Now here we are today, day 568. Today Doug is receiving his last chemotherapy. We are both excited to have this be the last day. I worried so much about getting this set-up; fearful we would have to return to Mexico for the treatment. And then suddenly it all came together, with minimal costs, only our co-pay, which seems like nothing at this stage of the game. Doug always feels a little nervous before these treatments. They often have a difficult time finding a vein. Today was no different. First they took labs and while having a difficult time finding a vein the technician was able to get a vein the first stab. Then with the I.V. they had to get the most experienced nurse and they were able to get a vein, after heating up his arm with the heating pad and putting the needle on the ourside of his left arm. Difficult, but the last I.V. was started.
Some good news today is that Doug's blood work continues to be good. His white and red blood cell counts are great. His iron, potassium and magnesium have been low in the past, but with supplements everything was good today.
Next week, Doug will be evaluated for outpatient physical therapy. It is hard for Doug to be motivated to exercise and practice walking on his own at home and I get tired of nagging. We asked his primary care doctor last week if she thought outpatient therapy would be a good idea and she completely agreed. I don't really want to start the whole process of getting him to therapies a few days a week, but I think it will be really good for him.
After having HSCT (bone marrow transplant), usually you have to be reimmunized. We had not started this process with Doug since he had been so sick for so long, we did not want to add anything else to his system. But last week at his doctor's appointment we restarted his immunizations. He got a little cold, his first in a couple of years. We think it might have been related to the immunizations, but who knows. The good news is that the cold was not severe and he has recovered without any other complications.
So where are we? Did the HSCT work? Was it worth it? These are difficult questions to answer. It has been a difficult 18 months. Doug has been through a lot and it is hard to see someone you love go through so much. We have both had to cope with this disease in diffent ways. But from what we can tell, with Doug getting so much worse after the complications he developed with poly-neuropathy that lead to be paralyzed, and then still recovering to where he is now, we don't think that he has progressed with his MS. The next year will be more telling. Doug never had a reprieve in the progression of his MS. Every year he was worse. We can only pray now, that the treatment worked and he will not progress.
Having gone through all this has taught me something. We can cope with the loss of all movement. We have made it through this journey so far. End stage MS can be very ugly. Not knowing what comes next, we just continue on this pilgrimage. Every day we keep trying to make the right decision and take the next right step. We both get weary and tired, but so far have not been overwhelmed by the journey. We continue on, thankful for what we have and hopeful that Doug has been given the time to enjoy more of what life has to offer.
And so we pray:
God of Hope and Life, you have been with us on this journey, you have sustained us with courage, hope and strength. The days so often have been uncertain but you have comforted us in our fear and lighted our path. Be with us now as we step into the next stage of our journey. We continue to pray for healing and strength for Doug. We pray that his vision for wellness will be sustained and that he will persevere in this arduous journey. And Lord sustain me as I care for Doug. Amen
