Once again, our leaving the hospital was more emotional than we planned. It’s a little scary to leave but also a little sad to say goodbye to those who have taken care of John.
But we didn’t leave empty-handed:
We were told that in no time this will be very easy and normal. Really.
Thank you for praying for us.
Tomorrow is the big day. One day shy of being in the unit for 4 weeks. Bless his heart, he is very ready to leave. Still very tired even with the blood counts rising.
He is leaving with 12 prescriptions. I am a little nervous about keeping them all straight. Some have different dosages at night than they have in the morning. Some are only 3 days a week, except on days when blood is drawn. Crazy schedule.
The meds were prescribed here by the OU Doctor, but John’s insurance wanted them mail-ordered. So they came from CVS in Pennsylvania. And for some reason, the state of Oklahoma won’t allow them to be shipped to a retail place (I.e. CVS or the hospital), they had to go to my step-sister’s home! Where I will pick them up and bring them to the hospital for the pharmacy to check them for accuracy. Crazy process.
It’s a crazy world we live in, isn’t it? And it’s crazy to think that stem cells from another body are growing in John . But oh, are we grateful for this medical procedure that started as a crazy idea.
God’s love endures forever .
Today has been a little blah. It’s gray and rainy outside. I have had all kinds of frustration with long-term and short-disability websites. And John has been sick today. No fever and the blood counts are still ok, but he has been sick to his stomach all day. Plus the rhino virus is back so all visitors to his room are masked.
The medicine he was given for nausea knocked him out, so he slept a lot. And trying to get him to walk and take all these pills is trying.
It’s not been a BAD day, just a BLAH day. But like one of my favorite children’s books says, “some days are like that” and another favorite book says, “it’s all good!”
God is good, all the time!
Bless the Lord! John’s blood counts are doing fabulously well. His white count is climbing! This is day 3 of engraftment, which is a real benchmark. The doctors are saying he is targeted to be released from the hospital later this week, barring any complications.
I am not going to lie….this is a little bit overwhelming for me and I am secretly grateful that we have to stay in the OKC area for awhile. Close to that safe haven we call “the Bone Marrow Transplant Unit”.
God has been so very faithful to John and me. He keeps us surrounded with faithful family, and friends and co-workers, and even prayers from people who don’t know us. It gives us strength to face anything that may lie ahead.
Please pray for continued strength for John; and his work (especially his co-workers); for the commute for Cindy ; and for our family.
Bless the Lord, oh my soul! And all that is within me! Bless his holy name!
Is it really 2 weeks since the transplant? Goodness. So quickly and so slow.
Anyway, good news! John’s ANC count, which is a number that the doctors monitor, jumped from 385 yesterday to over 600 today . We knew that 500 was a magic number. And we were very happy when the PA told us how much it had climbed.
Then when Dr. Holter came in, she shook John’s hand and said “Congratulations! You have reached Day 1 of Engraftment.” Engraftment means he is making white blood cells!
Staying above 500 for 3 days is one step towards being released from the hospital, barring any other problems.
Another step is no fever for three days once he is off the antibiotics. And the final hurdle is at least three days between blood transfusions.
He is getting better, slowly but surely.
Psalm 62:5 Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from him.
Good morning! it’s been a few days since the last post so I need to update. John’s blood count as of yesterday is still dropping. How it can get lower than 0.0015 is beyond me. He is so very weak. Thursday, he was lethargic. Friday, he was a little bit more energetic. Yesterday, Saturday, he was the weakest that I have ever seen him. It took him 20 minutes to get out of bed. Every breath seemed to take more energy than he had to give.
By the time I left last night, he had run a fever, been nauseated, on top of this on-going cough. They took a chest x-Ray which cleared him of a pneumonia diagnosis. And been given additional meds to combat nausea.
This morning, I see that he was given blood and platelets in the middle of the night, his fever broke and the increased breathing treatments are helping his cough. He has already talked more this morning than he did all day yesterday. That is a good sign because we know John loves to talk 😀
Have a wonderful Sunday. Enjoy your families!
God is good all the time.
I have been in Tulsa for a couple of days now, heading to OKC in the morning. However, both Carly and Kelsey made arrangements to each take a day to go hang out with their dad. I know all were blessed. What a gift that John is close enough to Tulsa that we can do this type of tag-teaming.
John’s blood counts are still dropping, but day 7 forward we should begin seeing that steady climb he needs.
All day today (May 4), I have heard “may the fourth be with you” because today is Star Wars day. I said it to Kelsey tonight and she looked at me like I had lost my mind. Kids!
Seriously, may God’s force be with us all tonight. God bless you.
John is very tired. No energy at all. Just walking to the bathroom which is 4 steps away leaves him exhausted. He is on lots of anti-rejection meds. Most of his time is spent dozing in his bed. However! No fever! Yay!!
I am going to head to Tulsa today. Carly will come sit with him tomorrow and Kelsey will on Wednesday. Please pray for safe travels for all, that John will continue to rest comfortably and that all who are affected by this will feel God’s unexplainable peace.
We feel loved.
My Five Stones 