Small set backs...

Jeff and his "Rocky" t-shirt

Surprise Ipod from Santa

Surprise iHome from Santa

Girls wanted long jammies

Been feeling so good the last few months. I repainted our bedroom, finished off Christmas, organized some drawers and cabinets that needed it and basically getting things off my "to-do" list. I have recently been getting tired more often and with my weekly doctor visits noticed that some of my numbers were going down. (White, red and platelet numbers to be exact.)

Saturday afternoon spent 6 hours getting platelets and 2 pints of blood. (blood pressure 86/60) Feeling lot less tired now that I have oxygen in my blood. HA! Enjoyed Christmas weekend and was glad I could participate. Another long day at clinic today for more blood to check. Tapering down TACRO and losing some drugs. So far I am doing better but not hitting “normal levels”. Had to do the bone marrow biopsy today but asked for some drugs to relax me. (Yes, they helped and I am tired.) Don’t have to go back until next week so hopefully all stays regular. Let's hope we hear good results.

Hoping you all had a Merry Christmas. Lets bring in 2012 with a BANG.....cuz 2011 has sucked!! :)

One year ago....

As I type this I am reminded that this Saturday will be my one year date of being diagnosed with (AML) leukemia. It seems at times like the year has been the longest of my life…..then again it has flown by so quickly too. I never in a million years would have thought that I would ever have had to deal with cancer in my 40’s.

This month has been a little tough for me. I’ve met a few people that were in the hospital the same time as me that didn’t get better and pasted away. They made it past transplant but the recovery was just too much. It is so hard not to get connected to those that you know were fighting just as hard as you, meeting their families and hearing their stories. My heart aches for their loved ones.

Just this week we have a very good friend in for chemo and he got his own stem cells transplant today. (He was diagnosed a month after me.) Another good friend had her mother in law admitted Monday for AML as well. I visit them both when I am at clinic and try hard to give positive vibes and hopeful words. It just seems like cancer is everywhere.

This month has also been very inspiring. My case worker called me a few weeks before Thanksgiving and asked me to talk to a lady getting ready to have her stem cell transplant. She had the same leukemia as me and wanted to know what to expect. WOW! She was great to talk to and we’ve now become great friends. She said I was her inspiration and after seeing how well I was doing she knew she would be fine. That put a smile on my face and made me feel great. (I’ve been asked to visit other patients in the New Year.) Maybe I found my new calling? She is doing well and was discharged last week. We still keep in contact and we promise to stay in touch.

My numbers are still looking good. Seems like I am always giving blood at one time or another. HA! My INR and TACRO are right where they need to be. I am starting to taper off some drugs but got another one today to help with infections. As we all know the flu, RSV, colds and other germs are out there and can be deadly to us without our entire immune system. (I just hate that person at the store coughing their lungs out with no respect for those around them. So rude to the rest of us.)

As the holidays approach I am reminded how lucky I am to be around for another Christmas. I hope you all got your Christmas cards with our words of appreciation and gratitude for the help this year. I can’t imagine what we would have done without you.

Wishing you all a Happy Holiday Season and a Healthy 2012. May this next year be better than the last!!