Westward Wings

Deb is flying back today. I have spoken to her a couple of times already today, and since I just received an email she forwarded, I'm going to guess that she's in the Charlotte airport awaiting her next flight. She'll arrive sometime just before 10pm, and I'll be there at the airport to pick her up (since I have the car and I don't think she wants to struggle onto mass transit with 2 large bags and 2 carry-ons). It's been eight days since she left me at the Knoxville airport. Eight long days.

She went to see the surgeon yesterday. Actually, she'd also been to see another of her surgeons on Monday. He's the one who did the cancerectomy (is that a word? It is now). She was complaining about the staples to him, so he went ahead and removed some of them (or maybe all of them). Yesterday she got to have the rest of her sutures removed. I feel bad that I couldn't be there with her. I had been to all of her other appointments with him.

So today she is flying. I think she even snagged a free first-class upgrade for the NC->WA flight. I hope so. She'll be a lot more comfortable that way. She'll be here finishing up her recovery period until Sunday, when she goes back to work and flies back out again to points on the map well to the right of Seattle.

I guess I can release my breath now. I feel like I've been holding it ever since late April when she was diagnosed. I feel like we've been extremely lucky with this. Not that she got cancer, of course, but that we were able to come all of the way through this in just over six months and have her declared to be cancer-free without having to go through chemo or radiation therapy. I know way too many people who have ridden the cancer roller coaster and gotten a much rougher ride. My heart goes out to them - those I know and those I don't. I know that we've been barely affected in the grand scheme of things.

So, with all things considered, I'm quite happy now. Or at least I will be at about 10pm tonight.

Stocked Up with Staples

Deb has surgical staples this time around. She may have had some before, but I don't remember it. I'll remember this time. So will she. They are a frequent topic of conversation. At least daily, if not more often.

She goes back to the surgeon on Tuesday. He's supposed to pull the sutures and staples then. If he doesn't for any reason, Deb may just grab the staple remover and rip them out herself. They are really bothering her. Really. (Yes, really).

Other than that, I think she's doing OK. She and Mom-Linda drove to Knoxville today and will stay until Wednesday. Deb's stamina is greatly improved over her previous surgery. Tomorrow she is going with friends to our favorite Knoxville restaurant, RouXbarb. On Tuesday, she's going out with other friends ... to the same place. I guess I don't feel quite so bad about heading up to Hudson last night for take-out instead of cooking something here.

I'll try to post an update after Deb's appointment on Tuesday.

Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fungus

Well, it's been since Tuesday that I last saw Deb. I've talked to her several times each day since, but sitting here late on Friday night in Seattle, with my wife sleeping (I hope) in Kingsport on Saturday early morning, I'm becoming expert on realizing that it isn't anything remotely near the same. I feel that I should be there with her, but we both realized that I needed to come back when I did. Doesn't make me feel any better about it. Maybe I'll feel better about it late on Wednesday evening once she's back under my watchful eye.

It isn't that I don't think Mom-Linda is capable of caring for Deb. I do. I'd just rather be doing it myself. Still, less than a week to go. In fact, the countdown is at five days.

Deb, from all reports, continues to recover well. She's already made several outings, even a few with me before I left, but I think she may actually try eating out one evening very soon. She's told me that she wants to go back to Knoxville on Sunday (or was it Monday?) to spend a night or two before coming back, so she must be doing OK. This means that she'll have to make outings to eat out and things like that - we have no food, pots and pans, plates, forks, knives, spoons, or anything like that in the house in Knoxville now. I'm going to guess that her stamina will be up to the multiple excursions.

Five days. Five days. Five rotten, stinking days.

Parted Again

Well, she sent me away. No, not really, but I did have to leave Deb back in TN so I could come back out to the Upper Left Coast. We drove from Kingsport to Knoxville early yesterday morning in the pick-up, which wasn't exactly the most comfortable of rides for her, but it was tolerable enough I suppose. We had several stops to make on the way into town and then went to the house to do a few last minute things at the house before her appointment with her surgeon.

Mom-Linda had to pick up something for us in Kingsport, so she left there a little later than we did. She met us at the house as I was finishing up doing a little touch-up painting on some spots where we had removed screws and nails and put some spackle. We left the pick-up in the garage, loaded my luggage into Mom-Linda's car, and headed over to the surgeon's office.

We got there a bit early, so we had to wait until he got there from the hospital (he'd done a couple of surgeries that morning). He took off Deb's bandages and declared that she was healing according to plan. Then he took out her surgical drain.

Deb had gone through the drain removal process twice before (she had two drains after the last surgery, and they came out at different times). I think that this time with the one was equal to, or perhaps more than, the pain of the other two combined. She said it made her a little more sympathetic all of her patients whose drains she'd pulled over the years.

The doc wrapped her back up, told her she could now remove bandages in order to take a shower, and set her up to come back in a week to have sutures and staples removed.

We left the office and went to grab some lunch, and then they drove me to the airport and walked me up to security. Their plan from there was to go back by the house and pick up some last minute stuff and then head back to Kingsport. I did talk and text at times with Deb from the various airports I visited, and once more once I reached the Seattle house, so I know she was doing OK post-drain removal.

I talked to her again this morning. She was just finishing up her shower. I think that being able to do that has made her very happy.

Reunited

After spending two nights in Knoxville, I am back in Kingsport today with Deb at her Mom's. I think she's gotten some good rest while I've been gone, and has made some progress (as I expected that she would). She's been up walking (albeit slowly) a bit more today and has been awake more. That is likely due to her cutting back on her Percocet dose from one every four hours to one every six hours. When I got here she was at 5-1/2 hours and was a bit uncomfortable, but that isn't a surprise to me, all things considered.

Her first follow-up appointment with the surgeon is on Tuesday back in Knoxville. I will fly out right after that appointment and Deb and Mom-Linda will head back to Kingsport for another week. Deb and I have been discussing whether or not we might want to head back to Knoxville on Monday so I can get a few more things done around the house there before I leave, but we haven't made a decision yet. Part of it will depend on how well Deb is able to sleep in a regular bed, which she will try for the first time post-surgery tonight. We shall see.

Tuesday's appointment is suppose to be to have Deb's bandages removed and changed out by the surgeon, and also to have him remove the drain on her right side. The next week he will, in all likelyhood, remove the sutures. I think Deb will be ready to fly back to Seattle after those are gone.

Parting Is Such Sweet Sorrow

Well, I left Deb today. Only for a day or two, and she's in her mom's capable hands, but I still feel kinda bad about it. Still, I do have a long-standing commitment to attend to in Knoxville this weekend.

Deb ended up sleeping in the same recliner that I found her in yesterday when I got to Kingsport. I don't think she's quite ready to try sleeping flat on her back yet. I ended up sleeping on the sofa next to her. She slept pretty well, only waking up at 0215 when I gave her her next Percocet dose, and at about 0600 when she went to the bathroom and took her Percocet and antibotic. We then slept until about 1000. I hadn't meant to sleep that late, but I guess we both needed it.

We got Deb some breakfast and then I helped her bathe around the bandages around her chest. Her mom helped her wash her hair as well, so I know she was feeling a bit more human after that. I left around noon, but I have talked to her on the phone since then (and will again in a little while) and she is taking the opportunity to just sit in that recliner and relax as much as possible. I'm going back up on Sunday, so maybe by then she'll feel up to going outside for a walk down the street and back. Or maybe not, but I will still make the offer.

New Recovery Ward

We arrived in Kingsport this afternoon and are now at Mom-Linda's house. We didn't arrive at the same time, though. Deb got here about two hours before I did. She rode up with Mom-Linda in her car, saying that riding in the pick-up truck would be too rough for her to be comfortable. I can believe that. I once rode in that same truck (back when it belonged to my friend John) from Gainesville, GA to Knoxville, TN with a broken clavicle, fractured superorbital, and fresh stitches in my forehead - without the benefit of painkillers - and I can see what she might mean.

I decided to take a shower and get a bite to eat before heading up to Kingsport myself. I hadn't had a chance to shower at the hospital, and I didn't get breakfast there either, and it was almost noon when Deb finally got discharged. By the time I got to Kingsport Deb was firmly planted in a nice recliner and talking with Frank and Kathy, who had driven over from Elizabethton to see her. I figure that I was between an hour to two hours behind Deb getting here.

As I sit here typing this post, Deb is back in that recliner (after having had dinner at the table) and reading her new book. At this point after the last surgery, she was still to miserable to think about reading anything, or even holding a full conversation. She's still having pain - don't get me wrong on that - but I think it is much more manageable for her this time around. Of course, having a Percocet every four hours is certainly helping with that.

Recovery - Day I

Well, Deb made it through the night with no problems. She slept soundly most of the time except for the few times that the nurses came in to check her vital signs or when she needed to go to the restroom. I didn't sleep quite so well. They have chairs in the rooms that fold out into "beds", but they aren't exactly comfortable to spend the night on. Still, I wasn't there for my comfort. I'll make up for my lack of sleep a little later today.

We've had a few a few visitors since my last update. Amy showed up last night for a visit (and brought Deb some mugs and tea bags). Kelly also came by after she got off from work. Todd came in this morning for a good visit. All have noted that Deb looks a lot better after this surgery than after the last.

Mom-Linda just showed up as Todd was leaving, so we're starting the discharge process. The discharge nurse is here now taking the IV out now, so we should be leaving within the next half-hour. I will try to post another update later after we all get to Kingsport, so I'll be able to report how Deb does with the two-hour trip to travel up there.

Things are much better this time. Something to be happy about for now. Of course there's still the next three weeks to get through, but I think it will all be relatively OK.

En Suite

OK, Deb is now resting semi-comfortably in her hospital room, at least as comfortably as possible. She reports that the pain this time is not nearly as much as it was for her first surgery. In fact, they don't even have a morphine pump on her this time. Instead, she is sampling her own company's wares by taking Percocet for the pain. She's still a little groggy from the anaesthesia, but that is to be expected for a while.

Deb got to her room at around 1430 (that's 2:30 pm for those who don't speak 24-hour clock time). They had warned me at about 1315 that she was indeed having to wait for a room to open up and that it could take as much as two hours. I was thinking that two hours wouldn't be a problem since I had to leave at 1330 to make a 1345 Dr. appointment of my own. Sadly, I was still sitting out in the Dr.'s lobby waiting to go back at 1430 when Mom-Linda texted me with Deb's room number. I had hoped to be back and in her room when she arrived, but I didn't make it back until closer to 1630.

Thank you to those who have sent messages of support. I am sorry that I haven't had time to answer all of them, but then, that's what this site is for - to keep you informed about how she is doing.

And right now she is lightly dozing. That's a good thing.

Surgery Complete

Deb's surgery was completed at around 1130 and she's now in the recovery room. I just got back from talking with Dr. Kleto, and he seems pleased with the results. He gave me a list of do's and don'ts to follow for the next week until he sees her next Tuesday in his office (to remove the drain - we hope). He'll see her again the following week to remove the sutures.

Our friend Duane has been out here sitting with us since about 0900. He came and sat with me during the last surgery as well. I was also able to walk out to the truck and give him a small woodworking project I had done for him and his wife, Angela, over the last few days.

I was told to expect that Deb will be in the recovery room for about an hour, but I seem to recall being told that the last time and it was closer to 2-1/2 hours. If I remember correctly, that may have had something to do with having to wait for a room to be cleared. With luck, we won't have that issue this time.

I've been having a bit of an issue with this computer this morning. It has locked up on me a couple of times and I've had to reboot. I mention this as a segue to a new term that Deb coined this morning on the way to the hospital. She was having similar issues with her laptop and mentioned to me that all she was getting was the ire-glass.

Ireglass (Eye-er-glas, n) - the term used to describe the constant hourglass symbol that you get when your system locks up, creating a state of extreme frustration.

More when we get to a room...

Surgery Day

Well, they just wheeled Deb back into the OR, so I now have time to create this post. I tried to do it while I was back with Deb in the prep rooms, but I was having trouble getting enough signal to my Blackberry to make it work.

We arrived at the hospital just before 0700 and Deb came and checked in while I was parking the pick-up. Unlike the previous surgery back in June, this time Mom-Linda (Deb's mom) and Rusty are here, too. They drove down from Kingsport last night, and Deb and I will go back to Kingsport for Deb's recovery. Since we moved most of our household items to Seattle, there isn't anything more than a bed for Deb, and no way to heat or even serve food. Plus, this way Mom-Linda will be able to keep caring for Deb when I have to leave and head back to Seattle.

I went back to the prep area with Deb (only one person is allowed to go with a patient back there). I sat with her while they came in and put in the IV, put little footie things on her that blow up every minute or two (I would assume they help keep blood flow active in her legs), and quizzed her on who she was and why she was there a half-dozen times. Dr. Kleto, her surgeon, came in and made a series of arcane marks on her to help guide him during the surgery. Dr. Kleto is a nut. The CRNA confirmed that he's always entertaining to be in the operating room with.

They finally took her back just after 0830 and sent me back out to the waiting room. Apparently spouses are not allowed back in the OR. Not that I'd want to be there when they take a scalpel to her anyway.

So now we just sit and wait. Mom-Linda had gone and gotten breakfast at the cafeteria for her and Rusty when I got back out here, and as soon as I finish publishing this post I will head down there to get something for myself. Happily, they seem to have pretty decent food here as I remember from last time.

More updates as I get more news.

Part II Has Begun

Welcome back to the website that chronicles Dr. Deb's adventures as she goes through the surgery and recovery process following a diagnosis of DCIS, a form of breast cancer. First, a little catch-up synopsis from where I left off before - Dr. Deb (with husband - me - in tow) has moved to Seattle, Washington to tackle a new work assignment. However, since we started the surgery process in Knoxville, we decided it would be a good idea to finish it up with the same surgical team we had in June. Thus, we are back in Knoxville and Deb's final (we hope) surgery is scheduled for 8:30 am tomorrow.

We arrived back in Knoxville late on Friday and had a full weekend of stuff to do, including volunteering as kitchen staff for our favorite chef, Bruce Bogartz, at his restaurant, RouXbarb. He has started doing a thing called "Feeding Forty", which brings in people from across the socio-economic spectrum and gets them to interact in a positive way over a great meal (which he provides free of charge). There were probably a dozen of us acting as kitchen and serving staff, and we all donated our time as well.

Yesterday we went to the hospital where Deb's surgery will be to do all of the pre-operative paperwork and blood work, and then went to see our general practitioner for a check-up and to let them in on what's happening.

Deb is working today, which will be the last day for a few weeks (three, I think). We have to be at the hospital by 7:00 am tomorrow, and as I said before, her surgery is scheduled for 8:30 am. I will be sitting in the waiting room after that, and will be posting updates across the day as I get them, so check back here for those. I will try to keep this space as up-to-date as possible.

So, on with Act 2, Scene 1...

Long Time, No Post

I realize my posts have been more sporadic of late, but there hasn't been as much new to mention.  Deb is still recovering and going to her weekly visits with the reconstructive surgeon.  I took her yesterday, in fact.  Previous visits were not too bad, but this one seems to have left her a bit more uncomfortable than usual.  Mostly I think it is because the tissue expander is meeting more resistance as it is expanded further.  Deborah has had to use more of the pain-killers than usual since the visit, but at least they are helping her get some rest.  I hope tomorrow will be better.  I don't foresee her having more than one or two more visits to go through right now, not counting the second surgery to replace the expander.

We're getting closer all the time.

Birthday Wishes

OK, I know I haven't posted for a while, but we have been a bit busy around here. Our house was listed for sale last week, so we've spent a lot of time getting it ready (or mostly ready) and still going through what's going west with us and what isn't. I've done a lot of heavy lifted lately. Deb isn't allowed to lift heavy stuff during her recovery. I've noticed that even some small weights aren't comfortable for her to lift or carry, but that doesn't surprise me.

Deb has been a real trooper so far in her recovery, though. She remains very upbeat throughout the process. The routine lately has been to visit the plastic surgeon on every Tuesday afternoon to have the tissue expander incrementally inflated, and then spend most of Wednesday (and sometimes part of Thursday) recovering from that. This seems to be the biggest source of discomfort for her, but again that doesn't surprise me. The current plan is to continue the "inflation" process for the next few weeks before she reports back to work, and then to wait a couple of months before removing the expander and putting in the permanent (relatively speaking) implant sometime in October.

Today, however, is a special day (as if you couldn't tell from the title of this post). That's right - Deborah turns 29 years old today ... plus a little bit. So far all we've done is work on sorting through the basement while the carpet cleaning guys were here this morning and run to Target with a stop for lunch (at Five Guys - one of Deb's favorites). I think the afternoon plan is for her to take a nice nap on the sofa and then we'll go meet friends for dinner at RouXbarbs, which is another of her favorites.

So now you can wish her a speedy and complete recovery and a happy birthday.

PS: Wanna buy a house? We know of a good one on the market right now ...

Beyond the 4th

I hope you all had a safe and pleasant Fourth of July.  We had a pretty good one here.  Deb continues to show improvement, though she is getting to the point where she can't get get very comfortable at night.  She's tried to wean herself from the major painkillers, and the Tylenol is only having limited effect.  Still, I think she is slowly getting better.

I spent most of the Fourth doing what I've done for the last several days, which is try to go through the house as best I can and decide what to get rid of before we have to move it across the country, and get the house looking as good as I can (by pressure-washing the patio, et cetera).  Deb is less able physically to help with moving stuff around, so she's been going through old magazines to see if there are articles she wants to hang onto.  This is something she can do while seated on the sofa, so that's good.

Dinner last night was provided by Wayne and Sylvia, who provided enough that we can enjoy what was left over again tonight.  Very much appreciated, as has been everything else that folks have brought by.  I can guarantee that none of it is going to waste.

We've started expanding Deb's limits with a few outings.  We went to lunch at RouXbarb on Thursday.  I took her to the grocery store on Friday, with a couple of other minor stops along the way.  Today we went to a cookout over at Jon and Mandy's house for our bike club.  Each trip out has worn her out, but she'd lasting longer each time.  She was able to stay out today for twice as long as I'd figured on.  Also, she drove for a couple of those trips (Friday and today), so definite progress is being made.

It's getting better all the time.  I just hope it continues to do so.

Going, Going, ...

Deb's mom is gone.  We took her back to the airport yesterday morning and she flew back to Nevada.  It was very good having her around during the initial phases of Deb's recovery.  I would have had difficultly doing all of the nursing duties myself and still report to work at all.

Also gone is the second and final surgical drain.  Deb is very, very happy to have it gone, as am I.  It wasn't any fun for any of us to deal with, and it was quite uncomfortable as well for Deb for the two weeks she had it.  Taking it out wasn't exactly comfortable for Deb either.  I know this because I was holding her hand as the doctor was pulling it out and I was worried at first that I'll pull back a tangled mess of broken fingers.  I have regained feeling in most of my fingers now, though.  

While we were there and the doctor had Deb in a prone position on the table, he went ahead and added some saline to the tissue expander (temporary implant).  It's pretty cool how he does part of it.  There's a magnet in the implant at the port he needs to aim for with the saline injection.  He uses another magnet to pinpoint its position under skin and tissue.  Deb said she felt a little like an Ouija Board as he was moving the magnetic indicator around to find the port.  Then came the injection part, which involves a large needle and syringe.  Supposedly the area he goes through with the needle is supposed to still be numb from the surgery, but apparently not entirely.  I think I could actually feel a couple of my knuckles crackling that time.  At least they aren't blue anymore.

I think Deb felt better after the appointment than she'd expected.  She was a little sore from the drain removal and saline addition (100 ml this time), but not as much as she'd expected.  I just smiled and kept my mouth shut.

Overnight the pain hit her harder than she'd prepared for, which is what I knew was coming.  The painkillers weren't doing enough to let her rest, so even though we started upstairs in the bed, I ended up following her down to the reclining chairs in the front room (or Living Room, or Parlor, or Sitting Room, or whatever you want to call it), bypassing the sofa along the way.  I ended up staying home with Deb instead of going to work because she was still in a good deal of pain this morning, and I knew she wouldn't be able to drive anywhere should it become necessary (e.g., to go see the doctor, to go to the ER, et cetera).  She nodded off mid-morning and dozed pretty well until 1pm, and then again after lunch until about 4pm or so, when she got up to take a shower.  I think she's feeling much better now.

And no drain to deal with.  Hurray!

OK, it has been a while since my last post, but things have been really holding steady here.  Deb continues to slowly improve and I continue to try to take care of her and do some work around the house as well.  Deb's mom has been around for most of it, but she did drive up to Kingsport yesterday morning and spent the night (she had her own appointment with a doctor today) before driving back down today.  I guess I hadn't realized it, but Linda had been dealing with emptying Deb's drain ever since we first brought Deb home.  Last night was the first time I did it myself.  I guess I can check the final box on the nursemaid checklist now.

Deb also continues to get cards, calls, messages, and visits as well.  Four of her friends came into town on Saturday and ended up going to get dinner and bring it back.  Jeff and Gabe came by yesterday for a visit, and our next-door neighbors stopped in last night.  I'm happy that she's getting all the outside encouragement.  I think it really makes a difference.

OK, now for what's coming up.  As I stated before, I will be taking Linda to the airport tomorrow morning so she can fly out to Nevada for another month or two.  Then Deb and I will go back to the reconstructive surgeon for an early afternoon appointment.  We expect (and hope) that he will be removing the last drain tomorrow.  He may also put a little more saline in Deb's tissue expander (pre-implant), but that isn't certain, either.  I may not have reported it well, but Deb was really sore after the first drain was removed.  Not a pleasant sensation, I would imagine.  It's likely that this one will hurt more coming out, as I believe it is in deeper.

Deb's plan is to pre-medicate before the appointment with the heavy-duty painkiller (Tylenol just won't cut it).  I hope that's effective enough, but I recognize the possibility that I may have an especially uncomfortable patient on my hands for about 48 hours or so.  Maybe I should pre-medicate, too?  I am, of course, referring to a legal drug, which would be caffeine.  Espresso is my preferred delivery mechanism.  Enough to maintain vigilant attentiveness, but not be too jittery (a delicate balance, I assure you).

So keep those good wishes flowing her way.  

Three More Down

First of all, allow me to apologize for not posting yesterday, but after dinner and helping Deb with her first post-surgical shower (which pleased her mightily), I was feeling a bit ill and went straight to bed (most likely due to the pork BBQ I'd had for dinner).  That just means I have more to say tonight.

So yesterday's appointment was back with Deb's general surgeon.  He went over the pathology report in more detail with us (it's all good) and answered some of Deb's questions about long-term diligence.  About the pathology report; he said he doesn't like to use the word "cured", but that this is about as close as it gets to that (WooHoo!).  At the end of the appointment he told Deb that she should go ahead and schedule an appointment with the Oncologist to see if he wanted to put her on Tamoxifen, which is a long-term (i.e., five year) preventative drug.  His office made the appointment for us and it was today.  Wow.  I'm not used to getting appointments that fast.

Today's first appointment was with the Oncologist.  He and Deb talked it over for about ten minutes after going over the pathology report, and the final consensus was that Tamoxifen wasn't likely to do her enough good to be worth the likely side effects, especially given the increased detection protocol Deb will be using to screen for any future cancer risks.  I didn't contribute much to the conversation other than to support or explain some of the statistical jargon/data, but I agree with their conclusion.

Having said that, I suppose I should say that Deb probably thinks that I haven't had/don't have much of an opinion about most of her course of treatment.  Truth is, I do have opinions - usually definite opinions, about everything, but I decided long ago to keep my mouth shut and let her make most of the decisions for herself, only offering input if I was truly in opposition (but without trying to impose my will).  What I've found is that my opinions have matched Deb's at every step of the way (which just goes to show that we are somewhat compatible and that there's hope for us yet).

The last appointment was back with the reconstructive surgeon.  We had hoped he would be removing the drains today since he didn't remove them on Tuesday, but he only gave us half of what we wanted.  He removed one of the drains, which is at least some progress.  He wants to see Deb again on Tuesday, so he will likely remove the other one then.  Deb is a little uncomfortable this evening from where the drain was removed, but she took a painkiller a little while ago and that should knock the edges off of the pain.

Tuesday is also when Deb's mom leaves to return to Nevada, so I'm on my own again at that point.  I will likely have to take Tuesday off from work to drive Linda to the airport at mid-morning and take Deb to the doctor in the early afternoon.  That makes a very short work week for me with just Monday and Wednesday.  I'll just have to make do, I suppose.

Thanks again for all of the cards and calls and emails et al.  It's good to have friends.

Follow-Up #1

Today was Deb's first follow-up appointment with one of her surgeons. Today it was the plastic surgeon, and we had hopes that he would be removing at least one of Deb's drains, but it wasn't to be. Actually, I'm not sure he had ever intended to do it today in the first place.

The doctor had been in surgery and had called his office to let them know that the surgery had started late, so he would be running behind. He only ended up being about fifteen minutes late, but it gave me fifteen minutes to lightly doze off on the sofa in the waiting room (we were the only ones there). They took us back and he removed the dressing for the first time since the surgery. Everything looked OK to him, so he wrapped her back up, gave us directions on rewrapping her dressing in the future (and some ideas on what to use), and told us to call on Thursday morning for an appointment on Thursday. That doesn't leave me a whole lot of time to arrange for taking time off of work on Thursday, but you do what you gotta do, I guess.

The best news from Deb's point of view is that she's now allowed to take a shower (which is also good news for the sponge bath giver - me).

Tomorrow morning is Deb's appointment with the other surgeon. So what we're going to end up with is an appointment on three consecutive days this week. Good thing the people at my work are understanding about all this, but both Deb and I think that I should be there with her at these appointments. I just wish my work was closer to town (one-half hour each way).

On the over-all recovery front, Deb continues to show improvement. She's cut back a good bit on the painkillers, so her thinking is clearer and she's awake more. She decided to test the limits of her energy level today, and she found them. We stopped at the grocery store after her appointment, which included a lot of walking around. When we got home our landscaping guys wanted to ask her some veterinary advice questions, so she stayed out there talking with them for at least fifteen minutes (I was at least able to direct her to some shade while she was out there). She also got involved in fixing dinner and did some other things around the house, but now she's worn out and back in position on the sofa. I could have predicted that ... and did.

So a good day. Let's hope they continue to be good going forward.

Monday

Well, it's been two days since my last post, and there has been some notable improvement in Deb. I wish I could say the same about me.

Deb obviously has more energy today. She still sleeps a lot, but she's awake a lot more, too. She's trying to space out her painkillers a little more. She's also moving a little faster when she's up. The only thing not coming along as I'd wish it is the drainage. Drainage in both drains is slowing, but there's still more from #2 than the doctor said he'd want to see before he removes it.

The best news for Deb, though, is the pathology report, which she got today. Even though the total length of the affected region of the duct was longer than expected (at 4 cm), all of it was removed and no invasive cancerous cells remain. The surgeon did say that given the size, a lumpectomy would not have been sufficient, so Deb did make the right choice. Even though he said he was hesitant to use the word 'cured' in most cases, the surgeon said he would be willing to call this one 'cured'. WooHoo!

We go see the plastic surgeon tomorrow afternoon, so let's hope for more good news.

As for me, I somehow managed to pull the muscles in my lower back on Saturday afternoon. The spasms have continued through today and are just now beginning to abate..slowly. I am so happy to have Linda around right now. She's been a real trooper about picking up the slack, especially with laundry and dog-walking duties. So I'm singing her praises yet again.

Thanks go out to John B. for coming by today and bring us our dinner for tonight. To bad I had to go back to work, so I missed his visit. Still, I think Deb was happy he stopped by. Thanks, John.

Getting in Touch with Her Inner Potato

Deb and I had discussed yesterday afternoon the possibility of her actually sleeping upstairs in the bed last night (her idea), but when it came right down to it, she ended up spending another night in the succubus-like embrace of the sofa.  I have to say, it is the most comfortable sofa we've ever owned and I will be very sad when it finally wears out.  Linda again took up the other end of the 'L' since I was afraid I'd end up bumping Deb in the night (and Linda is shorter than I am).  This way Linda was able to take the night shift while I stumbled back upstairs into bed at about midnight or so.

Deb has made some notable progress today.  The amount of drainage has gone down (sorry if talking about that disgusts you, but I'm trying to give a reasonably accurate reporting for the medical-types checking in here).  Also, she's gone from taking two pills at painkiller time to taking one pill, which tells me that the pain is becoming more manageable for her.  And trust me, Deb doesn't tolerate pain all that happily (she will attest to that herself).  Still, most of her time is spent dozing, which is the best thing for her.  When she does have to get up she has been taking several laps around the first floor level just to get some movement going.  She's going farther each time (more laps), so I am definitely see improvement there as well.

Kelly came by for a visit today after she got off of work. Deb had just finished her lunch, so the timing was perfect.  Deb has also taken a couple of phone calls herself (though not many - just family).  She's also been feeling strong enough to pester me about sending out "Thank You" emails or text messages to several people who've sent stuff (especially coworkers), so if you sent something it is entirely my fault that you haven't gotten a "Thank You" yet.  You could say that I've been somewhat preoccupied of late.  I will get to it eventually.

Another day of progress, so I call it a good day.

And I hope you all have a good day as well, whatever you are doing (but especially Jennifer and Rick).

First Day Home

It's 12:30 pm as I begin this post. The night passed reasonably quietly. Deborah stayed snuggled into the sofa (which from personal post-surgical experience is one of the most comfortable spots in the house). Linda took the other leg of the sofa (it's 'L'-shaped) as her overnight post. I had gone into the front room to read for a little bit at about 9:30 pm, ended up drifting off soon after, and woke up at around 4:15 am! After checking on Deb, I headed up to put sheets on our bed only to find Linda had already done it for me previously.

I slept until maybe 9:00 am (I guess I was more tired than I thought), then got up and checked on Deb, got her some breakfast, and found that Linda had already taken care of Deb's surgical drains (I guess when she had gotten up to walk and feed the dogs - I'll tell you, everyone should have a Mother-in-law like Linda).

Since then I've been answering the door, answering the phone, making calls to doctor's offices, calling to check on our car that's in the shop, et cetera, while Deb has been doing the one thing that it is important for her to do - resting as comfortably as possible. Since breakfast she's been lightly dozing, mostly, which is good. She looks very peaceful, at least as long as we can keep the cat from trying to walk on her chest. Lindsay-kitty can't quite understand why we keep blocking her from trying to step any higher than Deb's lap, and she's very persistent in her attempts to snuggle up under Deb's chin, but Linda and I are just as persistent at denying her the opportunity. Lindsay is now curled up at Deb's feet.

Good. They can both get some sleep.
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Deb's first re-check with the surgeons is on Tuesday afternoon. There won't be as many posts from me between now and then - maybe one each day, maybe less - unless something unexpected comes up, but I definitely will post after her visit to the doctor on Tuesday.

No Place Like Home

Deb is now happily snuggled in on the sofa. It took a while, and for a time I thought I might be seeing the night nurse again, but they finally wheeled her out the door at about 5:45pm. My time since getting her home has been spent picking up dinner and dropping off Deb's prescriptions at the pharmacy.

Her mom is now here with us. I had to go pick up Linda at the airport this afternoon, which happened to be right when the nastiest thunderstorm I've seen in years hit. I got absolutely soaked walking from the hospital to my car through sheets of rain blown so hard it was going sideways (I'm not kidding). There was hail and high water (18 to 20 inches in places - again, I am not kidding). I even saw a Ford Fiesta drive into a puddle and disappear (OK, I am kidding about that - a little). Anyway, it will be good to have Linda here to help out during Deb's initial recovery period over the next few weeks.

Deb reports that she is feeling 'fair'. I'm sure she will feel better once she takes her next painkiller in another hour-and-a-half. After I go pick it up, that is, here in a few minutes. She also says she's feeling more tired than she expected, but I don't know why she didn't expect it after being with me after each of my surgeries.

Finally, she wants me to say 'thanks' to everyone for their messages or calls wishing her well. I have been relaying them on to her during her waking moments, and she does appreciate them all.

So do I, so thanks from me, too.

Currently waiting to go home. Sometimes this process takes forever as they push paperwork through myriad departments. I am reminded of the Vogon bureaucracy at this point. They started the process at about 2:30pm. It's 4:20pm now and I haven't seen anyone for over an hour. Maybe they are collecting an anthology of poetry to read to us on our way out*.


* If you don't get this reference, you need to go read "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" or ask someone who has.

Consultation

Dr. Brown, the surgeon, just stopped by a few minutes ago. He went over the surgery report with Deb, reporting that everything did indeed go very well. He went into a lot of medical jargon with her that went over my head a little so I won't report on that, but the overall gist is that everything is going according to plan.

We discussed her release from the hospital as well. First, he wants to have her try just oral medication for pain control without the morphine pump. If that goes well, I think she'll be free to head home whenever she feels that she's up for it, but if it doesn't, he'll put her back on the pump and keep her around a bit longer. I personally think that she wants to head home not long after lunch, so we'll keep our fingers crossed that the oral meds work out well.

I wouldn't mind getting out of here either. I think we'll both be happier once she's home in her own bed or on her own sofa (her choice). With Deb's mom coming into town for the next two weeks I think we can handle the required nursing duties between the two of us.

Day Two

Well, I'd said that I wasn't going to post again until after we see the doctor, but as of 9:00am we haven't seen him yet. If he's in surgery this morning we may not see him for a while.

Deb made it through the night OK, but didn't get as much rest as she'd have liked. From my own experiences post-surgery, I can't say I'm at all surprised. I woke up most of the times that Nurse Sara came in to check on her, medicate her, help her into the bathroom, empty the surgical drains (which she showed me how to do since that will become my job...hurray), or silence one of the various alarms on one of the various monitors. Still, I must have slept through a couple.

The worst thing to happen was this morning when the magic button stopped working. I'm referring to the self-medicate button on the morphine pump, which allows the patient to portion a dose at will as necessary every so often, with a built-in timer to keep you from overdoing it (I think it's set on a fifteen or twenty minute delay between doses). Anyway, at around 7:30am the vial of morphine hit empty and the pump went into alarm. Due to shift-change it took us an hour to get a nurse to respond, go look for the pump key and another vial (apparently in the possession of someone who had left the floor for "just a few minutes"), change the vial, and re-set the machine. I had at least been able to figure out which button on the machine would silence the alarm for twenty minutes at a time, but that was a difficult hour for Deb. At least she's dozing now.

I've heard the analogy that pain management is similar to driving a car (though I like to think of running a nuclear reactor or even a business). It is far, far easier to maintain control than it is to regain control. Better to make a series of small inputs along the way than to have to make large , if not radical inputs just before it goes into the ditch. Worse yet is having to haul it back out of the ditch. The car may run, but more than likely some damage has been done.

But from the sounds of her breathing, it seems like Deb's engine is running fine right now.

The Potato Soup Caper

Question: When is a bowl of potato soup not a bowl of potato soup?
Answer #1: When it is a plate of chicken and dumplings.

Not long after my previous post the nurses asked Deb if she felt like eating something. Deb wasn't very hungry, but thought that maybe a bowl of soup would be good. Her aunt suggested the potato soup, which she had tried at lunch, so Deb ordered a bowl of that and some ice cream. Twenty minutes or so later, someone showed up with a covered dish on a tray that looked suspiciously not like a bowl of soup. Indeed not. I pulled the cover off to reveal a plate of chicken and dumplings with a side of apple sauce. The food deliverers had already beat a hasty retreat.

Deb said it would be fine and started picking at it unenthusiastically, but her aunt and I decided that she should actually have what she actually ordered and asked the nurse to reorder the soup et al. It wasn't long after that when I sent Deb's aunt away (more on that later), so I was waiting for Deb's soup alone (since Deb had drifted off about then).

Twenty five minutes later I went up to the nurses' station to check on the soup order, but they didn't know anything about it and said they could try reordering again. I decided that I could more easily go down to the cafeteria and get some myself, so I went back to the room to see if there was anything else she might want. Little did I know that the food delivery people had snuck in while I was down the hall. There was Deb, eating from a bowl.

Question: When is a bowl of potato soup not a bowl of potato soup?
Answer #2: When it's a bowl of chicken noodle soup.

At least they brought her the ice cream.
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As for Deb's aunt, we sent her off when we started noticing the numerous flashes of light coming from outside. Since I didn't see any receptions going on that would require thirty or so photographers, and since we are on the fifth floor and not many photographers would climb that high anyway, we quickly surmised that there was a rather intense lightning storm brewing and that those headed one hundred miles east to get home should probably get to it before the storm hit with full force rather than after.

Todd did not end up coming back by tonight. I don't blame him. The lightning was pretty intense around here at 8:30pm when he'd planned to drop by. Maybe we'll see him tomorrow.

I'll hold off on posting again until after we see the surgeon in the morning. I suspect he'll decide to send Deb home then. Time will tell.

Good night.

At Last...

Deb is finally in a room. I had hoped to get up here before she did, but her aunt and I walked in to find that she was already here with two of the floor nurses hovering over her. That, at least, made me feel better. I just wanted to make sure Deb didn't get dropped off and left alone for any length of time.

The only problem I had was that the room temperature was set to "Ice-box" when we got here. Deb didn't think it was so bad, but then she's well bundled in several layers of hospital sheets and blankets, so go figure. Happily, the nurse told me I was free to reset the thermostat, so I am no longer having to plan a trip out to get parkas for her aunt and me.

Deb is in some pain, but the morphine pump is really taking that down a bunch of notches, so she isn't complaining. She's awake right now, but is still pretty groggy so I don't know how much longer that will last. Once her aunt leaves I will try to let her get some sleep for a bit until Todd shows up again to see her.

She looks good. Of course, she always looks good to me, but she does look like she's come through this rather well.

Maybe one more post tonight, maybe not.

Holding Pattern

Well, it has now been close to two hours since Deb went into the recovery room and I still haven't seen her. They are waiting for a room to open up, or be cleaned, or be repainted, or be built, or something before they'll move her out of recovery, but they won't let me back to see her. I really want to. Maybe I haven't made myself clear on that to them, but I am trying not to be the 'problem spouse' that I'm sure they tell stories about from time to time. Still, I'm getting to be as jittery as an acrophobe stranded alone on a rainforest canopy zip line. No, not really, but I've been wanting to try using that line and this seemed like as good an opportunity as any.

Duane had to go, but Deb's aunt is still here waiting with me. Still, it was very nice of Duane to come down and sit with me. I do appreciate that (and Todd, too, who told me he will be coming back by later this evening).

Now is also a good time to express my appreciation to everyone who has called, texted, emailed, commented, sent cards, smoke signaled, et cetera, with good wishes and all. I haven't been able to answer many of them, but we are happy to know that Deb and I have so many friends out there. Thank you.

But for now, the waiting game continues...

Phase 2 Complete

OK, I just got back a few minutes ago from the consultation room with Dr. Kleto. I didn't even have to go all the way down there to find out all I needed to know, because as soon as saw me coming down the hall he was shouting out "Everything went GREAT!!!" All that was left to talk about then was the care of her dressings and drains for the next week (until we see him again on Tuesday). So I'm happy. Everything is good. Deb's aunt is still here with me as is Duane, and one of our pastors just stopped by a few minutes ago to confirm that what she'd heard at the info desk jived with what I'd heard from Dr. Kleto. I also got a visit from Stewart, the CRNA who was in on the surgery (we discovered we have some mutual friends while he was in the pre-op room getting her ready earlier).

So now I just have to wait another hour to see her. She's in the recovery ward now, but I don't get to see her until she gets into a room.

Whew.

Phase 1 Complete

I just got back from the consultation room where I talked with Dr. Brown, the first surgeon. He let me know that his part went very well. He saw no problem areas in what he left behind. The removed tissue will now be sent to Pathology, and we will likely get the results back by Monday. Dr. Brown doesn't expect that the news at that point will be anything other than good. Let's all hope that the margins are clear.

Dr. Kleto, the plastic surgeon, had already gotten started with his part of the surgery (according to Dr. Brown). If things go as expected, she should be coming out into a recovery suite by 4:00pm if not a little earlier than that. I'm looking forward to that. Also, she should be really funny for a while since anesthesia always leaves her loopy. No telling what she'll be talking about for the first hour or so.

It Begins...

They've taken her back now. She should go under the knife in about 30 minutes or so. From there I expect the first doctor (surgeon) will take about an hour and then the second doctor (plastic surgeon) will take over and that will take about an hour and a half. I should know something by 2:45 that the first part is done.

I'm not here alone. Deb's aunt came down and was back in the pre-op rooms with us for a while. My friends Todd and Duane are out here with me in the waiting room right now. As soon as I hear that the surgery has started I will head down to the cafeteria and then be back here in the waiting room for the duration.

More to follow.

Waiting...

This is actually a test message. I'm not sure that I will be able to post through my phone, which is what I'm trying to do.

We are back in the pre-op ward now. No wi-fi back here. Just waiting now for the IV nurse to come in and hook Deb up. Deb's spirits are still high. I'm the one who is as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs.

More when there is more...
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Post 1 - Surgery Eve

It's the evening before Dr. Deb's surgery and I've decided that the best way to keep the large number of interested parties informed about the upcoming events is to blog about it.

I blog.  I don't tweet.  I blog.

A little information for those just coming "into-the-know".  Deb had a mammogram last Fall.  The results were, well, mixed.  They said that everything looked more or less OK, but that there was an 'area of interest' - something that they wanted to watch and reassess before the usual one year interval was up.  They asked her to come back in six months.

Fast forward to Spring.  Deb returned to have another mammogram done.  They looked at the results and said "Well, this area we wanted to look at looks fine.  Everything there is A-OK.  This other spot, however, ... we want to biopsy that."  Deb was able to have them schedule the biopsy immediately while she was still there.  We heard back from them on the next day.  The diagnosis was DCIS, or Ductal Carcinoma In Situ.  (Click the link for further information about DCIS).  It wasn't there six months ago.  Ladies, Deb is now a poster-child and strong advocate of getting your mammograms on a regular basis.

A lot more has occurred since that time as far as interactions with the medical community, but I can fill in those gaps later on.  The upshot is that she decided that single-side mastectomy followed by reconstruction is the way to go.  Having been privy to all of the discussions, I have to say that I agree.  If all goes well with this, she won't have to receive radiation or chemo, and that's a very good thing.

Anyway, her surgery is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon.  We'll be at the hospital sometime in the morning so they can begin the whole prep process.  I'm not sure just when they'll wheel her away from me to put her under anesthesia, but I'm not looking forward to that moment at all.  It's strange - I've been through seven surgeries since 1989 and I haven't really had any nervousness at all going into them.  This isn't me, though.  This is my wife of 18.5 years and object-of-my-affection of 26.5 years.  I suppose this is turn-about for all of the times she's watched them wheeling me off to pre-op.  I was always cracking jokes with the staff then.  I doubt I'll feel like that tomorrow.

I'll have the laptop with me tomorrow.  If I can get a wi-fi connection at the hospital I will post an update after they take her back.

Wish her luck.