Casey is doing really well! He was released from having to wear the "murse" on Tuesday!! That's right folks...no more wound vac!! Yippeee! His hernias have not been bothering him lately so he has not had to wear the "mirdle" either! He feels like a man again!!
His hair is growing back a little faster now. He has a nice little beard coming in that he's trying to grow into a gotee. He's not happy about the amount of gray hair coming in, though. The hair on his head is growing in a lot thinner and softer! We'll see how long he will allow it to grow before he shaves it off again! He grew accustomed to that look. He is starting to look normal again...his eyebrows are back as well!
His only complaint right now is that he can't sleep. Because of the steroids he has to take, he becomes restless at nights. He runs out of his prescription Ambien too quickly and has to wait until a month after prescribed to refill again.
Things will never ever be the way they used to be; but I can't wait until he can feel completely well!!
Friday, June 18, 2010
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
Update on Swelling
Casey's transplant coordinator never called back! That's nothing new! When he went in for his wound care appt., the wound specialist said that his swelling ankles and feet were nothing to be concerned about. If the swelling was going away at nights, then it was just his diet. He needs to cut back on the amt of salt he consumes and drink more water. Water sure is important in our bodies! I wish water tasted like coke, then I would drink gallons of it everyday! LOL!
When we finally got in touch with one of the coordinators, she confirmed what the wound specialist had said. The swelling has not returned. But Casey, being the stubborn man he is, did not ask about the cramps in his chest! He said it didn't cramp at the time so he didn't think to ask! UGH! Men!
He had another wound care appt this morning. His wound is getting better and better! It's not as deep or as long. The size of the sponge they have to insert in it for the wound vac gets smaller every visit...that's a very good sign!! Please keep him in your prayers! We need his wound to totally heal so that they can operate on his hernias!
When we finally got in touch with one of the coordinators, she confirmed what the wound specialist had said. The swelling has not returned. But Casey, being the stubborn man he is, did not ask about the cramps in his chest! He said it didn't cramp at the time so he didn't think to ask! UGH! Men!
He had another wound care appt this morning. His wound is getting better and better! It's not as deep or as long. The size of the sponge they have to insert in it for the wound vac gets smaller every visit...that's a very good sign!! Please keep him in your prayers! We need his wound to totally heal so that they can operate on his hernias!
Thursday, May 20, 2010
When it rains it pours...
It's been very hectic the last few months. Things seem to keep happening to us...one thing right after another. I won't bore you with the details. But during all this stress, one thing was certain, Casey was doing better and better each day...or so we thought. I'm a little concerned now. He has complained of muscle cramps in his chest around the heart...and now his ankles and feet are swollen. He has had the cramps on and off for a while but the swelling started last night. Neither of these symptoms is good....it either points to heart failure or liver failure. His liver numbers have been slightly elevated for the last two labs he has done. We have contacted his doctor and coordinator and are just waiting for them to return our call. Please keep Casey in your prayers! ♥
Friday, May 7, 2010
Bye-Bye Chemo!!
Casey had his last Chemotherapy on Tuesday, May 4th!! Can we all shout AMEN?!?!? What should have been just a couple of chemo sessions turned into 6 chemo sessions!! But he struggled through it like a champ!! I'm so proud of him! He has been thru hell and back and still managed to keep his sense of humor!! His Oncologist met with him before chemo and told him that his lab results were great! The certain blood protein that they look for in cancer patients was normal, like that of a cancer-free patient!!! I was so HAPPY to hear that!!! In 3 weeks, he will have to go back for a CT scan just to double check there is nothing still lurking around...but we are both very positive that its all gone gone!!
Casey also had a wound specialist appointment on Tuesday. His wound is getting better but very slowly. It is still as deep but a little less wide. The doctor said it was looking great and didnt even have to scrape anything out of it like usual! He still has to wear the wound vac so the murse is here to stay for another few months. He still also needs to wear the wrap that was given to him by his doctor to secure his hernias and to lessen the pain. It looks like a girdle! LOL! It's a man girdle so we shall call it a "mirdle!" So now he wears a murse and a mirdle! SWEET! LOL!
Casey also had a wound specialist appointment on Tuesday. His wound is getting better but very slowly. It is still as deep but a little less wide. The doctor said it was looking great and didnt even have to scrape anything out of it like usual! He still has to wear the wound vac so the murse is here to stay for another few months. He still also needs to wear the wrap that was given to him by his doctor to secure his hernias and to lessen the pain. It looks like a girdle! LOL! It's a man girdle so we shall call it a "mirdle!" So now he wears a murse and a mirdle! SWEET! LOL!
Friday, April 30, 2010
Possible Pain Relief Soon
If you couldn't tell, I was very frustrated when I wrote the last two blog posts. I think I have simmered down some. Casey's whole ordeal starting since September 2008 has just gone way beyond what anyone would have imagined!
He had a couple of appointments today. The first one being with the wound specialist. His open wound has had no improvement. It is still about 5 inches long and a couple of inches wide OPEN! Even with the wound vac, there has not been any improvement! This is very discouraging! If it weren't for him having to have 6 more rounds of chemo, the healing process would have been so much quicker.
I have some bad news to share and some good news to share. I will start with the bad and soften the blow with the good. The bad news is that he will not be able to have any kind of surgery on his hernias, which are the cause of all his excruciating pain right now, until after his last chemotherapy AND until his wound is totally healed up!! At the rate he's going now, he will not be able to have surgery on his hernias until next year!! I just can't imagine him having to be in pain for that long!! The good news is that the Dr. prescribed him stronger pain meds and a wrap to secure his hernias. The doctors did not want to prescribe him anything stronger than hydrocodone because it's bad on the liver. For those of you who pop tylenol like candy, please be careful...it is very bad on the liver! And Advil is very bad on kidneys...just sayin'! The wrap should help the pain alot. The last few days he has had very bad allergies and has been coughing and sneezing like crazy! Poor thing nearly goes down to his knees because of the pain when he sneezes! He can even feel something protrude out when he holds his tummy to cough or sneeze.
I can't imagine what God's plan is for us. After all that we have endured the last few years, I don't think we can handle any more bad news!
He had a couple of appointments today. The first one being with the wound specialist. His open wound has had no improvement. It is still about 5 inches long and a couple of inches wide OPEN! Even with the wound vac, there has not been any improvement! This is very discouraging! If it weren't for him having to have 6 more rounds of chemo, the healing process would have been so much quicker.
I have some bad news to share and some good news to share. I will start with the bad and soften the blow with the good. The bad news is that he will not be able to have any kind of surgery on his hernias, which are the cause of all his excruciating pain right now, until after his last chemotherapy AND until his wound is totally healed up!! At the rate he's going now, he will not be able to have surgery on his hernias until next year!! I just can't imagine him having to be in pain for that long!! The good news is that the Dr. prescribed him stronger pain meds and a wrap to secure his hernias. The doctors did not want to prescribe him anything stronger than hydrocodone because it's bad on the liver. For those of you who pop tylenol like candy, please be careful...it is very bad on the liver! And Advil is very bad on kidneys...just sayin'! The wrap should help the pain alot. The last few days he has had very bad allergies and has been coughing and sneezing like crazy! Poor thing nearly goes down to his knees because of the pain when he sneezes! He can even feel something protrude out when he holds his tummy to cough or sneeze.
I can't imagine what God's plan is for us. After all that we have endured the last few years, I don't think we can handle any more bad news!
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
What my blog is all about
My blog is a chance for me to spill my guts about how I FEEL about everything that has been going on with my husband. Blogging is much like writing in a diary. I express my thoughts, opinions, concerns, and most of all my feelings about things that are going on in my life. Doing this helps me cope; it helps me open up; and it helps me not keep my feelings bottled up to where I explode later. This blog just so happens to be about the trials and tribulations that my husband and I have had to endure the last couple of years. No matter who it appears I am blaming for his physical and mental anguish, of course I am THANKFUL to GOD that he is alive and am thankful that the doctors were able to save him. The fact of the matter is that we put all of our trust and faith into doctors and hospitals. We do not expect to come out of there with an illness that we didn't have when we first went in there because of something that was overlooked! Casey is my everything, he is my world, and I care about his pain more than I care of my own! Of course, people are entitled to their own opinions. If anyone disagrees with my thoughts and opinions, please keep to yourself and do not attack me personally; as this is MY blog about MY opinions, MY thoughts, and MY feelings. And if it seems I am whining; well, so be it! After all we have been through, we definitely have room to whine!
STUPID CANCER/CHEMO
I AM GOING TO BLOG IN ALL CAPS TODAY BECAUSE I AM SO FRUSTRATED!!! MY HUSBAND CASEY HAS BEEN IN SO MUCH PAIN FOR SO LONG AND ALL BECAUSE HIS FIRST LIVER TRANSPLANT AT BAYLOR, WHICH BAYLOR IS SUPPOSED TO BE WELL KNOWN FOR, GOT SCREWED UP SOMEHOW!!! THE LIVER DONOR THEY USED HAD LUNG CANCER!! THEREFORE, THE LUNG CANCER THAT HAD METASTICIZED TO THE DONORS LIVER WAS "SOMEHOW" MISSED AND THEN TRANSPLANTED INTO POOR CASEY!!! BECAUSE OF THIS, WE HAVE HAD TO ENDURE SO MUCH PAIN AND ANGUISH! HE RECEIVED ANOTHER LIVER TRANSPLANT TO REMOVE THE CANCEROUS LIVER, BUT IS STILL HAVING TO GO THRU CHEMOTHERAPY! BECAUSE OF THE CHEMO, HIS WOUND IS NOT HEALING. HE HAS AN OPEN WOUND THAT IS AN OPEN INVITATION FOR INFECTION...ONLY TO CAUSE MORE PROBLEMS!! BECAUSE HIS WOUND IS NOT HEALING QUICK ENOUGH, HE HAS DEVELOPED TWO HERNIAS WHICH ARE CAUSING HIM TO BE IN CONSTANT PAIN!! BECAUSE OF THE MEDS HE IS TAKING AND THE EFFECTS OF THE CHEMO, HE CANNOT SLEEP. MY POOR HUBBY IS A MESS...HE IS IN PAIN, CAN'T SLEEP, HAS DARK CIRLCES UNDER HIS EYE, WALKS HUNCHED OVER...ALL THIS HAS NOT ONLY TAKEN A TOLL ON HIM BUT ON ME AS WELL!! IT DEPRESSES ME TO SEE HIM IN SO MUCH PAIN...KNOWING THERE IS NOTHING WE CAN DO ABOUT IT. AND AS IF THAT IS NOT ENOUGH! I STRESS OUT ABOUT HAVING TO PAY THE MEDICAL BILLS AND PRESECRIPTIONS AND COPAYS...IT SURE AS HELL IS NOT BAYLOR...WHO PUT US IN THIS SITUATION IN THE FIRST PLACE!!!!
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