paddy

JC my heart goes out to you. I think I know a little of what you are feeling. My husband Dave used to go to all my appointments with me, but lately because of his illness, I have been going alone .The other day I was sitting waiting to have a mamogram and I suddenly burst into tears! I felt such a fool but I felt so alone suddenly. I wish I lived near you, I would come and hold your hand. Know that my prayers are with you and I wish you well, Paddy

Prayers and thoughts positive on their way to you. I am so sorry you are feeling down. Paddy

You have a great attitude Bob. Go to it and Zap those things . Best of Luck, Paddy

I drove my husband to the first four chemo sessions and then after that he insisted he could cope. I accompanied him each time though, just incase. Like Norme with Buddy, I would have worried about him too much if he had gone on his own. As it turned out, during the first part of the chemo when they give the, (whatever it is that makes you sleep,) Dave stopped breathing a couple of times and I had to adjust the chair so that he was more upright. (He has sleep apnea and wasn't wearing his mask.) Have you ever tried to move a six foot, five 1/2" man when he's zonked out? I had to call two nurses to help me Good Luck with your treatments, Paddy

Welcome pplinfla, You did the right thing in joining the board. I joined recently and have found a great bunch of folks here. I wish my husband would join too, but he is the quiet one and leaves all the chatting to me. He says I do a much better job of it than he could! Best of luck with your treatment, Paddy

Welcome Tbone, You have a great sense of humour and a wonderful attitude. Since they say attitude is 50% of the cure you are well on the way to one it seems. Good Luck, Paddy

I am so sorry that your Dad is ill Pinky. I know you must be terrified right now. One thing I can tell you is, don't jump ahead in your mind. Try to calm yourself, think positive and wait until you and your Dad meet with the oncologist. I know it is easy to say, however things may not be as bad as you imagine. Do you have family to share this burden with, I hope so? Let us know how things go with your Dad and until then my prayers go out to you both. Paddy.

Hi There Karen, Thanks for your post. To answer your question; my husband is going to a special department of the UCLA which is affiliated with Henry Mayo Hospital. Dave seems pleased with the treatment he is getting, I am not entirely satisfied. They are not giving him any more Chemo, and they say radiation is not an option. The Onc. keeps talking about giving him "salvage" drugs such as Iressa, if he should show more symptoms. I think it is because David has so many other health problems and more aggressive treatment would cause him more harm than good. I can't bear to just sit back and let him go though. He is doing so well at the moment it is hard to believe he even has this nightmare disease but I am still so scared. love, Paddy

GREAT to hear such wonderful news Betty. Keep up the good work! Paddy

Hoping and praying that things are not so serious as you imagine. Thoughts and prayers on the way for you and your Dad, Shelly. Paddy

Count me in as a member of Norme's fan club! She is a great inspiration to me. Paddy

I do hope Iressa does the trick for Buddy, Norme. Lots of prayers and positive thoughts coming your way. I wrote this post out a few minutes ago but somehow it didn't appear. Oh well, Second time lucky!

We went to the Onc., yesterday and he says he is extremely pleased with David's condition. Evidently he is still stable and his blood tests were good. The Doc., says that unless any new symptoms appear he can go on with the"drug break" and just call in every month. Dave is feeling well and energetic and even went out target shooting with a friend this morning, (he still shoots a "mean group" I'll tell Ya!) At the same time as I am elated at this news, I can't help being a little frightened too, if you know what I mean? I suppose everyone feels like this at times. I also worry about what is going on while we take the break. Oh Well, it is good news for now and that is what I will dwell on. Dave has such a good attitude, the Onc., told him that he could stay stable for many months and when we left the office turned to me and said "I intend to stay stable for ever"! Thanks for prayes and good thoughts, Paddy

It sounds as if your Mother has a great attitude Heather. Tell her to keep up the good work. Positive thoughts and prayers going out to you both. Paddy

Wonderful news Don! I hope you and Lucie had a wonderful Christmas and that Lucie will go from strength to strength in the New year. Best wishes to you both, Paddy

So very pleased to hear your good news MO. Let's hope the New Year brings you plenty of reasons to post in the GN section. Paddy

Many congratulations to you and your family Rick. What a beautiful little girl. Paddy

GREAT news Christy! My very best wishes to you and Darrell. Paddy

Prayers and positive vibes on their way to you Cheryl. Paddy

Hello Beth and Welcome! My thoughts and prayers are with you and your husband. It seems that NSCLC , particularly the "adino" type, is an especially stealthy monster. Even a pulmonary specialist, examining my husband for "sleep apnea," (weeks before he was diagnosed,) didn't pick up on it. "David", and I had also been to our family doc., so many times, complaining of his wheezing, fatigue and weight loss. The doc said that he thought the wheezing was due to the sleep apnea and he declared the weight loss "Wonderful,"and asked how Dave had done it! " The fatigue he blamed on depression and wanted to double up his medication ! I told the Doc.,that, (with respect,) I thought Dave was depressed, "because he was feeling ill!! I also said that I thought losing thirteen pounds in three weeks was too great a loss and that I hadn't been married to my husband for almost 40yrs NOT to know that there was something else wrong with him!I think that got through to him, andto cut a long story short , it was found, (that very afternoon,) that David's lung was full of fluid. Like you and your husband we were so shocked , cancer was the last thing we expected as he had never smoked and been a very fit person most of his life, ( before his stroke anyway.) As folks on this board have expressed before, it woud be a wonderful thing if we could have some simple sort of test for this disease, it would save so much misery and suffering. I am fairly new to this group too and have found everyone so friendly and supportive. I hope you will stay on with us. Please feel free to PM me if you would like to. Don't give up, and take lots of deep breaths when you feel the fear, I find this helps. Love, Paddy

Thank you One-and -All. I do feel well and truly welcomed and not quite as terrified about "walking the walk" as I felt before I joined. I can tell you are a terrific bunch of people. I do hope your Holidays were as Happy and as Peaceful as could be. Oh!, by-the-way, I was born in the UK and then lived in Africa until we moved to the United States,( some years ago, ) so if I "talk" or spell "funny" in any of my posts, please excuse me. Love and Prayers, Paddy

I have at last plucked up courage to join this board. I was prompted to do so after reading the wonderful, brave and uplifting posts I have read recently. I wanted to wish everyone special blessings for Christmas, my thoughts and prayers are with you. My dearest and very brave husband David (of almost fourty years,) was diagnosed with nsclc in July of this year. He has had 6 sessions of chemo ,is being given a break for Christmas and will probably go on Iressa in January. We feel so grateful that he is feeling well at the moment and that we will be able to enjoy Christmas together. Unfortunately our daughters and their families couldn't join us this Christmas, one is in Korea on military service and the other in Michigan, it is hard to have them so far away at this time. Anyway I just wanted to say Hi! and I will probably be back asking advice soon. Thank you for the help I have gleaned from all your posts already. Love to you all, Paddy