A/C tune up

If you think about the human body like a car, the eyelashes would be windshield wipers (cleaning away debris), the legs like wheels (responsible for movement), the spine like the chassis (providing stability and foundation). The logic of comparing body-to-car easily comes to mind - the actual car parts primary functions - real green here 🙋‍♀️. So the obvious (not so obvious to me) comparison to lungs, is the A/C (controls airflow). Well, C’s airflow was somewhat stagnating on Monday. It was a very rough 19 hours of a combination of different things. Luckily, he has little recollection of it. When things started to settle down Monday night around 7pm his only thoughts were, “crap, did I lose a whole work day?“. Luckily, he was back to “normal” on Tuesday and was on the phone and computer first thing in the AM. He worked until about 8:30 that night and the super personable pulmonologist came by around 10pm to chat and have a brandy. Not true, but he was such an affable gent that it seems like there should have been brandy. He spent about 30 min asking questions and walking us through the routine bronchoscopy that C would be getting the next day (Wednesday). Complete with a lavage. Craig thought it sounded so Med Spa chic (he might not have described it exactly like that). Very elective surgery add-on.

🤔☁️ “Now offering our latest VIP therapy.....Lavaaaaaage.....organ cavity cleanse for the discerning patient”. —— Exclusively at Medical City Dallas

We started back on chemo on Monday night - just a nightcap on the shit show of a day. No time like the present!?! All joking aside, we had pushed the 45-day chemo break to let the head heal all that was reasonable. His chemo regimen is 2 shots in the stomach (subcutaneous injection) once/day for 7 days, along with a daily 1 pill regimen for 21-28 days. The first night he sweated through 3 sets of sheets/blankets without even having a fever. Just night sweats. Common enough. But we have had some high fevering since - just the wee hours into daybreak of Thursday. As far as he is concerned, he feels fine. He’s always this way with fever. Even before this unwelcome interloper in our lives. He always gets horrible chills (while feeling fine), and sweats it out. Like. A. Champ. 🥵 Obviously now it’s not quite that simple. Fever basically burns right through platelets. So, if his platelets are low and he needs them, we 1) are burning through our current diminishing ones, and 2) giving him new ones renders them pointless. And this is just the top layer - then it’s the decision of how to treat the fever. This goes into issues of his T. Bili (liver numbers) and whether Tylenol is the best call, or steroids? We always start with ice packs (as he also prefers as few meds as possible where we can). He protests a little about the groin packs (understandably 😬), but always takes it like the no-nonsense guy he is. I know I’ve said it before, but there are 100 more layers to all that goes on that aren’t written about and he just takes it. Not as a defeatist, but as a pragmatist. I am always so proud of him, and so pained by what he’s required to tolerate. Alas, what alternative is there? That was rhetorical. 😢

I think after the VERY stressful week it has been, my overdrive patient advocacy, and a semi-confrontational round one day, I might need to keep a low profile for the next several days. Even at my best, I’m not everyone’s cup o’ tea. 😬 I know this seems inconceivable, and yet, rings true. 😜 Coffee refills, bathroom visits, juice/water runs for C. Those are my hall passes. Any other public appearances 🙅‍♀️.

Today’s final topic. The lack of reciprocity in our friendships right now. C and I have talked about this many times in the last month or so. How one-way our relationships are at present. That we literally have almost no idea what is going on with the majority of you. Travel, work events, kids sports, kids academics, kids trips to the principals office, new fur babies, moving homes, book club picks (not really), new love interests, job promotions, job demotions (😳?), or even the little things like a great new restaurant you tried, or fabulous shoe sale (this one is for me), etc. It’s been mentioned by several people that they don’t want to complain about something they are experiencing because, “compared to what y’all are going through”, or they don’t want to share something wonderful because, “compared to what y’all are going through”. Let’s have that stop. Just because we have this difficult moment in time, doesn’t lessen or minimize the moments y’all are having in yours.

We can certainly relate to our own pressing issues besides illness. We’ve been waiting on 2 bathroom toilet levers since April 2019. I mean.....I can’t make this stuff up. The constant calls to Westside to check on their whereabouts. The embarrassment at guests thinking we missed this design detail in those bathrooms. So you see now? We all face adversity. Craig’s wallet - a relic groomsmen gift circa 1998/99 - broke and he didn’t have time to buy a new one. He stapled it. STAPLED it. This happened about 3 months before we were admitted. Again - we too have everyday trials and tribulations. And it gets worse. He’s tactile. So he doesn’t even consider online ordering an option for a new one. And lastly, we scored a great hospital sofa throw pillow in the clearance section of a store for only $3 (down insert obviously not included 👎🏼). Wow - that felt great to unload those stories of frustration and good fortune we’d been keeping to ourselves! It’s that easy guys - just share your freakin‘ stories and don’t worry what is going on with us! 😜😘🙏🏼 Now, can I promise we will always answer back? Heck no! But we will still enjoy hearing about your lives.

Hope this finds you all well,

C & A

PS - we do find ourselves in a difficult and trying moment. Please throw some extra healing energy and thoughtful prayer our way. While the doctors/nurses can make a million things correct course with meds, we need his body to start to heal itself as well. ❤️

PPS - still getting great results back from each additional head CT. Marked improvement each time!