belle
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So good to hear from you, Kris, I admire your spirit and your guts. I am thinking of you–Go girl go!Belle
Hans and Kris, I don’t check the site so often anymore but it was with tears that I read this thread. You always made me smile and helped so often, Kris, so I hope that you’ll be OK and the fight will be strong but not awful.
Best wishes, prayers and hope, BelleHi Jeff, Just checking up on my pals. My sister was allergic to most pain meds but did do very well on dilaudid. Best wishes, Belle
Dear Iris,
I was so sad to read that Peter passed away. You were from the very first online supports that I had when my sister was so ill last year and I was hoping for only good and better things for you and your love. I hope that the fond memories of all the good times that you share will sustain you through what has to be a very very sad time for you. With gratitude and fond wishes, BelleStacie, thank you for the post. Even though my sister is gone now two months, I still check the boards every so often to ‘check up’ on my friends and the people who helped along the way. So thank you and all the best and even better to all the fellow travellers. Belle
My sister was on xanax for a time. I’m not sure it helped tons, but it certainly didn’t hurt. I wouldn’t be able to tell you if it caused nausea, because she was nauseous all the time. Hope that helped a bit, Belle
Well, Lainy , you finally goaded me into sending one. It’s the best I could do under the circumstances. Good luck and more power to you. I have admiration for people who walk the walk, not just talk the talk. Have a good one, Belle
Joyce, I know a bit about mourning because 7 years ago, I lost my precious 13 year old daughter very suddenly and without any warning at all. People ask me all the time if it gets better. The answer that I say is that it doesn’t get better, it gets different. Right now, when your loss is so fresh, your emotional pain is almost physical. Almost everything you encounter in your daily life is in context of your mother. This passes with time. Your memories and longing for your mother never go away, but it recedes to the back (or side) of your brain instead of banging at your forehead all day, everyday.
I remember wishing right after my daughter’s death that it would be 3 years later already because I felt I couldn’t live any more with such raw grief. But I lived, I have experienced and do experience much pain. But I have also lived to feel great joy and happiness (which I never believed I would). We receive a lot more than we are called upon to give up. (I truly believe that!!)
This is a difficult time. Give yourself time and comforts. Best wishes, Belle
Dear Joyce,
Having just come from the closing of this period of time with my sister, I’ll share a bit of what we did. Our initial consult with the palliative care team was in the beginning of July. That was when it was apparent that there wasn’t more to be done to stop the cancer. Though it seems so scary to be in touch with hospice care people, they are truly helpful (if you get the good ones on board. And if you don’t…CHUCK THEM and find the next one that is good.) My sister lived for two months from that time. For the first two to three weeks, she was semi-functional. When she was up to it, she came out of bed and even went out for short periods of time. As the cancer spread she was more and more and eventually completely bed ridden. The palliative nurses and drs. involvement intensified as she weakened.At this time, you and your husband need to talk and make palliative care decisions. For instance, if he gets another infection, will you treat with antibiotics? If he can’t eat and drink, will you hydrate and/or give tpn or something similar? There are different ways to go and YOU not the dr or nurse should make that difficult decision.
You will still have important cherishing moments with Butch–as well as hard and excruciating ones as well. I am thinking of you and if you have more questions, you can e-mail me privately and I can try to help. Best of luck and strength to you, Belle
There definitely are drugs to raise WBC, but is your mom’s RBC normal as well? Is it just the WBC? My sister needed to be transfused from time to time and never had chemo. The disease itself (the drs. said) plays havoc with the blood counts. Hope that helps some, Belle.
Lisa, I have to echo the responses that everyone else posted. My sister was never on chemo and was quite tired all the time. It was not consistent and sometimes she had more energy and sometimes, for a few days in a row, less. I think it has to do with the disease more than anything. Take care, eat well. We’re thinking of you, Belle
Sorry for all the pain that you and your family are experiencing. From my sister’s experience, once there’s all this metastasizing into the abdominal cavity, you have all this pressure and sometimes blockages in the stomach and the intestines. My sister did not eat 9 weeks(!!) before she passed away, just hydration and fluids (only sometimes and not at all for the last 2 weeks). At this point, you have to concentrate the most on pain relief and nausea control. And I agree, the down hill on this is so quick and very terrifiying. Be strong for your mom, Belle
Hi to you, Lina and sorry that you have had to make our acquaintance. My sister was treated in Memorial Sloan Kettering by Dr. Jarnagin. He is a surgeon. The oncologist we had met with is a Dr. Keilson. Both were really excellent and even though my sister’s liver was unresectable, they did everything possible to treat her. The main thing is to have insurance that they accept and be persistent in trying to get appointments and tests. Hope that helps, Belle.
Irene, I read your post and just felt so sad and sorry. I remember the day my sister’s resection was aborted and the frustration and disappointment that we felt. Be strong. Recover from this and then regroup. It was hard to do that refocusing; when you’re so programmed in one direction to redirect in another. We’ll be cheering you on and hoping to hear good things from you. Thinking of you, Belle
