Take a lickin’ and keep on tickin’

So.....surgery went really well yesterday. They delayed from going right in on Thursday in order to increase his platelet count. He ended up having a total of 9 bags of platelets. 6 before, 2 during, 1 after. Apparently the hematoma really “wanted to come out”. Once the skull was open, it was pretty large and seeking its freedom! The neurosurgeon was able to evacuate it without incident, said C’s membrane looked really good (I swear he said “feathery”, but logically I’m thinking I misunderstood), the brain did not move right back into place but it was pulsatile (had to get clarification on this word), and that he would need to lay flat until the next cat scan. I guess 1. avoid gravity pulling the brain down more than it was already being previously pushed, and 2. to allow it to move back up on its own. C had a cat scan at 3:45am this morning, neuro came in at 5am, and voila, great news! Everything looked great on scan, he removed the drain, and stitched him back up - all without even a local. He suggested the stitches were less painful than the shot of the local, and C concurred (we‘ve been holding on to that one for weeks now 👨🏻‍⚕️)! So he is now able to sit up at a 30-degree angle until lunch, then fully sit, then walk by dinner. Another CT tomorrow btwn 3-4am and if it’s clear and he feels good, we might be back in oncology by tomorrow afternoon! Latest Monday. And we can’t wait to get back! We need healing from this to come quickly so we don’t take any steps backward with the cancer. Won’t have bone marrow results until Monday.

On a side note, when the anesthesiologist came in to go over everything with us, review history, etc., and then take him down, he did at one point ask C if he had any anxiety. To which he replied, “about what?”. The doc said, “surgery”. C said, “no, this is the easy part. I‘m not going to sweat the stuff I can’t control”. The doctor then laughed and gave him a mild anti-anxiety. Halfway down to the ER he turned to me and the accompanying nurse to say this might be the chillest patient going to brain surgery, and that he might not have needed to administer anxiety med after all. I feel like it’s fair to say C has two speeds. He vacillates between Snoop Dog and John McEnroe. 😌😠.

So just to recap the holiday week. Finished chemo 24th, hung with our bestie nurses 25th, played some cards, watched cognitive decline, got a CT, went for BM biopsy, plucked from radiology and told going to ICU, and brain surgery. Hate to brag here, but feel like ours was a bit more adventurous than yours. Just sayin’.

There was a terrifying 30-minute period on Thursday. Not gonna lie. But once I was able to get to him in the ICU (honestly not knowing what to expect), and see his sarcastic ass giving the nurse trouble, all was fine. Then I figured we had the rest bc at least we were together. My uncle zoomed to meet me and the the neurosurgeon so I’d have a second pair of ears and someone to lean on. Babs and Morgan jumped in the car to head to Dallas from Austin (apparently Babs had quite the roller coaster ride 😳), and I was on the phone or texting with Ellen frequently to let her know what was going on with C.

During our stay in the ICU - I think we are nearing 48 hours - our leukemia nurses have been everything you could ever want or imagine in nursing care. On that first day, two of our absolute faves and our lifeline NP came 4 buildings over to check on us and boost morale. That was a tearful moment. Meant so much to both of us. Really brought a smile to C’s face. Then yesterday before surgery, 3 more nurses came over after their 12-hour night shift to check on him before going home. And of course of fave NP again. They are the best medicine. ❤️

He had his BM biopsy Thursday as planned - since it was detoured that morning, they did it bedside that evening around 630pm. Just a local. I’d previously sat with C when he’d had one that way, but this time it was much more pleasant. I have some video 😬 that I’ll have to post. Our doc (one of his oncologists) was great.

So there you have it. Never a dull moment. He is 80-90% back to himself - personality wise. There had been some personality and cognitive changes we had been closely watching for several days leading up to the Christmas night CT. It‘s a tremendous relief that he is back to normal. He did take me on a fun little anesthesia tour after surgery though. Apparently we were in California at one point, we had “hidden some money in those statues” (and he’d say it with this face 😏), and he was adamant about something not being “right” with our location. He even made me pull back the curtain in front of the door to prove where we were. What the generic hallway was going to prove I’m not sure.... 🤷‍♀️ I was pretty excited about the hidden treasure - that was a real letdown. Is it weird that Craig keeps saying, “as far as you know” 🧐?

Thank you all sooooooo much for all the calls and texts, thoughts and prayers (C calls T&P), and that the doctors/nurses are so skilled at their craft. Onward and upward. 💪🏼🙏🏼❤️

Hope this finds you all well,

C & A

Text exchange (about C) with my brother at 8:20am this morning....in real time with C on the phone. When I say he’s back to normal.....

During BM biopsy - video too graphic. Sorry!

Aftermath 😉