes in PTSD so that hopefully this won't become a permanent stamp on his psyche.
The other day I told him he should call the detective and see if they caught the guy yet. He said, "You think so?" I said, "Well, as the victim, you have a right to know." But we still haven't done that. I don't think either one of us is dealing with this correctly.
My son just saw the picture of the puppy I posted and said, "Random words will be capitalized!" haha!
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Barb- They only knew about 4 of the nodes at the time they did the onco.
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Eli--great to hear from you, glad you got out a day early, now TAKE YOUR PAIN PILLS and get waited on for a bit. You'll actually get back on your feet quicker by taking your meds now!
Diananrose--thanks for sharing that info. Another example of how individual we all are and how individual our treatment options need to be.
Macatacmv--YIKES! I once found a mouse nest in my outdoor grill when I was opening it up for the spring. I kicked them out, too! But a nest on the engine block? Bold little buggers, aren't they?
HNS--I'm not sure there is a "correct" way to deal with any trauma. What's right for one person is not right for another. The only "correct" way to deal with something traumatic is to deal with it, IMHO. And the timing is also very personal.
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Mac - not sure what I would have done had that little creature run across my windshield. Perhaps turned the wipers on in hopes of launching his butt outta there.
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Eli, glad to hear you are home! I'm praying your pathology report is excellent! Take care!
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E - Great to see you - minus alien! Wishing you a quick uneventful weekend and a Great pathology report next week! ((Elimar))
Think I would have put the wipers on too!! YIKES!
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I didn't even think to turn the wipers on. It happened so fast! I like the image in my mind, tho. Operation Elimate Mouse House was a success. I drove to the dog park, left my car with the hood open. (learned that lesson well) Hoped someone else would notice it and remove said house, but no takers. I even mentioned it to a couple of men, no interest at all. So when I got back I got brave and used a stick to flick nest into the woods. Thank goodness the mouse had moved out all ready. Someone told me to put a bar of Irish Spring under the hood and it keeps mice away. No Irish mice?
My car will be smelling like the holiday. Happy St Paddy's Day!
Eph, thanks for the spots, but I have enough. If the doc makes 1 more joke about "wisdom" spots, I will not be responsible for my actions. Or says the phrase "At your age."
don't laugh too hard Eli, it probably hurts!
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I could tell my tale chronologically, but I'd rather jump right to the part about the doctor saying that it looked to him like I had a COMPLETE RESPONSE, or very close to it. But before I start filling my dance card up for the Happy Dance Cotillion, I will have to have this confirmed from pathology in a few days. He did say that what he saw (tumor site) looked like scar tissue from treatment and not active cancer. He said that from what he saw, he would be not be surprised if my report came back as me having a complete response, with nothing in the nodes either. I am sure that I have mentioned earlier that only about 10% of patients fall into this elite group, and it has been MY GOAL from the get-go. It would be too incredible if I actually pulled this off. Stay tuned, and have a pair of dancing shoes ready.
But backing up a bit, my surgery did end up taking the estimated 4 hours, then after a couple hours in recovery, I came awake in my hospital room. Somehow, I had already felt around on my stomach and knew I did not escape getting the ostomy bag. I had that on me, the surgical drain, the i.v. fluids tubing, and also the catheter. Having the catheter (while conscious) was a first for me, and while it was not really terrible, it was still horrible and nasty. Luckily, I was able to get rid of all that (except the bag) by the end of the second recovery day.
I am very sore today, but I think it must not be that different than how an abdomen feels after a C-section birth (which I never experienced.) I ended up getting 6 incisions, which is one more than planed because when the doc tried to use the other openings to install a drain, it didn't work quite right so he made a new opening for a drain. My drain was disgusting and hurt too. Now I know the anguish behind all those comments on here about the Mx drains. The most painful (and biggest) incision is the one that the laparoscope went into.
I can't leave out the bag. It's awful. If I do have the complete response, then it's coming off around the end of April, and the days cannot go fast enough. It's no more painful than the rest of the incisions. I have a bright red nub of intestine poking up from my abdomen...just a surprised and embarassed bit of flesh that clearly would rather be in the dark recesses under the skin. I touched it and it has no actual feeling. I had to learn a new skill set to deal with day-to-day operations, but it's not like it is difficult. Just nasty!
My biggest challenge, so far, has been to eat enough. I have to stick to a low fiber diet. It's crazy. Like a doughnut would be o.k., but I have to stay away from the broccoli. Prunes, a giant no-no, but Cheetos I can have. My first couple meals were liquid diet, but once I got the o.k. for solids, stuff like bacon showed up on my tray. A bag of chips. My diet now is just full of things that could probably give you colon cancer in the first palce. Totally serious. Truth, once again, stranger than fiction.
p.s. My DH has been attending to my needs but, before each service he provides, I have to give him my full name and birthday. He's hilarious all right.
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mac, Laughing does hurt...but sneezing or coughing really do me in.
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Ok, the part where you have to prove who you are to your DH totally cracked me up! So something mine would do too...bastards both
Eli, I'm so glad for all those great things your doc said. We all know how they like to keep things to themselves, so that was huge. Yayyy!!!0 -
Elimar! That IS huge! Doctors NEVER go out on a limb! Such great news!
Haha, but what a weird diet. Your husband is such a comedian - someone who knew better made me do that the other day at the onc's office, and she wasn't joking. Debating about complaining about the entire episode - she talked to me like I was 2 years old in front of a room full of phelbotomists. But if I complain, I can never let any of them stick me again, you know?
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Eli so glad to hear surgery went well and will keep my fingers crossed for a Elite group diagnosis.
LOL about DH checking your name and birthdate.0 -
My dancing shoes are ready!!! ...sounds encouraging!
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Eli- glad you are doing ok. When I read the part about the drain tubes I got the chills. Most horrible invention ever. I remember the burning pain. I feel for you. I love your new diet. Hugs........
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The drains are probably the same. Mine had a bulb on the end with a plug that they opened to empty. Some of the nurses likes to "milk" the fluid out of the tube also...O.M.G....that would create a suction in the wound cavity. Yow, yow, yow. It was a hurtful, sickening feeling. I tried to anticipate and stop them from ever doing that. It was the only thing that made me cry. I filled up about 6-8 of those bulbs up in two days time. When they finally pulled it out of me, it looked like four or five inches of tubing came out. Are you Bi-Mx ladies telling me that you get two of these horrors?
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Eli- it sure sounds like the wonderful tubing I had with the bulb at the end. I had 3 of them. They burned and hurt more than childbirth. When they took them out my big tough 6'4" bf went down for the count. One of mine was over 2 feet from the center of my chest and wrapped down and around up to under my arm pit. So gross. I only had to have them in for 6 days, but some ladies who had there bmx during the same month I did had to keep them in 4-6 weeks. I think I would have pulled them out myself before then. Glad that you didn't have to come home with them and have to have your dh drain them. I hope your path report is clear. Did they give you any idea how long before it would come back?
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I said many times after all tx was done that my drain was by far the worst part, even over chemo. I drained slowly, so it was a couple weeks. My surgeon finally felt bad for me and pulled it out anyway. Glad you were able to leave that in the hospital.
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Complete response - how wonderful those words are to hear. Hoping the path report comes back just as great!
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OK-here's to hoping I NEVER have to have a procedure requiring drains! I almost went down for the count with Dianarose's BF after reading those descriptions!
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That sounds un-fun in many ways, but also as if it went really well all things considered. I wish a speedy recovery and keep fingers crossed for good path.
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Elimar--Hooray for being home, for recovering enough to get the drains and tubes out. Good for you for learning a new skill set. And saying prayers for a COMPLETE RESPONSE report in a few days! Weird about the diet, though. After recon surgery I had FOUR of them, and had to milk them twice a day. After the mast I had one for 6 weeks. There was 12 inches of it inside that time. Welcome to the club!
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Hi Ladies - I am probably on the older end of middle age - but this looks like a place for me
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HI Nancy, jump right in!!!! We are welcoming back our leader elimar after the abortion of her alien colon child. (Did that shock anyone?) I have NO social filters, but you'll get used to me.
Diana, my drains were that long, too! Elimar's are baby drains because it is in a different area of the body. Mine, too, wrapped along my chest ribs and then out the back!!
So now we wait to cheer the take-off of the ostomy bag!! I bet that'll change your diet forever, e. Depending on what food you see in there undigested.....
Gotta love the DH humour...hehehhehe
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Hi Nancy, welcome to the group.
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Eli - I agree that doc knows what he's looking at. When does the path report come back? Bet DH is just trying to get your goat in a fun way. Sounds like something mine would do to break the tension. At least he's there and attentive. Hug him for me. Hear lots of ladies who don't have any support. So cheetos but no vegies. The end of April is not that far only 6 weeks. Probably about the time you begin to feel up to snuff so to say. YAH for Eli!!!
Welcome Nancy. We're a little (maybe more than a little) crazy on here. Let us know what we can do for you. Age range is only there as a guide. Not checking IDs. LOL.
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thanks for the warm welcome - I did read a few pages of posts and will say for middle age I think this is a wild group.. LOL
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Nancy, welcome, and for "wild," according to the Greeks (proverb) the old hens have the good juices
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My car will be smelling like the holiday. Happy St Paddy's Day!