I leave the hospital in the morning and go to work...
Chris calls me mid-morning to inform me of his continuing diareaha... and that Lew is on his way up to the hospital
Lew is bringing their brother Danny and their dad... Chris hasnt seen his dad in about 10 years...
I take an early lunch to go vote... and I stop home for clothes and run to the hospital to drop them off and meet his dad and Danny
I can tell it has been an emotional few hours
Anyways, they leave.... Lew will be back Wednesday to visit again
I watch Chris and his dad hug and there are tears... then I get leaky
I go back to work and finish out my day. I run home and grab clothes. Chris asked that I stay over at the hospital again ... so I pack
I get to the hospital by 7:20 or so... Christine Rapach and her boyfriend also come to visit
Chris is feeling icky
They leave... Chris's nausia, stomach cramps, etc start up...
I am watching election coverage and Chris is just miserable...
His blood pressure is a little low...
I try to get some sleep.. but I can't really sleep...
He is having pain every hour or so...
He is up to go to the bathroom... poor guy feels lik crap
By 5am or so, he is spiking a fever and blood pressure has dropped and heartrate is up to 150...
I have never seen him so uncomfortable...
He is also vomiting... but not much since he hasnt really eaten in 2 days
He is just very nausious.... they cannot give him pain meds and ativan together when the blood pressure is low...
Its Wednesday morning.. I should get ready for work but I decide to re-group and call work
I am signed into work through my laptop at the hospital... We will see how today goes...
The doctors came in (Dr Harrison is funny and very nice.. its the first time I meet the November doctor) He jokes about aliens and whatnot... (had to be here)
He apologizes for the rough night... but tells us this is completely expected.. its a rough chemo he is getting... he will probably have diareaha and nausia and ab cramps for the next 2 weeks .... so as terrible as it is, so far its quite expected and normal... they agree to give him more delautin... he can sleep through this if he wants.. but they tell him he needs to sit up in a chair whenever possible to avoid bed sores... ugh....
Chris's brother Lew is on his way down with brother Tommy to visit... Chris is really happy that Lew flew up to see him and he wants him here so badly.... but he is quite sleepy...
I told Lew to bring some magazines or movies and just let him know how he is doing
Right now, as of 10:30am Wednesday, his temp has gone down to 99.8 (it was 101.5 earlier)
and his blood pressure is holding steady at around 93/40 give or take a few...
It was 84/36 at one point this morning...
His heartrate is at 136... but was as high as 165 earlier...
So I think the extra fluids they put him on is helping with the blood pressure..
The dilaudid ( i should really find the corrrect spelling of this crazy pain killer med) is making his blood pressure a little lower than it could be, His normal is low (100/70-ish) so this isnt that awful.. but its low
Anyways, his blood counts are in... the white blood cells are very low so he is neurtopenic... and his magnesium and potasium are low.. so they are giving him some... platelets are low so they are giving him a platelet transfusion...
He is getting the neuprogen shots that he always gets after chemo, those help bring the white blood cell counts up...
Speaking of platelets... I think he is going to be needing them often for the next few weeks... It takes 12 days or so after the last day of chemo to recover all the blood counts... sooooo
You figure his chemo starts again tomorrow (thursday) and ends Sunday morning...November 21st is the day he should be feeling better... and I think around November 19th or so, we do the bone marrow biopsy again to see (hope) that the chemo worked so we can move forward quickly into transplant
Back to the platelets... I believe some people have voiced interest in donating ... You do not have to be the same blood type to donate platelets... There is a place right here in the hospital and you can donate specifically to Chris... I keep meaning to look into it, but i forget or get sidetracked... There is only a 5-day shelf life, so I think the blood center helps schedule so he doesnt waste any if he were to get too many donors
From what I understand, its similar to giving blood, except they filter out the platelets and return the rest of your blood to you in your other arm,,, Therefore, unlike regular blood donation, you can give again every 2 weeks.
Here is the info for the Blood Center at Robert Wood in case anyone is interested.. I will post more if I get a chance to call soon
Blood Center 4th Floor, Clinical Academic Building125 Paterson Street New Brunswick, New Jersey 08901 (732) 235-8100
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Monday, November 3, 2008
Monday November 3rd
I wake up at home early... and I get ready for work
I go see Chris at the hospital first.. he is still sleepy and feeling icky
I go to work...
Around mid-day I get a call from his nurse that he had fallen :(
He hit his head and they did a cat scan... ugh....
Poor Chris.. he wasnt even aware that he had gotten up without calling for help
Throughout the day, they collected another stool sample
Chris had a bad day.. sounded sad, bummed, frustrated, etc
SO, I went home after work, showered, grabbed work clothes just in case.... and I headed to hospital
Chris doesnt look bruised like I feared but he is sooo uncomfortable...
THey moved him to the middle of the floor by the nurses' desk so they can keep a better eye on him...
He just wants the cramping tummy to stop and he wants the diareaha to stop
The night nurse changes his thigh bandage and there is so much damn tape that it rips hair off.. he is freaking
Then I found out that they biopsied his jock itch during the day.. she had to clean it and it burns like hell.. they had scraped some off during the day.. its raw.. and I feel so bad for him...
THen the anti-nausia meds arent helping.. he hasnt eaten
Finally, he eats half of a pb & j sandwich my mom made at home... tried some tea...
Then, he needs the bathroom.. its so painful... the strong tech helps him walk and all that...
He is finally having some relief... then the cramping and discomfort come back...
They give him his dilaudid and he is feeling better
Oh, did I mention his new cell came in the mail today? he is excited about that
Lew has safely landed in NJ and will be visiting tomorrow (Tuesday)
I am sleeping at the hospital to keep an eye on Chris... Not sure how early I will leave tomorrow cus I have to vote but we will see
Prayers again tonight
PS Thanks to Aunt Cathy for the Boosts, to Jeanie, Brian, Liv, Mr and Mrs Cody for the Starbucks gift card.. that will come in so handy for Chris's addiction... to Carol for the healing mass... to Christine for dinner and cookies.. and everyone else who has been sending cards and stuff.... love you all...
I go see Chris at the hospital first.. he is still sleepy and feeling icky
I go to work...
Around mid-day I get a call from his nurse that he had fallen :(
He hit his head and they did a cat scan... ugh....
Poor Chris.. he wasnt even aware that he had gotten up without calling for help
Throughout the day, they collected another stool sample
Chris had a bad day.. sounded sad, bummed, frustrated, etc
SO, I went home after work, showered, grabbed work clothes just in case.... and I headed to hospital
Chris doesnt look bruised like I feared but he is sooo uncomfortable...
THey moved him to the middle of the floor by the nurses' desk so they can keep a better eye on him...
He just wants the cramping tummy to stop and he wants the diareaha to stop
The night nurse changes his thigh bandage and there is so much damn tape that it rips hair off.. he is freaking
Then I found out that they biopsied his jock itch during the day.. she had to clean it and it burns like hell.. they had scraped some off during the day.. its raw.. and I feel so bad for him...
THen the anti-nausia meds arent helping.. he hasnt eaten
Finally, he eats half of a pb & j sandwich my mom made at home... tried some tea...
Then, he needs the bathroom.. its so painful... the strong tech helps him walk and all that...
He is finally having some relief... then the cramping and discomfort come back...
They give him his dilaudid and he is feeling better
Oh, did I mention his new cell came in the mail today? he is excited about that
Lew has safely landed in NJ and will be visiting tomorrow (Tuesday)
I am sleeping at the hospital to keep an eye on Chris... Not sure how early I will leave tomorrow cus I have to vote but we will see
Prayers again tonight
PS Thanks to Aunt Cathy for the Boosts, to Jeanie, Brian, Liv, Mr and Mrs Cody for the Starbucks gift card.. that will come in so handy for Chris's addiction... to Carol for the healing mass... to Christine for dinner and cookies.. and everyone else who has been sending cards and stuff.... love you all...
Sunday November 2nd
I woke up at home.. very well rested
And, got myself together... showered..
My dad wanted to see Chris, so he brought my mom with him even though she was going to go later with my cousin Gina...
So, I stopped at Starbucks, the usual...
Chris was getting cleaned up by the awesome nurse he had - Sonya.. she is actually from the Cancer Institute.. she works with Dr Strair... she cleaned him... re-bandaged the biopsyed area on his thigh... and his groin irritation (jock itch)...
Mom, dad, and me hung with him for a while..
Then, they left and Chris and I relaxed....
Christine Rabbath came by.. she took me to lunch and we stopped to get Chris lunch on the way home...
However, Chris started with some major diareaha (sorry for the details) Its most likely from chemo... he is now unsettled... But he manages to eat half his lunch/dinner
Christine also baked him cookies... her recipe... he LOVED them
So now he has his own batch yummmy...
They cannot give him Immodium because they have to test the stool to make sure he doesnt have C-Diff... ugh
anyways, christine and my bro eventually lose... my dallas cowboys lose to the giants.. i am depressed...
Chris is sleepy again at a pretty early time...
He feels crappy from the diareaha.. I decide I should go home and rest at home for the night so he can rest too..
The night nurse comes.. she wont give him his Ativan and Dilaudid cus its too early or his bp is too low for both... Chris is annoyed.. she has to wait til 930 or so to come back with his night pills.. its only 730 or 8 pm and he wants to sleep
Eventually, he relaxes and I leave
Jeanie gets me Starbucks and comes over to hang with me...
Chris calls me to tell me he got a text from his brother Lew's girlfriend Jen... he thinks they are engaged...
So, he it too loopy to call and find out... he told me he had gotten up and needed meds so they finally gave them to him...
I texted Jen and Lew finally proposed after having the ring since June!!!
Yay!!! There will be 2 Jennifer Waxmonskys
Lew is flying to NJ to see Chris tomorrow (Monday)
I get a good nights rest.....
And, got myself together... showered..
My dad wanted to see Chris, so he brought my mom with him even though she was going to go later with my cousin Gina...
So, I stopped at Starbucks, the usual...
Chris was getting cleaned up by the awesome nurse he had - Sonya.. she is actually from the Cancer Institute.. she works with Dr Strair... she cleaned him... re-bandaged the biopsyed area on his thigh... and his groin irritation (jock itch)...
Mom, dad, and me hung with him for a while..
Then, they left and Chris and I relaxed....
Christine Rabbath came by.. she took me to lunch and we stopped to get Chris lunch on the way home...
However, Chris started with some major diareaha (sorry for the details) Its most likely from chemo... he is now unsettled... But he manages to eat half his lunch/dinner
Christine also baked him cookies... her recipe... he LOVED them
So now he has his own batch yummmy...
They cannot give him Immodium because they have to test the stool to make sure he doesnt have C-Diff... ugh
anyways, christine and my bro eventually lose... my dallas cowboys lose to the giants.. i am depressed...
Chris is sleepy again at a pretty early time...
He feels crappy from the diareaha.. I decide I should go home and rest at home for the night so he can rest too..
The night nurse comes.. she wont give him his Ativan and Dilaudid cus its too early or his bp is too low for both... Chris is annoyed.. she has to wait til 930 or so to come back with his night pills.. its only 730 or 8 pm and he wants to sleep
Eventually, he relaxes and I leave
Jeanie gets me Starbucks and comes over to hang with me...
Chris calls me to tell me he got a text from his brother Lew's girlfriend Jen... he thinks they are engaged...
So, he it too loopy to call and find out... he told me he had gotten up and needed meds so they finally gave them to him...
I texted Jen and Lew finally proposed after having the ring since June!!!
Yay!!! There will be 2 Jennifer Waxmonskys
Lew is flying to NJ to see Chris tomorrow (Monday)
I get a good nights rest.....
Saturday, November 1, 2008
Saturday November 1- wow.. its November
Photo on left is the blue chemo Chris got on Oct 30, Oct 31, and Nov 1 (15 minutes each evening, 5pm-ish) You can see how blue it is in the tubes (the green above in the bag is to protect the chemo from light)
Today, I got up and hung out with Chris for a lil while.. he was awake pretty early
I decided to go home pretty early and grab some of his blankets, take a shower, and come back to the hospital around lunch time... Aunt Cathy and Grandma Peters were going to be visiting around then...
When I got home I realized my brother was also going to visit, so when I stopped at Starbucks, I grabbed coffee for me, Chris, and my brother Chris...
Then I hung out with Aunt Cathy and Grandma also when I got there...
They always bring sunshine to the hospital ;) Aunt Cathy brought 2 6-packs of Boost... so thats awesome, because Chris loves them and really help him increase his calorie intake these days...
Grandma brought homemade rice pudding.. yummooo
Chris had been given some drugs to go along with the chemo so he was drowsy and a little funny
THe nurse asked him to let her know when he got his lunch so she could give him insulin..
Well, he lost track of time and had never even ordered it...
So, he picked up the phone and ordered, carefully...
When he hung up, he looked at us and said "6:30"
huh???? turns out they asked if he wanted it for dinner at 6:30... he said "yes"
Guess what? it was only 1:00pm or so!!!
So, I warmed up his leftovers from homemade dinner the night before and he ate that for lunch!! You had to be there, it was pretty cute that he was mixed up with time!
So, Aunt Cathy and Grandma left... my brother and I went downstairs to get Chris (and ourselves) some soft serve ice cream
Chris left shortly after.. Chris and I napped.. and then it was time....Chris wanted me to see the "cool" blue chemo... he got it for days 1, 2, and 3 (today was day 3) Its only a 15 minute chemo, as opposed to the 24-hour chemo thats been running since Day 1.. It was quite blue
I decided to go home pretty early and grab some of his blankets, take a shower, and come back to the hospital around lunch time... Aunt Cathy and Grandma Peters were going to be visiting around then...
When I got home I realized my brother was also going to visit, so when I stopped at Starbucks, I grabbed coffee for me, Chris, and my brother Chris...
Then I hung out with Aunt Cathy and Grandma also when I got there...
They always bring sunshine to the hospital ;) Aunt Cathy brought 2 6-packs of Boost... so thats awesome, because Chris loves them and really help him increase his calorie intake these days...
Grandma brought homemade rice pudding.. yummooo
Chris had been given some drugs to go along with the chemo so he was drowsy and a little funny
THe nurse asked him to let her know when he got his lunch so she could give him insulin..
Well, he lost track of time and had never even ordered it...
So, he picked up the phone and ordered, carefully...
When he hung up, he looked at us and said "6:30"
huh???? turns out they asked if he wanted it for dinner at 6:30... he said "yes"
Guess what? it was only 1:00pm or so!!!
So, I warmed up his leftovers from homemade dinner the night before and he ate that for lunch!! You had to be there, it was pretty cute that he was mixed up with time!
So, Aunt Cathy and Grandma left... my brother and I went downstairs to get Chris (and ourselves) some soft serve ice cream
Chris left shortly after.. Chris and I napped.. and then it was time....Chris wanted me to see the "cool" blue chemo... he got it for days 1, 2, and 3 (today was day 3) Its only a 15 minute chemo, as opposed to the 24-hour chemo thats been running since Day 1.. It was quite blue
The plan was to rest up and then watch a movie or 2.. then around 10 or 11 pm, Chris would get his sleepy time meds, and I would go home to sleep
I have never left Chris at the hospital before... Whenever he is there, I sleep there too.... Tonight is a first... I really need to get on this schedule so that I can get better rest ... We have a long road ahead still.. long enough that I cannot afford to get run down or sick now, and this is the most important time for me to be strong and reliable and around for him..
As much as I hate leaving him, its best for me to get home to sleep sometimes...
Chris isnt kept up by me being there, but the nurses are there for mid-night pees... I will feel better after sleeping home
So, we turn on Iron Man around 7:00pm or so... maybe 7:30... I am not as interested as Chris.. I am not really into comic stories... but Chris got tired 15 minutes in.. and I was all into it.. ooops
So, we shut it off...
I wasnt ready for bed or leaving.. but since Chris was so tired, I (we) decided to call it a night...
The nurse Isabel came in with night meds... and she felt bad waking him
She cleaned his dressing on his leg (where the bump was removed a couple weeks ago) It is still not healed so they are on top of re-dressing it... He was barely awake but asked for his night meds (the pain killers and ativan). He isnt in pain.. lol.. The nurse said she thinks he is ok and winked at me... So, anyways, I left...
I am home without him for the first time since June 6th (overnight, anyways)
Rex is excited.. keeping me company.. purring and meowing up a storm...
SO, with the extra hour tonight, we will both be well rested tomorrow, as far as I can tell
Well, I am going to go enjoy a real bed, read, and say my prayers..... talk to you all tomorrow
love jenn
Halloween...
Well Halloween came and went...
Chris had his bowl of candy out and some decorations...
I worked... and Chris patiently waited for me to get here afterwards.. he told me I took a long time today :( I needed a nap so when I got home, I took one for a couple hours but then Chris was bored at the hospital...
I brought him and Jeanie Starbucks... she was meeting me at the hospital to visit Chris....
I found out that he had some visitors .... Marc Kollar... he is on the Waxmonsky side (but from Grandma Phyllis Kollar's side.. he is actually Grandma Phyllis's brother Ted's son) So he would be Chris's cousin basically... (Aunt Ro's nephew) He is A Knight (Knights of Columbus)... and Chris was happy to see him
Also, the priest came back to see Chris.. I have to find out his name .. ooops
He is going to be bringing some scriptures
He had his blue chemo yesterday and will have another one today (Saturday)
I have to get you all a picture of that... its the 15 min chemo he gets on Days 1 2 and 3...
The other chemo runs for 24 hours for every day through tonight... (3 days)
He was pretty excited that the chemo was blue
Sharon came back to visit him and his occupational therapist for the finger came to see him and it turns out they went to high school together in Clifton
He had Isabel for a few nights as his nurse.. she is very cool... makes things as good as possible around here for him... I dont spend as much time getting to know the day nurses.. well, not yet... because i am often at work
Today we have kathy and she is really nice
I am going to go home and cat nap... see Rex and shower.. and come back here because Grandma Peters and Aunt Cathy are coming to visit around lunch time
Tomorrow, we have more visitors... Chris is excited... he took a walk with a tech yesterday so he is moving around a little more... he is eating a little bit more.. doesnt want to lose any more weight than he has to...
I think thats all I have for now
xoxoxox Jenn
Chris had his bowl of candy out and some decorations...
I worked... and Chris patiently waited for me to get here afterwards.. he told me I took a long time today :( I needed a nap so when I got home, I took one for a couple hours but then Chris was bored at the hospital...
I brought him and Jeanie Starbucks... she was meeting me at the hospital to visit Chris....
I found out that he had some visitors .... Marc Kollar... he is on the Waxmonsky side (but from Grandma Phyllis Kollar's side.. he is actually Grandma Phyllis's brother Ted's son) So he would be Chris's cousin basically... (Aunt Ro's nephew) He is A Knight (Knights of Columbus)... and Chris was happy to see him
Also, the priest came back to see Chris.. I have to find out his name .. ooops
He is going to be bringing some scriptures
He had his blue chemo yesterday and will have another one today (Saturday)
I have to get you all a picture of that... its the 15 min chemo he gets on Days 1 2 and 3...
The other chemo runs for 24 hours for every day through tonight... (3 days)
He was pretty excited that the chemo was blue
Sharon came back to visit him and his occupational therapist for the finger came to see him and it turns out they went to high school together in Clifton
He had Isabel for a few nights as his nurse.. she is very cool... makes things as good as possible around here for him... I dont spend as much time getting to know the day nurses.. well, not yet... because i am often at work
Today we have kathy and she is really nice
I am going to go home and cat nap... see Rex and shower.. and come back here because Grandma Peters and Aunt Cathy are coming to visit around lunch time
Tomorrow, we have more visitors... Chris is excited... he took a walk with a tech yesterday so he is moving around a little more... he is eating a little bit more.. doesnt want to lose any more weight than he has to...
I think thats all I have for now
xoxoxox Jenn
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