Wednesday, November 27, 2013

A very Happy Thanksgiving!

http://OK... I am a big wimp! I backed out of the MRI. This is the first time I denied a test or any kind of treatment. I prayed long and hard and had a peace about not doing it.  Dr P told me that there was really nothing more he could do for me that he isn't already doing.  So why bother putting me through even more stress by doing the MRI? So I called and cancelled. I decided to try to help my back out a little by cutting down on lifting things, which included my almost 4 year old, who is the size of a 6 year old! She still climbs up into my lap all the time, but picking her up only happens when it is necessary.
So why am I so cheerful, when I am usually a huge grump on chemo days... I got GREAT news today!! Let me go back a couple of weeks.  Last chemo treatment, my blood pressure was through the roof!!!  Like 189/95 high.  I didn't really think anything about it at the time. I have struggled with high bp for a while, so it was nothing new.  I knew in order to have the Avastin, my bp would have to be in a normal range. Avastin causes high bp, so if you start out with high bp, you can imagine what could happen.  So, I go to infusion and my infusion nurse says that she doesn't think I should get the Avastin bc she could not get my bp to lower.  By this time, by body has went into defense mode.  What this means is, most cancer patients suffer with a condition that makes them either very sleepy or very sick when they think about or go to chemo.  I fall asleep! I don't just mean dozing off... Full blown snore fest.  While in the chair, I hadn't even received any form of meds yets, and I was completely out.  I did sort of wake up to my nurse raising my arm above my head while taking my bp and it still wasn't going down. After many attempts of trying everything to get it to go down, it finally worked.  So I get plugged in and I receive the chemo.  I get home and sleep the day away.  That night (around 2am) I feel funny. Blurry vision, slight headache and just weird. I take my bp and it is 198/105! We call the nurses advice line and leave a message and never hear back.  Long story short, after 2 days of calling the dr multiple times with no return call, calling my chemo nurse and the nurses advice line, we get a call back from the dr's front desk.  I answer and she tells me I need to come in for a CT Scan as soon as possible.  At this point, I am on the verge of a mental break down!! I scream into the phone, "WHAT THE HECK DOES A CT SCAN HAVE TO DO WITH HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE?" She was taken back because I am sooooo not that person who yells at someone for no reason.  She tells me to hold on while she talks to the dr.  She says (in a very snarky tone) "Well, he told you not to be surprised that he would order a ct scan if you had a jump in numbers!" My head was spinning at this point... What the heck was going on? Then she said, "Oh and the dr has sent you a new prescription of blood pressure medication and it is waiting for you at the pharmacy." I make the appointment for the CT scan and curiosity gets the best of me. I tell Jon to call back my chemo nurse and ask what my numbers were.  He calls her and she says, "Are you sure you really want to know?" That can't be good! So Jon told her to let us know. She said my numbers jumped from 160 to 201.9 in a matter of 3 weeks time.  So, they again tell us, "We need to see how much the cancer has grown and/or spread."  I have NEVER been so nervous about a ct in all my life. I don't know what made this one so much different than all the other times. But, I AM SCARED TO DEATH.  I do the ct and the tech tells me that they put a rush on my orders and the dr will have it in the morning. The next 24 hours were the longest in my ENTIRE life.  We call the dr 3 times that day with no response.  Finally at 2pm, his head nurse calls me. She said, "Ok Christianne, Dr Paneres says everything looks good! There is no new growth or spreading, so we are going to keep going with the regiment you have been on and we will see you in a couple weeks." I just start crying hysterically on the phone, so much so that I freak Helen (my nurse) out! I said, "WAIT WHAT?"  She said, "didn't you hear me? You are fine! Whats wrong?" So I went on to tell her the whole story leading up to that point and she said, "If I am the one calling you, just know it is good news! I can't tell people bad news anymore, I would end up crying with the patient!" So now I know if dr P calls... that is not good!
Fast forward to today, I go to my appointment and he lets me know once again, everything is good! He says so good in fact that I now only see the dr every 6 weeks instead of every 3 weeks. He said it is pointless to go by my CEA numbers because they are just not accurate for me. So with that I push the envelope a little bit.  I told him my next chemo lands on my daughter's birthday and if I PROMISE to still take my chemo pills, could I please skip my infusion for the month of December. He said YES!!!!! So this is a very HAPPY Thanksgiving and an even better CHRISTMAS! I do not have to go in for chemo until January 7th of 2014! :)

So, I have to brag a little about my Posh "career". I have hit ALL my goals, every month.  I have received 2 awards already and have 2 more on the way.  I have decided that since I am doing so well, that I am pretty much going to just do outside/online orders and only 1 event for the month of December.  If you are thinking you would like to start earning a little more cash, I URGE you to try Posh!  The products honestly sell themselves and they are all natural and safe for everyone. I have 3 parties scheduled for January so far and if you would like to learn more about Posh or want to schedule a party just hit this link!  http://www.perfectlyposh.us/repsites/frm_bridge.aspx?bridge=JOIN&id=4710
YOU WILL NOT REGRET IT! If the link is not lit up and you can't click on it, copy and paste it! :)