INSOMNIACS place to talk in the wee hours
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Ok thank you ANUMANCHA I will tell her. She is also on a walker now recovering from a hip replacement because she had a good amount of cancer there. She struggles sometimes but shes getting better.... and Sheila thank u I got the link. It is useful.. I will try and explain it to mom in the morning. So today her levels are still headed in the right direction. Her calcium levels are at 12.0 now and the creatinine levels are at 1.3 ... they said we are out of the woods but we are still here at the hospital till they get down to normal. Im nervous about tomorrow. Her oncologist is coming to meet with us and talk to us about other options. So the bone scan she had friday showed there was more cancer. Faslodex/Aredia didnt work. They already gave her Zometa while we have been here and now her oncologist said he will meet with us tomorrow. The other oncologists we have seen thruout the weekend have said we are probably looking at chemotherapy now. Im sure this is natural but mom is very nervous about it. She has heard all the scary stories about it and is afraid of chemo. So I guess the next step is to wait and see what her oncologist suggests for her and also I hope we are going to do a CT scan soon although we dread it but to see if her cancer has spread to anywhere besides the bones now. Because since shes been on the hormonal treatment since feb and she didnt respond to it, then it might mean that theres a chance its spread to her organs now right? I dont even want to imagine that, but I dont want to miss anything either.
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Chrissyb, did you see Ken James of 'Skippy' fame tonight on TV, talking about being in remission from stage IV Lymphoma? He had some new treatment which seems to be working on the Lymphoma.....BUT!.............he has bone mets!
This seems to be another case of someone famous being in denial once again! I wonder sometimes if they brainwash the celebrity's during treatment so that when they are in front of the cameras after treatment, they leave the viewer with the impression that they are miraculously cured.
I nearly threw my shoe at the TV, I was so angry afterward.
Sheila.
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I haven't seen any tele tonight Aussie as I'm at my DD's and her antena has blown off the roof in the last storm we had and she has no reception. That sort of thing really gets my goat up!!! They are either brain washed, in complete denial or complete idiots! I think their egos have a lot to do with it as well but it does not give the right impression to the public......next thing we will be hearing is that he has passed after this huge battle.....grrrrr
Monroy those numbers are getting better and better! It's a shame that the hormonals have failed her and she my now be facing chemo but please remember that not everyone reacts the same to these drugs. What is very difficult for one is an absolute breeze for another and most times, the worst is but a few days. There are many ladies here that do chemo and work so it is doable. Give your mom a hugs from us and tell her she is in our thoughts and prayers.
Love n hugs. Chrissy
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Hi, well it looks like everyone went to sleep - new pain meds are helping the unending nerve and bone pain. My new walker for my mornings should be here soon, it is embarassing but I look like a 90 going on 110 yr old when I first get up!
Monroy glad to see your moms numbers are coming down. My docs office would agree with what Chrissy said - we all react differently. If she is apprehensive, they can give her something to relax. They have a lot of good choices and if something doesn't work just let the docs know.
I started clearing the freezer for summer veggies...found good soups. Vegetarian veggie soup - so easy 2 large cans of tomatoe juice(my friend even uses this for spaghetti sauce), package frozen mixed veggies, and season to taste! I just put it in the crock pot to cook.
I do not just lose a lens out of my glasses, the entire pair...this was before my chemo stuff, but I went and got another pair made! Yep and 2 months later, I misplaced those, so ?I got red frames and the next day I found the one pair in my knitting bag and the other ones the cats had stashed them in their toy crock!I wear contacts and need cheaters to read so I have stocked up on $1 ones. My eye doc even was stocking better ones but they were like $5 to 20 each. Bifocal contacts never worked for me.
I am getting sleepy so time for bed.
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It's been a couple of days since my last post. So much has happened. My moms calcium levels are now in the normal range. She is at 10.0 now for calcium and creatinine is at 1.2. She had a PET/CT scan done today and we received the news that no organs are involved yet and that the cancer is still contained in her bones!! After reading lots of the posts here it sounds like this is a good thing! Dr suggests we try a chemotherapy drug named Taxol. He wants her to do it weekly for 3 weeks and one week off. I believe he wants her to follow this plan as long as the chemotherapy is working. Is this normal? I was under the impression that chemotherapy was only for a certain amount of treatments then the patient would be done. Have any of you tried this drug? Is it common for patients to lose their hair with this drug? Besides that we should be starting chemotherapy tomorrow and if everything goes well she should be released from the hospital tomorrow as well!! This was such a tough weekend but were happy we've got a plan and she says she's ready to fight!!!
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Hi girls, just popping my head in the door before I go for my checkup.
Monroy, when we are stage IV we will always be on some form of treatment. This is so that the cancer can be controlled for as long as possible.......so, your mum will be on Taxol for as long as she has no progression and it is not giving her too many problems and should that one not do good things for her there are many others to choose from. The three weeks on one week off is the normal routine so don't worry about that one. If my memory seves me right, she may loose her hair but not everyone does but the doc will give her all that information and If he doesn't you can ask what the major side effects are. The main thing to keep in mind is that most of the side effects can be controlled buy other drugs but her doc needs to be told. Don't be afraid to tell him even the smallest, what you may think insignificant changes that may happen because in the long run, they will form a pattern that he will be able to read and so give her what she needs to make this journey as comfortable as possible and give her a good quality of life. I'm really pleased to hear that she is good enough to be released from hospital.
Love n hugs. Chrissy
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Thanks Nancy. I'll be back later about our tea time so if you are still up I'll catch you then. I'm not expecting any probs and other than a few more aches and pains I doubt if there is anything untoward happening so this is more to satisfy the BS and make him feel like he's doing his jub.....lol.
Love n hugs. Chrissy
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Chrissyb - I hope it is all good news with your checkup!. I am praying for you.
Monroy sounds like your mom is ready to put on the gladiator gear and get this fight started. It is so important to focus on positive things...and we all have our bad days. Eating healthy helps, but what I made yesterday ...I may not tolerate the next. I keep fruit, carrots & celery ready to eat...usually that works when nothing else does.
Ok I have spent too many hrs with the cats. I was out of work for 7 months. My diva girl has been hurt by the ruffian other cats, so I now have to take her to the litter box plus stand guard. Her brother is our loving alpha male; with OCD. He is frantic if he cannot see his favorite toy, so he ounces on me to help him. He was having a cow, nudging me, frantic bird peeps and doing his flexing of the paw for "givme" for a taco...problem is he gets bowel problems. His next move was to try to get the treat tin(bad mom it has fancy feast not treats), so he fell between the bed and cabinet, then he nips my arm. He is sulking cause he wont get treats until tomorrow night.My big guy is blind ...he is ok as long as I do not move anything. His sis is tiny and deaf...this is the first yr she moved into the bed, but otherwise she is on top of the kitchen cabinets. The younsters are 9 yr old tuxedo cats and still causing havoc. Where I work we have 100 acre habitat...I call our raccoon "Fuzzy". He is the dumpster diver...the guys cannot believe that just talking to him calmly and he leaves the dumpster. When I am there - he sits on the edge of the dumpster to make eye contact. My guys are from the city, but they discovered Fuzzy was limping, so they let him hop to the dock ledge to get down & one of they left him a crate to help.
New pain meds are working, I have nerve pain in my lower back and my rt elbow. They actually make me sleepy that is a big plus...I at least get 6 hrs. I said it was bedtime cats beat me to the bed, alpha male on his back whimpering and staring at the treat can!
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Chrissy-I'm up tonight b/c my Gi doc thinks this new prep he has excepted is superior. well yey in the middle of the night haviing 1/2 gallon of go-lightly- which i always called go lotley. I have to finish prep and shower and dress and be out the door at0640 am.
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I've written to Sleepdeprived shehas lurked . I told she would be received with open arms by anyone here. She receives her first chem tomorrow. Nervous as we all were. Did my best
Snoopy had her port , they brought her food. She got dizzy new she was going out, but couldn't get flat, had read my posts about getting flat, new that's what she needed to do----. Cuz she was in a bed that know one instructed DH how to put dowm. No nurse close----------she passed out. They had also brought her a full breakfast rather than starting her on clear liquids. I hate post op nurses that don't understanf the Autonomic nervous system and only go by rote policy.
welll must take care of several things...............
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Hi girls I'm back!!!!
Everything is just hunky dory and the BS does not want to see me for another six months!!! Knew it would be but I just needed to let him know he was doing his job......lol
Anum your cats sound divine.....and full of personality!!! While I'm in the city I stay with my DD and GS's which is lovely but GS2 has a cat called Boris and he is an inside only cat which is fine but of course he is always up to mischief. Well, last night I was watching a movie on the computer before settling down to sleep and I put my glasses on top of the computer. I woke this morning late and put my hand to the shelf where I usually put then before I remembered that I had put them elsewhere. I rolled over and low and behold........no glasses where I left them. Needless to say, DD was at work, GS1 was at work experience and GS2 was at school.....without my glasses I can see next to nothing as everything is a blur! So for an hour I hunted and hunted for these dang glasses, knowing that they could be anywhere because Boris would have batted them all over the place. In the end, I rang DD at work to see if I could call GS2 out of school to help me look and in order to do that, I needed to tell the school something that would allow them to release him. I eventually rang and asked with the excuse there was a family situation and we needed him at home! The poor boy was in a right tizz by the time he got here with his imagination running wild but when I told him that the situation was that his cat had stolen my glasses therough the night and I couldn't find them because I couldn't see with out them he burst out laughing and fifteen minutes later he handed me my eyes!!!!! YAY!!!!! It was so nice to be able to see clearly and his bonus was that he got to stay home for the afternoon. Well that's my cat story for the day!
Hi ya Shiela! You are right about some nurses, they really don't understand until they themselves have been in that position. I tink somewhere in the training some of there things ned to be able to be simulated for them just so they can see things from the other side.
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Well I had lots of real life simulation pre- working then , I worked as a nursing aide. I watched the nurses, from that experience I learned what type of nurse I wanted to be. Also, taught the aides. Some appreciated , some didn't. Some of the aides came with sub standard training. My guess is the were trained by people that didn't have a lot of clinical training themselves.
Had a nursing instructor go to my boss one time and go off on me on something. I think she was teaching them that to even go and talk to a patient before finding out the situation she had them put on gloves. I agree with the hand washing pre-entering the rooms and was instrumental in getting sinks placed at the door way. This instructor decided to take a summer job----guess who mentored her . when they didn't give her a mentor and put her out on her own. She had a total different attitude , but of course it had been put in my file. Boss was amazing at keeping out anything good. That's why at this late age, I believe in unions. Unions can prevent the shit bosses can do that's illegal
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I agree with you there! Unions definitely have their place. DD is home and cooking tea......mmmm.....smells good! It's making my mouth water.....lol.
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Thank you so much and for all of your words. It helped me out tremendously and I was able to pass that over to my mom. Looks like I'll be joining the chemo group now. One question tho, do you ladies know of some sort of mentor group. We r looking for a survivor with bone mets around the Dallas fort worth area that can talk to my mom about her experience with this. She's having a hard time coping with this and I think it will help to talk to someone who is going thru the same thing she is and has been for a bit. Preferably in Spanish. If u have any ideas this would really help!
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Monroy, I have heard other women on the boards talk about large breast centres in the USA and I think there is one in Dallas. If you contacted them they will be able to give you some more information on that. It might pay you to ask to speak to someone at the hospital where you are now about it as they also may be able to point you in the right direction.
Love n hugs to both you and your mom. Chrissy
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My grandmother died of bc, my aunt died of bc, my younger sister now is surviving last stage 3 bc/she has had this for 5 yearsand now today we find out that our youngest sister has places the MRI ultrasound and mammogram need to have checked out, such a sad time. Do any of you ever feel overwhelmed by all of this
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Hi Salkate and welcome to the late night thread. To answer your question, yes, at times we all feel overwhelmed by this disease and what it means to have it. Oh my goodness, your family history is not a good one and I can understand why you are feeling as you do. Cyber (((((((Hugs)))))))) to you and your sisters and here's hoping that when your younger sister has those tests reviewed that they turn out to be false positives......it can and does happen. We will keep you all in our thoughts. I will be around for quite a while yet so if you want to talk, I'm here.
Love n hugs. Chrissy
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Thank you for your reply. It helps to know others feel this way too,
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I'm unable to sleep and was passing thru here when I saw Chrissy's story about specs and son's cat. I laughed and that made me feel better cause I've been having an overwhelmed day today like Salkate. Thanks for helping me end the day on a better note.
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Hi Octobergrace welcome to you as well. Glad my specs story and the cat got you to have a giggle and gave you a happier note to end the day. Come through anytime!
Love n hugs. Chrissy
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Hi ya Nancy! Yes I'm very happy that I don't need to see him for six months and hopefully the report will be the same then as well.....lol. Nothing like looking ahead....lol!!! I saw my travel agent today and it looks like I will be in LA for a few days around the second week in October we should talk and try and work something out! It looks like I'm going to break the flight in London other wise I will be flying for 24 hours and I think that just may be a little too long!
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Not really, if I leave here on the 1st and kept going, I would arive on the east coast area of the USA the same day but when I leave LA, it takes me two days to get home........lol. Sort of sounds a tad weird!
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right now it is 5.05pm Friday. So it's about 12 or 13 hours difference more if it's the east coast.
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Not sure tonight as I'm still at my DD's. I head home tomorrow. I will be making a bread and butter pudding to have with cream for dessert but I think the rest is left over soup and pasta as GS2 has Archery practice tonight so it's grab what we can.....lol
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Boris is strictley an inside cat but he owns the house....lol....and dictates when my DD goes to be as he sleeps with her. It's quite funny to see actually, he snuggles in and I swear he spoons her!
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I am recuperating from work, the one guy (my age) told my boss Tues he was too old to clean a floor in his area, so he left. I have been left with the 2 other guys, but we divide extra work and do it as a team. Day 3
my bones are having their own pain party!Chrissy that is great news!
I am off to bed...Thank God for netflix...it keeps me company and diva kitty likes to watch movies.
The diva sleeps with her head on mine or under my chin her brothe snuggles against my back.
Sas- I had to go to reg recovery....surgery was 1.5 hrs plus they gave me extra sedation. The outpatient nurses were rude. I was there 1 hr and they were shouting at me to wake up, get dressed and go home, cause they wanted to leave. My doc sent one of the reg recovery nurses to see me, she got my glasses, inhaler and tea. She explained to them they needed to let me sleep for 3 hours uninterrupted - go check docs orders. I had them refuse to treat me cause they had to use vinyl gloves and waited 5 hrs for the vinyl gloves from supply center. Yep I was there for emergency transfusion, I had been in ER at 10 am and blood started at 1 AM.
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Oh that poor baby!!! I have had many cats wander into my place looking for a home over the years the last one was Miss Puss E. Kat and she has been with me now for five years. To begin with she would never let you pat her tummy but now that is no problem at all!....lol.....if fact she begs for a cuddle now.
This is Miss Puss
I really don't like people who just walk away from their animals or are cruel to them in any way. It upsets me to think that they think that animals have no feelings.......grrrrrrrr!!!0 -
Sleep well Nancy!!!!
Anum, what is it with the guys? Have they no backbone? Sometimes I just think they are lazy! Hope your bones stop aching and allow you to sleep!! G'night!! Sleep well!
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I shy away from people that do not like animals. Your cat looks like the big guy snuggles;his head large - not fat but weighs 30-35 pounds!
The guy that quit just wouldnt do his work, if you mentioned doing entrance door windows, wipe smudges from walls and doors - he would flip out. I told my boss that he would go home early and start yelling about it is not his job. I did his area, detailed his areas and was done in 3 hrs! The other guys pitch in and we have gotten every area covered with no problem.
My drugs are kicking in...good night
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Night Anum....sleep well!!!
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