Thoughts and prayers requested

[Red]

Thanks @b_line , I really appreciate it. It has been rough, but she is taking it all like a trooper.

I guess I might as well give an update. She had her 2nd chemo treatment this week on Monday. She ended up having a reaction to one of the chemo drugs, I think it was the taxol they said. Well they had to pump her full of benadryl because it acts like an allergic reaction, even though that isn't exactly right. Well that continued for much of the week so far. She has been tired and lethargic and nauseated. Luckily none of it has been severe by itself, but together it is pretty miserable. Luckily the doctor agreed that growth factor shot was not worth the pain so he isn't giving her that one right now, but rather watching until her blood tests warrant it, then giving her a different one that is typically milder as needed. Glad about that for sure. Celebrate the small wins.

Not sure if I mentioned it above, but we went to my mother's house last week for a quick trip to get away before her 2nd chemo treatment. Glad to have gone, it was a great trip. My mother lives in a house on one of the many small lakes south of Seattle. The setting is right out of a storybook. Very relaxing and fun week. We did the Seattle Underground Tour, which is really interesting, highly recommended, would go again. And we hit Pike's Place market to watch the idiots throw fish around. But mostly spending time just floating on and swimming in the lake was great. Let me see if I can get a picture of the lake from the deck of their house in this post. Yeah I could only find one from last year in the rain. This year was 85+ degrees, the water warm as a cool bath, fantastic weather for it. I am trying to find a picture with my wife at the lake but I took pictures off my phone recently and I think those went with it. lol

Ok here is one, but it isn't the best one. My wife and her sisters and my mother going down to go swimming while I enjoyed just sitting on the deck reading. If you can't tell from her new hair-do, she is the one in the back. She lost 10 pounds with the first chemo treatment and didn't have that much weight to lose, so the goal on this trip was increase her activity with a few small hikes and plenty of swimming along with lots of good food. And it worked, she gained 6 pounds back, so we were happy about that. The problem is with her weight issue we are buying nothing but really fattening foods that she likes, and since I am basically a bear looking to gear up for hybernation, I am constantly on the prowl and eating her food too. I am probably going to gain 50 pounds with all this. Wish I could donate it to her, that would be great!!

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Glad to see you and your wife had a relaxing time. Your mom’s place looks like the perfect place for that. And here’s hoping for more wins.
Keeping you and your family in my thoughts…

 

[str8line]

Thinking about you and your wife, Log.

 

[NAOS_pt2]

ditto

 

[LogGrad98]

I haven't been posting much lately. Stress is pretty high and I've been trying to avoid news and any other social media and anything negative and emotionally burdensome. We have had a couple of events where I thought I was going to lose her. We've had a few ER visits, blood transfusions, hospital stays. It's been incredibly tough. When I feel strong enough I'll post one of them. It turned out to be not as dangerous as expected, but for maybe a solid 2 minutes I thought she was gone, before the paramedics arrived and she was again responsive. Anyway, I have really appreciated all the emotional support from friends here, and I'm not one to go digging at friends for favors, but the bills are piling up and my wife's niece started a gofundme to help with the medical bills. If any of you are willing to share this further it would be appreciated, and of course any donation is a big help, but I'm not asking for that here. We are ok right now, mostly at risk of needing to cash out retirement accounts, not lose the house or anything like that, but with her not working, and just having burned most of our available liquid funds in buying a house, things are tight and just adding to the stress of it all. That is the last thing she should have to worry about, but it really hurts when she asks how much her budget is at the grocery store for treats for her kids or for her new granddaughter's gift (yep, new grandbaby born on Wednesday this week, beautiful baby girl!) Anyway, again I sincerely appreciate the kind words and sentiments expressed in this thread and I don't expect anything from anyone, but I told her I'd share this where I can, for her peace of mind. Se here's the link if you are so inclined.

Donate to Support Glynna's Battle with Ovarian Cancer, organized by Megan Chandler

I'm raising funds for my Aunt and her family while she is undergoing treatm… Megan Chandler needs your support for Support Glynna's Battle with Ovarian Cancer

gofund.me

 

[gandalfe]

I haven't been posting much lately. Stress is pretty high and I've been trying to avoid news and any other social media and anything negative and emotionally burdensome. We have had a couple of events where I thought I was going to lose her. We've had a few ER visits, blood transfusions, hospital stays. It's been incredibly tough. When I feel strong enough I'll post one of them. It turned out to be not as dangerous as expected, but for maybe a solid 2 minutes I thought she was gone, before the paramedics arrived and she was again responsive. Anyway, I have really appreciated all the emotional support from friends here, and I'm not one to go digging at friends for favors, but the bills are piling up and my wife's niece started a gofundme to help with the medical bills. If any of you are willing to share this further it would be appreciated, and of course any donation is a big help, but I'm not asking for that here. We are ok right now, mostly at risk of needing to cash out retirement accounts, not lose the house or anything like that, but with her not working, and just having burned most of our available liquid funds in buying a house, things are tight and just adding to the stress of it all. That is the last thing she should have to worry about, but it really hurts when she asks how much her budget is at the grocery store for treats for her kids or for her new granddaughter's gift (yep, new grandbaby born on Wednesday this week, beautiful baby girl!) Anyway, again I sincerely appreciate the kind words and sentiments expressed in this thread and I don't expect anything from anyone, but I told her I'd share this where I can, for her peace of mind. Se here's the link if you are so inclined.

Donate to Support Glynna's Battle with Ovarian Cancer, organized by Megan Chandler

I'm raising funds for my Aunt and her family while she is undergoing treatm… Megan Chandler needs your support for Support Glynna's Battle with Ovarian Cancer

gofund.me

@LogGrad98, I know how difficult this must be, having to think about quotidian budgetary matters when you just want to be working on caring for your wife.

Would you object to us having @Jason pin a new thread with the GoFundMe link in the OP? (And, for that matter, would @Jason have a problem with that?)

 

[LogGrad98]

@LogGrad98, I know how difficult this must be, having to think about quotidian budgetary matters when you just want to be working on caring for your wife.

Would you object to us having @Jason pin a new thread with the GoFundMe link in the OP? (And, for that matter, would @Jason have a problem with that?)

Thanks gandalfe. That would be ok with me. I didn't want to be so presumptuous myself. This all makes me feel uncomfortable, I've always been the caregiver. It sucks being the one that needs it. But thank you for your compassion. If that makes sense for jazzfanz that would be ok with me. Thank you.

 

[fishonjazz]

I have been working a ton of overtime in the month of October (yesterday was my last day of overtime for a while thank God) so I have made more money than normal recently so I will throw a little your way when my wife gets up. I don't have any PayPal or venmo or things like that so she always handles money transfers.

Won't be much but I gotta give something to my favorite jazzfanzer in a time like this.

I wish I could donate my time/service to you as well. I can't remember if you are living in the SLC area or not these days but if you are and need me to help you with anything (mow lawns, drive you or her somewhere, give a massage, bring you a meal, watch a game together, etc) then let me know. I have a lot of days off now that I'm mostly done working OT (12 hour shifts = lots of days off) so I have free time.

Btw, reading your most recent post got tears in my eyes. I'm so sorry for what you are going through.

 

[Park Bites]

I am with you my man. I understand a little of what you are going through. I have gone through the battle with cancer twice.

If you need someone to talk to who will just listen I am here. No judgements. Honestly, that is something I needed the most.

I would help with the gofund me but my wife just lost her job but when we get settle I will help.

 

[David Hume]

Just donated now, Log. Best wishes for your wife’s full recovery.

 

[Hearsky]

@LogGrad98 . Sending all my positive thoughts, my friend. I'm grateful for what you have contributed to this forum over the years. You are a damn good man. If willing, please PM your Venmo (or, post on here, if you prefer).

 

[gandalfe]

@LogGrad98 . Sending all my positive thoughts, my friend. I'm grateful for what you have contributed to this forum over the years. You are a damn good man. If willing, please PM your Venmo (or, post on here, if you prefer).

There's a GoFundMe set up - but I know some people don't like that platform, so whatever.

 

[RandyForRubio]

Hey Log, haven’t seen this thread until now. I’ll be praying for you and your wife. She’s gonna beat this buddy!

 

[Rubashov]

One last push guys, we've almost hit the target.

 

[Thee Jazz Fan]

Done. Sorry it’s not much. My prayers go out to your family

 

[LogGrad98]

Final chemo treatment is next week, the week of Thanksgiving. As expected, things get harder with each treatment, the effects are somewhat cumulative. This last one was pretty rough, and we had 2 hospital visits for blood transfusions due to low platelets, but the bigger concern was extremely low hemoglobin and white blood cells. We have more or less completely cut off contact with friends and family, only occasionally seeing any of our kids. It has been really tough for her because her family is her life. And she is mine, so it just kills me to see her suffering. I know it is a good thing, the way to keep her with us longer, but wow this has been the hardest thing I have ever been through. And I know it has for her too, which is what makes it so tough. So next week, no thanksgiving with the family. Interesting note, she went through her journals from my cancer treatment 27 years ago and saw that I was released from the hospital after one of my chemo treatments on the Monday before thanksgiving, and we missed thanksgiving with the family that year too. Interesting coincidence.

So I decided to make our thanksgiving early this year, we are doing it this coming weekend, when she is feeling the best she can in her chemo cycle. A friend of my wife's raises chickens, and they offered us a capon for our mini-early-thanksgiving dinner. I do not think I ever had that before, so it sounds great. Cooking it on my smoker, along with the stuffing, also cooked on the smoker, and a pumpkin pie cooked on the smoker. Believe me, it works for real, if you can get your smoker to hold 350 for an hour and 15 minutes. Since I am going to be mostly free on thanksgiving day, I am also cooking turkey and pumpkin pie for my kids to take to their various thanksgiving dinners they are going to. That way at least we get to see them briefly and we can be a small part of their celebration.

But it is a celebration, the last chemo treatment. Breathe a cautious sigh of relief. She is so happy to be done, and I totally get that. Chemo was one of the worst experiences of my life. I never wanted her to have to go through this, but wow am I glad for modern medicine and a good chance of beating this disease and having her with me for years to come.

We are also very thankful for the Jazz Fanz family, and your contribution to our gofundme was overwhelming and humbling. Thank you all so much. Love you guys.

 

[fishonjazz]

Final chemo treatment is next week, the week of Thanksgiving. As expected, things get harder with each treatment, the effects are somewhat cumulative. This last one was pretty rough, and we had 2 hospital visits for blood transfusions due to low platelets, but the bigger concern was extremely low hemoglobin and white blood cells. We have more or less completely cut off contact with friends and family, only occasionally seeing any of our kids. It has been really tough for her because her family is her life. And she is mine, so it just kills me to see her suffering. I know it is a good thing, the way to keep her with us longer, but wow this has been the hardest thing I have ever been through. And I know it has for her too, which is what makes it so tough. So next week, no thanksgiving with the family. Interesting note, she went through her journals from my cancer treatment 27 years ago and saw that I was released from the hospital after one of my chemo treatments on the Monday before thanksgiving, and we missed thanksgiving with the family that year too. Interesting coincidence.

So I decided to make our thanksgiving early this year, we are doing it this coming weekend, when she is feeling the best she can in her chemo cycle. A friend of my wife's raises chickens, and they offered us a capon for our mini-early-thanksgiving dinner. I do not think I ever had that before, so it sounds great. Cooking it on my smoker, along with the stuffing, also cooked on the smoker, and a pumpkin pie cooked on the smoker. Believe me, it works for real, if you can get your smoker to hold 350 for an hour and 15 minutes. Since I am going to be mostly free on thanksgiving day, I am also cooking turkey and pumpkin pie for my kids to take to their various thanksgiving dinners they are going to. That way at least we get to see them briefly and we can be a small part of their celebration.

But it is a celebration, the last chemo treatment. Breathe a cautious sigh of relief. She is so happy to be done, and I totally get that. Chemo was one of the worst experiences of my life. I never wanted her to have to go through this, but wow am I glad for modern medicine and a good chance of beating this disease and having her with me for years to come.

We are also very thankful for the Jazz Fanz family, and your contribution to our gofundme was overwhelming and humbling. Thank you all so much. Love you guys.

Man I hope the end is near and the recovery can begin in earnest.
Love you man