Even hospital stays are relative. Of the five inpatient stays I’ve had, this as been one of the worst in some ways. Sure, it’s been shorter and I haven’t felt anything like I did when I received the chemotherapy for the transplant. Lord willing I’ll be out in a few more days with this quickly becoming a distant memory.
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Seattle Municipal Archives; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
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What’s made this time so bad is that I’m practically bound to my bed. I can get up and about my room, but I quickly get out of breath just by going to the bathroom, a mere four feet from my bed. It is getting a little better, but still a short trip downstairs to see the girls earlier required a wheelchair.
Where Everybody Knows Your Name
I was welcomed back to Markey Cancer Center with familiar faces after spending a week “on the other side of the tracks” in the main hospital. The medicine I was taking for RSV is dangerous to the other immune compromised patients, so better to move me with an industrial strength HEPA filter than endanger them. Of course I understand and accept this. But, life on other side was a bit rougher. No shower in my room; no fridge to store my meds and snacks. And the food… Despite my appetite, I can usually eat a little something, but not there. Ugh. Even most Army food I’ve had was better.
All of this treatment has bothered my eyes again, too, so reading and watching football have been a challenge. Thankfully, I’ve been able to sleep quite a bit, which helps to pass the time. I really hate being bound to the bed, but I prefer to be able to breathe even more. Last year I spent Christmas absolutely miserable on the couch, suffering through Stevens-Johnson’s Syndrome following radiation. Thankfully, this is nothing like last year and I’ll be home soon to enjoy Christmas with my family.
I’ve been blessed with several visitors, most of all my sweet wife. Her mom, Jean, and others have stepped up so that she can be here about every other day. She usually brings me a smoothie, which I can always eat, and whatever sundries I need. Without a doubt, every visit with her is better than any medicine the doctors give me. She and Jean even brought the girls up today. It was a short visit since I didn’t feel well. We also had to meet downstairs and therefore I had to wear a stifling mask the whole time. Plus, it’s hard to entertain little girls for very long, as sweet and beautiful as they are. But it did me so well and filled my tanks to get me through the next few days.
Note to young, unmarried men: if I could teach you one thing, it is to be extremely wise in your selection of a helpmate. I’m so lucky that God intervened and put Christi in my life. Pray long and hard for a woman of character and strong faith. You need someone to weather life’s storms with, not just enjoy the fun times. It’s an eternal choice that you must get right. By His grace, I did.
Pressing On
There are still no positive results of aspergillis or other fungal infection in my lung, although the doctors still think this is the main culprit. I’m concerned that it’s more graft-versus-host disease, which could be permanent. The doctors plan another bronchoscopy tomorrow to take more tissue samples from my lungs. I also had a biopsy from my sinuses, which has yet to reveal any clues. So, the mystery continues.
I’ve expressed my concern and strong desire to get home. The goal is Tuesday or Wednesday, so please pray hard. The important thing, of course, is not when I go home but that I get better. Even more important is that the Lord’s good work is made evident through all this. I have no idea what that it is this time, only that it is. Maybe this is start of a period of healing. Maybe it’s another time of struggle. It’s certainly not where I thought I’d be a year ago, but it’s where I am. And wherever I am, He is with me. Always. Even to the end of the age.
I’ve expressed my concern and strong desire to get home. The goal is Tuesday or Wednesday, so please pray hard. The important thing, of course, is not when I go home but that I get better. Even more important is that the Lord’s good work is made evident through all this. I have no idea what that it is this time, only that it is. Maybe this is start of a period of healing. Maybe it’s another time of struggle. It’s certainly not where I thought I’d be a year ago, but it’s where I am. And wherever I am, He is with me. Always. Even to the end of the age.
“And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 20:28b NLT