Waiting Increases Anxiety

It's been a long day. We got up early and headed to the Mayo Clinic to get his blood drawn. The snow wasn't starting to fall yet, so we thought it would be good to get that appointment out of the way before the roads got too bad. Our nerves are starting to get to us, but only a little bit.

11:00

Appt with Dr. Bennani. We discussed the treatment in a little more detail today. Since his lymphoma is so rare, but aggressive, they are going to treat it aggressively, but with some modifications. The chemo he is getting is called R-EPOCH. He will be on a continuous drip via a PICC Line for 5 days as an inpatient. When we go to KU Med, he may get it changed to receiving the chemo in a backpack so that he can be an outpatient. That makes him nervous, but it's better than sitting in a hospital for a week.

So, 5 days of continuous chemo treatment every 3 weeks for 6 rounds. We should be done in May! (Of course I'm already looking to the end!) Dr. Bennani referred to it as their "Hardcore" Chemo. She doesn't expect him to get too terribly sick with the aide of lots of medications to combat side effects. Every person is different though, so we'll only know when we get there. Mike will most likely start losing his hair in a couple weeks. He said it doesn't matter b/c he will always think he's handsome. (Someone needs to help him boost his self esteem!)

11:30

Chemo Education with Dr. Bennani's nurse, Michelle.

That was fun. Not. talk about scaring the daylights out of you. No germs, careful brushing teeth, do not floss, don't go barefeet so you don't cut your feet... Speaking of all these precautions, that reminds me I'm going to have keep looking for a bubble for him to live in! :) I think the trickiest part will be to keep the 3 kiddos healthy. More bubbles?

12:30

I'm hungry and now we have to meet with a very nice woman who was part of a team that does case studies to help them learn how lymphoma might be contracted. I'm all for helping people down the road, but I need a sandwich.

1:00

We get admitted into Mayo Methodist Hospital and wait for a room.

2:00

We are finally in a room, and the nerves start to really get to us. We met with one of our doctors who explained that Mike would get an echocardiogram done first, because one of the chemo drugs can be harmful to his heart. They have to make sure it's doing good before they can start. I have never met a man with a bigger, more compassionate heart, so of course I wasn't worried about that. Ha. They also are going to put a PICC Line in so they can have continuous access for the chemo. Mike has been dreading this. I tried telling him it's better than having surgery to get a Port. He doesn't want any of it done. Poor guy is deathly afraid of needles. (And tends to pass out at blood draws.)

4:00 Echo just finished up and the Picc Team just came in the room. As soon as that is finished we should be able to get started with the Chemo Drip.

Nothing like spreading this whole thing out throughout the day. Our anxiety is mounting. We don't know what to expect. Whenever I start to get stressed out about not knowing what's going to happen I just remind myself that these doctors and nurses DO know what to expect and to put our trust in them. They keep telling me he's going to be fine. I think it's time I just start believing them.

I'll try to update again tonight after the chemo gets started. I will be staying at the hotel, which really stresses Mike out. It's hard to see your protective, strong husband so vulnerable. Dr. Bennani insisted I sleep at the hotel not only to stay healthy, but to stay rested so that I can have strength too. I get that....bbuuuutttt.....

Oh, and there's a blizzard. So, there's another reason to stay in the hospital. :)

Thank You, again, from the bottom of our hearts for all of the love and support. We can feel it.

XOXO

Robin