MsC1210

Good Morning Ladies, Grace, right here where I am, the weather was not too bad. We had a lot of rain, downpours in fact, (I can attest to them, every time I stepped out the door it happened. LOL. I was getting a complex!) We were lucky though, that was the worst of it. Shirley I told you Grace would have some good suggestions. I think, and this is only my opinion of course, that I would call the oncologist and mention all of your concerns and ask for perhaps a new blood workup, just to err on the side of caution. It has been a couple of weeks since he had that done from what you have told us and it certainly could not hurt. If nothing else it will put your mind at ease. I am a firm believer that this disease causes us on the caregivers end to suffer the side effect of nerves and paranoia. I know every single time Brad had any ache or pain I was online researching each and every potential side effect of chemo and the disease itself. Just a funny for you, he was telling me one evening that his shoulder hurt and I was BESIDE myself thinking OH NO, what could THIS BE??? I began my normal barrage of questions and he finally told me to hush up~ then he told me he had bumped into the truck door trying to close it without spilling his cup of tea or dropping his other papers etc when he got to the office for work. I guess the door had begun to close and as he went to give it a final shove with his shoulder it caught him and oh geesh! It was one of those rare moments that we could laugh about my obsessiveness lol Anyway, moral of the story I guess is that although the cancer is ALWAYS the first thing we come to blame for the assorted aches and pains etc, sometimes there is, indeed a very innocent explanation. On that note, keep leaving messages and do not back off from that. I do like Grace's suggestion that maybe the referring dr could make a quick phone call and make this go a bit quicker, too. Have a super day ladies, as always you are in my thoughts and prayers and sending positive thoughts to you both~ Hugs Chris

Hey Shirley Sounds like you are in a holding pattern for the time being. Keep harassing and I will keep sending harassing thoughts too! lol (some humour as we can all use that now and again, eh?) Don't stop with leaving messages, you are right, eventually she will get tired of listening to your messages and call you back. I hate not having phone calls returned. Not only is it a professional courtesy, in this case it is even more. grrrrrr Not sure what to think about the weakness. Could be fatigue? You mentioned he had been out "people watching" maybe that is catching up to him along with all the other stuff he has been through in the past couple of weeks. Are you getting this insanely humid weather there? This is enough to make anyone feel that way. Might not hurt to touch base with the doctors to be sure of what is going on. Hopefully Grace will be along and maybe she will have more to offer on that. Prayers for the appointment SOON and positive thoughts, too.. Hugs Chris

Lori Continued prayers... Chris

Hello Rod, I am very happy about the 2nd opinion~ I sent you a PM and elaborated a bit more on that.. Talk to you soon Chris

Hi Donna I just popped by here to see if you had posted again and I am glad now that I did. Glad you are feeling better, and remember what eveyone else is saying, as well as myself.. We are always here and willing to listen and do what we can to help~ Hugs Chris

Hi Rod Just had you and your dad on my mind and wanted to check in and see how things are going. Any luck getting him to consider another opinion? Sending prayers and positive thoughts to you and your family, Chris

Gwen Just wanted to let you know you and your dad are in my thoughts. Hopefully now that he is able and willing to eat and take the Ensure and/or Boost his strength will return quickly and that tumour will remain GONE!! Positive thoughts and prayers to you, Chris

lol well can I send harrassing thoughts to Sabrina then? Hey this is progress, no matter how small the step seems. Hopefully the rest will just fall into place now and everything will go smoothly! Good luck with the housework. Let me know if you finish, you can always come do mine after that if you want! lol Hugs Chris

Hello Pam and welcome I am sorry you had reason to find this site but glad that you have joined us. Like Don, I cannot give you any information about the radiation, but wanted to say hello and welcome~ Sending prayers and positive thoughts to you and your husband, Chris

Hello Frannie, I cannot add anything differently than what the others have already told you here. The waiting and worry is so hard. I pray that this is just nothing serious. I can understand your fears having been through this with your mom. Please know that we are all here for you, and we are all hoping that you will be posting again very soon that your sis is fine! Prayers and positive thoughts, Chris

Hello My Time and welcome! I am sorry you had reason to find this site, but glad that you have. As you can see already, this is a wonderful place to get answers, advice, and most importantly, support. We are here for you and will do our best to be by your side as you take this journey. Being that you beat this horrible disease once, there is no reason to think you cannot do it again. We will not let you give up!! Sendin you prayers for strength and courage as well as tons of postive thoughts, Chris

Hi Donna, I am glad you let us know what is on your mind. If nothing else it does help to share those feelings, and here is one of the best places to do so. I cannot offer you answers but I can tell you that you and your dad are in my prayers and I am sending tons and tons of positive thoughts to you! Feel free anytime to vent here. We understand. Hugs Chris

Tina, I am so very sorry about Kay's passing. Please know you and your family are in my thoughts and prayers, Chris

Tina My sincere sympathies and condolences to you and your family on your loss. Chris

Lori Prayers for you and your mom. Chris

Lots of prayers and positive thoughts. Chris

lyleanme Good luck with the surgery. Sending you prayers and positive thoughts to get you through! Let us know, when you can of course, how you are. I will be thinking of you! Chris

Dear Lisa, I am so sorry for your loss. Sending Prayers for comfort and strength, Chris

Hot & Humid weather!!

Dear Carleen I honestly do not even know where to begin trying to address your post. I know that words are simply words, and that no matter how eloquently they may be written or how much thought goes into putting them together, they cannot begin to take away the pain and heartache. I try very hard not to say "I know or understand how you feel" because no matter who we are or who we have lost, we all experience and process grief differently. I know the pain I still have to this day, almost 7 months after losing Brad. I know it did get easier for me, and I pray that it will get easier for you, as well. I can attest to the feelings of only wanting to be with him, I had all of those thoughts and then some. I look back on that now and I shudder to think of how absolutely unbearable that time was, but it DID pass. It was a stage. It is a normal and natural part of the loss and grieving process, I believe. I am very grateful that I am here today to at least try and help you through this in whatever way I can, if I can. When I began posting here, I was not sure that I was doing the right thing. I wondered if I would be accepted I suppose and I was so amazed at the outpouring of compassion and caring. You were among the first people that replied to my post and truly made me feel welcome. I began to follow your "story" from that point on and I can remember sitting here thinking what an amazing woman you are, marveling at your strength and perseverance. I continue to think of you in those terms as you are honestly an inspiration to me. I wish I'd had half of your courage and stamina when I was faced with having to walk down this road with Brad's diagnosis. My grandmother used to tell me that God never gives us more than we can handle. I used to wonder about that, but I believe she was very right about that. I cannot explain to you why Keith was taken from this earth so young and in such a horrible manner. I cannot answer the question of why your aunt was also taken, so young and to this horrible disease. I can tell you that you will make it through this, somehow. You will find the strength to pull yourself up, dust yourself off and with Keith's love in your heart and soul, you will eventually be OK. It will not be easy but it will happen. Finally Carleen, Please, please take good care of yourself for the sake of the baby. I am praying so very hard for you to have a successful pregnancy and that you will be able to have that child to carry on yours and Keith's love. I know that no child will ever be more loved or cherished.... I am sending you much, much love and prayers for strength and courage and peace. Love, Chris

Linda, Again, my deepest and most sincere condolences on the loss of your mother. This is a beautiful tribute to a most amazing woman. Love and prayers, Chris

Hey Shirley Geesh! well this is not good news. I am not sure how the insurance deal works but you do have options regardless. Granted they might not be the BEST as far as coverage but they are there. MassHealth for one, and of course you or mom can look into Disability insurance as well. I have heard it said that as we the children get older the roles tend to be reversed and we become more of a parent. Not easy by any means! Chin up though, we will get through this. I will do anything and everything I can to help you out. Just let me know what you need. I think calling the dr's on Monday and getting them a heads up might be a good idea. It might be wise to ask them if there is any financial aid available through the various hospitals, etc that you can look into. I will catch up to you over the weekend I hope! More prayers for you and everyone!! Chris

Hi Kim I think it might be a very good idea for you to let the doctors know about your mom and the medication issue. If she is over medicating that is obviously not a good thing. If she is over medicating to "dull" her senses so she can get away from the cancer issues in her mind, perhaps an anti~anxiety medication would be more appropriate. If nobody has mentioned this already, please get a small notebook or organizer so you can write down the dr's instructions and any questions you may have. It is also helpful if you can obtain copies of the test results etc. You and your mom and family remain in my thoughts and prayers and I wish you all the best.. Please keep us posted.. Chris

Carleen I am just so very sorry. Please know you are and will remain in my prayers. With much love and my sincerest sympathies and condolences to you and your family, Chris

Many prayers for strength, comfort and peace, Chris