Happy New Year (and belated Merry Christmas...)!!

2012 Santa with Maggie and Kate.  They were also happy with the 30 cms of snow.

 

Things have been going well with me and my return to work.  A top notch group of people to work with and taking a few days off at Christmas hasn't been all that bad either.  The last few days I have been feeling sore throat-free (finally) which is more than what I can say for the last six weeks.

In January I return to five days a week and full time by late January.  That's a good thing for me as I can continue with earning holidays (I have none), paying back my five weeks of borrowed sick days and actually saving for retirement and the kids' RESPs again.  Cancer sucks holidays and money out of you big time but if you survive it, you can rebuild it all.

Speaking of rebuilding it, 2012 has been a year of ups and downs.  One thing was my weight.  I porked up for radiation and chemo and didn't lose a pound.  I gained 10.  I had surgery  and lost 10 lbs.  I recovered from surgery and started chemo.  I lost another 10.  I'm all over the map.  Now I'm Fatty Patty (as Erinn's girlfriend will surely start calling me) since I've packed on 25 lbs.  I should be proud to be a cancer patient that actually came out heavier at the other end of the treatment.  I got Fat Pants for my birthday a few weeks ago.  I love them.  Oh well, Christmas is not the time to start dieting.

But I think January 1st is.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everyone.

Back to Work!

Erinn's birthday was a couple of weeks ago.  For her birthday, I've returned to work.  It's great to be getting back to what a normal person does.  I never thought I'd want to go back to work but this is no way to take time off.  It also helps that I work with a fantastic group of people and they're a great pleasure to see again.

It's been a full year since this cancer ordeal began.  The big unknowns are all behind me.  The testing I ran through in November and December, the treatment plan laid out in late December and the fright of what lie ahead.  I was naive about colorectal cancer as I felt assured it couldn't kill me but I was also worried about what I might lose during the treatment process.  Well, Erinn's been following about three colorectal cancer blogs since we started down this path.  Unfortunately, one of the bloggers died a couple of weeks ago.  She was 35 with two young kids.  One of the other blogs, Doug 2.0, was a blog I started to read this summer on Erinn's recommendation.  He is similar to myself in that he's 40 years old, a lawyer (not me, but I'm a professional engineer so, yes, I can get sued by a lawyer) and he's very active.  Unfortunately, where I started was his entry was that a good friend from his colorectal cancer group died.  She was 40.

You see, the cancer can spread.  It's something I didn't realize.  Colorectal cancer in itself is treatable but if it spreads then it can be problematic.  Or a death sentence. I worry about a recurrence but I'll take assurance in that fact that if the cancer recurs in ten years, then medicine will be that much more advanced.

I spoke to a medical doctor last night.  I started road racing motorcycles only a couple of years before him.  Like myself, he's done a decade of fun weekends at the track and thrown in some national competition in there as well.  Also, like me, he's quitting now after some bad events happened at the track.  For me, I was administering first aid to someone at the track and it didn't end well.  I went home and sold everything.  A few months later I got cancer.

This doctor told me that risk is everywhere and many people die in mundane things like traffic accidents.  True, but racetrack involvement elevates risk and exposure to injury.  Of course, sometimes you eliminate that risk and put that phase of your life behind you and then you get cancer.  Getting cancer from cycling daily to work, eating a vegetarian diet, not smoking or drinking and eating lots of chocolate.

We're both glad we raced.

Now I'm going dirt biking.

Kate and Maggie are really excited about next summer.  So am I.

Chemo DUN!!!!!

I'm posing with Kate and Maggie all bundled up for Halloween.

Ahh, I just took my last chemo pills this morning.  I had asked the doctor if I could delay my last chemo by one week in an attempt to delay the side effects and the good Doctor Goodwin agreed (not to be confused with 7 time MotoGP motorcycle champion Valentino Rossi, simply known as THE Doctor).  It has worked. And, now that my chemo is done, my feet are just now starting to get sore.  Who cares, I'm done!

The last few weeks have gone well enough.  Before the weather cooled, I had a couple of weeks of pedalling 20 kms in the morning three times a week.  I've now moved indoors and I'm keeping up the cardio on the elliptical in the basement.  I'm afraid to try any weights as I'm overly cautious about ripping open my abdomen since I already have a hole in it.  That's what a hernia is and I have a large version.  The stoma nurses cautioned me on that so I have clear images of things going bad.  However, I'm going to start the weights soon at a  gentle pace cause it looks like next summer is my chance to finally start wakeboarding at the cottage.  My dad just bought a used powerboat and it came with a wakeboard and tubes for the kids.  Time to go back to waterskiing and finally try wakeboarding!

Sure, Katie's excited for dirt biking next summer but Maggie's really wound up!!

Nearing the End

I'm into my week off between pills.  On Wednesday, I'll start my last round of chemo pills.  This lowered dose got off to a good start.  I felt okay on Chemo 6 but the day after Chemo 6 ended I started feeling side effects.  I couldn't walk due to chemo pain in my feet.

And, oddly enough, I had bad effects near the end of my 14 days of pills on Chemo 7.  In fact, it continued for a few days after I stopped the chemo.  We had a great fall weekend at the cottage and I winterized it but the pain in my feet was so bad on the Sunday that I had to, once again, watch Erinn do all the cleaning and packing up while I lounged on the couch with my feet elevated.  I was okay to drive home but I couldn't walk or stand up once home so Erinn unpacked the car and put the kids to bed while I watched TV.  Hmm...maybe a sign of our life to come.  Except for the blazing pain in my feet, I could live with it.  Maybe I'll be faking it in the months and years ahead.

So, on Wednesday I see two doctors and I also have a Back to Work plan to get their approval on.  Funny, I haven't been harassed by my disability agent.  In fact, quite the opposite.  She ignores me.  I have called her about nine times in the last two weeks and I left about six messages for her to call me back.  By message three I just became verbose and spelled out my whole story since May about chemo problems and in subsequent messages I outlined when I want to go back to work and how long the transition to full time should be.  She finally e-mailed me the plan a few days ago.  I shouldn't be surprised.  She's only called me twice since January and I've left her about fifteen voicemails that she never responds to.  But now I finally have her e-mail address.  She still hasn't replied to my written questions but whatever.  Life will go on.  I guess I'm not the taxi driver with a sore neck on disability. 

Last night I was up till 4am with diarrhea.  Again.  I feel hung over this morning due to the lack of sleep.  It usually happens about once a week because of the chemo.  Last night there wasn't so much pain but usually when it happens, such as last week when I was sleeping peacefully, I get jarred awake by a searing, burning pain on my stomach.  Yes, ON my stomach.  Diarrhea often burns my skin so as it exits through my stoma I get an acid burn and it hurts like a motherf$#@&r.  I know diarrhea will be pretty rare once I'm done chemo but for now it's been pretty much every week since I started in May.  Half a year of fun.

What do you do when the KLR won't run?  Take the VFR.  I had planned on riding the K&P Trail near Calabogie all summer with a friend but my health sucked.  My feet were still in bad pain from the chemo but I was determined to go.  I took two Tylenols and headed out.  It actually ended up being a great day and sitting on the bike was fine.  Getting up and walking around hurt.  See Mom, motorcycles can be good for you!

Gerry demonstrates how to ride this without gravel tires or chemo pills.

Gerry and I did the K&P Trail just a few days ago.  As we left Ottawa, we stopped in to see a friend.  This shop owner used to sponsor me for motorcycle road racing for many years but I haven't seen him at all in my cancer year.  His healthy wife had a stroke.  They're both my age.  About 40 years old and fit with two young kids.  She just happened to walk out of the house when we were chatting with her husband.  It was great to see them both and she's on the mend.  She just got her driver's license back a few weeks ago.    Strange how things can show up and throw curve balls into life.

Homeward Bound!

Things have been good the last two weeks.  Yesterday I had an appointment with my Chemo doctor and she confirmed that I'll just stay on this lowered dose of Xeloda for my last two treatments.  This morning I downed the pills for the start of Chemo 7.  I took them on my bicycle ride as I picked them up at Shopper's Drug Mart on the start of a 20 km pedal this morning.  It felt good to be out as I've been lazy and not exercising but I vow to change that despite the cold, windy pedal this morning.  I can do that more often and I'll try for every second day now that my hands and feet don't hurt so much from the chemo.

So now, I have just over a month and a half left then I have to recover for a few weeks before I get booster shots to return to work.  I'm looking forward to returning to work part time and I hope it's in mid to late November.

The new normal is becoming okay.  I've been wearing slippers in the house all summer to make it softer on my painful feet.  I know the pain and numbness in my feet and hands will be a thing of the past once I stop the chemo and dealing with my colostomy has been frustrating at times but, on the whole, it's easy to forget I have one.  I just wish I didn't have one.  That's a permanent souvenir of this cancer but in view of the fact that a lot of people die of cancer, I'll consider myself lucky.

I keep getting e-mails from the Colorectal Cancer Support Group.  I only went to one meeting.  I didn't find it very helpful or cheery.  I was by far the youngest person there.  I may attend in the future but I think I'd rather go to Photography Club instead.  Or rewatch all the Rocky movies.  The obituaries from this Support Group have been flying in regularly and the one last week was for a 47 year old Colorectal patient.  Yikes.  I didn't meet any of the people who have passed away but it's a rip-off to bite the dust well before your time.  Lord knows I've raced motorcycles enough (eleven years) to make everyone around me think that I'll meet my maker at warp speed on the racetrack but I see a cancer recurrence as the big risk.  Plus, I've sold my racebike just last summer.  I told my wife I want to be the 2014 American Motorcross Champion.  She told me that as soon as I can beat one of those 12 year olds in a foot race then she'll buy me a dirt bike.  Hmm, so there's hope...

Ahh, the Orleans Sinkhole.  I have to document this...

On Sept 5th, 2012 a hole appeared in Highway 174 eastbound that feeds Orleans.  It swallowed this car and shut down the entire eastbound highway until Monday, Sept 17th.  That's the main artery that feeds Orleans.  When I was twelve, my buddy Mike and I walked about 2 kms inside the trunk sewer line that swallowed this car as we slithered behind the outlet grating at the Ottawa River.  I was tempted to return and liberate the battery and tires from this car since they were removing the car in pieces.  Mike now lives six doors down from me but I figured it would be no fun as adults and I'd probably catch scurvy in the sewer or we'd both get stuck trying to squeeze behind the grating as portly grown men and die a very undignified death.

Halfway Through Chemo 6 of 8

Okay, technically, I'm not halfway through until I take my pills after supper tonight but I'm really in countdown mode.  Only 2.5 chemo sessions left and I hope this wraps up by the end of October.

So far, I haven't had any bad side effects on this lowered dosage.  The fingertips on my left hand are still numb but I'm still hopeful the feeling will return a few months after I'm done my chemo sessions.  I also have the usual dry skin, my hair is continuing to fall out and I am fatigued with occasional dizziness.  Last night I had a pretty serious bout of diarrhea but I realize it had been at least two weeks since that happened.  My painful feet side effects haven't popped up until about Day 10 of my 14 day sessions so since I'm only at Day 7 right now, I can't really celebrate about not having debilitating side effects yet.

I went for a bicycle ride a few days ago and pedalled 20 kms.  I felt much better than I had a few weeks earlier when I did the same route but nearly passed out at the 9 km mark.  This was good.  I would go for another ride soon but I'm keeping my leg elevated and rested as much as possible due to a little mishap yesterday.

I don't know what to say about this.  We had a nice relaxing Labour Day weekend at home.  The kids and I pedalled the 1.5 kms to see my parents and as  I was standing beside my bicycle waiting to cross the only road on the route with the kids, I lost my balance and fell on my bicycle.  Yep.  I was standing and I fell.  My front bicycle sprocket chewed up the back of my leg pretty badly.  I have four ugly gashes and one is about half a centimetre deep.  It's pretty hideous.  Thankfully, my mom is a nurse and we were nearly at their house.  She'll now see me every day to change my dressing.

Danger is everywhere!!

What else do you do when you're not in school?  Do some Barbie Waterboarding, of course.

Progress is Underway!!!

Okay, tomorrow I start Chemo 6 of 8.  I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.

Today I saw my chemo doctor and she confirmed two good things: that I had finished Chemo 5 even though I still had five days of pills left AND that my dose would now be reduced from 4,000 mg daily to 3,000 mg.  That's three pills at breakfast and three at supper instead of four pills each.  I'm confident that there will be no side effects with the dosage now reduced another 25%.

First day of school today for both Kate and Maggie.

And if there are side effects, I'll just grin and bear it because I want this all to end.

When I got home, I pencilled in on the calendar when my chemo will end and, barring any schedule interruptions, it will be over October 23rd.  My family doctor has told me he wants to give me booster shots about a month after chemo is over.  This might have me back at work in early December.  I would love that.  As odd as it sounds, I want to return to a normal lifestyle and going back to work is part of that.  I've been off work since January and, although it's always been a dream of mine to take a year off work, doing it when you don't have your health really sucks.  Plus, not working really makes a financial dent.

Another Setback

I had another setback on Friday. 

But first, Thursday was the end of our cottage vacation and it was great.  Unfortunately, I started getting sick on Thursday and my feet were killing me from the chemo.  By the time we got home Thursday evening, I had to go straight to bed and I left Erinn to unpack the car and put the kids to bed.  It was painful even to walk into the house.

I got a really bad sore throat at the cottage from our 5 year old and my fever hit 99 F.  I called my chemo doctor the next day to say my feet were on fire and I had to stop taking the chemo pills.  The nurse called back and agreed that I need to take 7 days of rest from the pills.  By the way, I have a fever of 99 F and my throat is sore.  I was hoping to spend the day in bed.

"Get to the hospital."
"Can't I just rest in bed?  I'm sure I'll be better tomorrow."
"You might die."
"Okay, you've got my attention."

Boy, let me tell you, you don't wait in Emergency at all when you have a Cancer Gold Card.  It's like Elite status with Air Canada but better because you not only get immediate service but you get a private room complete with a double glass door airlock system.  And a gorgeous blonde nurse.  She took blood from both my arms.  I didn't mind.

After the nurse was done my saint of a gorgeous wife showed up.  And she truly deserves saint status as I talked her into parking the car for free about a 15 minute walk away from where we were.  For the record, she also dropped me off at the door AND moved the car twice during our six hour stay.  What a saint!

They sent me home with antibiotics, likely as a precaution.  The antibiotics have a note saying one of the side effects is they may cause diarrhea.  I'd like to rewrite that to "They will cause you to shit your brains out!!!"

My fever subsided the next day and my coughing is almost gone.  This is another setback on the chemo schedule.  With five more days I would have completed Chemo 5 out of 8 but now it'll be another week and a half before I'm done Chemo 5.

Summer Vacation

This is our summer holidays.  We had a gap of no medical appointments or other obligations so we went to the cottage for nine interrupted days of relaxation.  I left two days earlier than Erinn hours after my chemo doctor appointment so I took the kids and my mom came up with our niece and nephew the next day.  It was great playtime for all four kids.

Ironically, we've been experiencing drought conditions in the Ottawa Valley and we've had about 80 days of no rain.  Brown front lawns in my neighbourhood have only been overshadowed by the dying crops the farmers are experiencing.  It's all doom and gloom as crops are failing and prices are sky rocketing.  Including the price of gasoline which floats around $1.25 per litre.  That'll be funny to read in a few years where, heaven forbid, we may actually be paying what Europeans are paying for gas which is closer to $2 per litre.

Oh, yes, the irony is that we got rained out at the cottage.  We're back in town to get a break from being indoors at the cottage for six days in a row of rain.  I'd say the drought is officially over in this part of the world.

This one sunny day is when all the fun happened.

My hands are often pins and needles from the chemo and whenever I use them for opening jars, putting on my clothes or attaching my wristwatch, my fingers go numb.  The more intensely I use my fingers, the quicker they go numb.  My feet aren't doing much better as I'm walking around barefoot in the summer and I like to be on carpet or they go numb.



This blue heron got the hell out of Dodge only a few hours before the rain started for six days straight.  We went back home on the third day of rain.  We'll go back tomorrow to finish our vacation, rain or shine!



I rode a bicycle a couple of times.  That was good progress.  Before we went to the cottage, I went for a 20 km ride and my ass didn't really complain.  Just my heart.  Man, I'm outta shape!  Of course, I realize the chemo knocks the life out of me but I'll have to do this more often to get my conditioning back up.  This was far better than my 18 km ride the week before where I pretty much passed out at the side of the bicycle path at 9 kms and rode home the same 9 kms at a much slower pace.

It felt good to exercise.  It's my first exercise since I got the life sucked out of me at my April surgery.  I'll do more of it in the future.

Chemo HALFWAY Point

Yep, I finally swallowed  the rest of Chemo 4 pills.  Phew!  I also am nearing the end of my seven days off. In two days I'll consult with my chemo doctor and then sneak away for cottage time with Erinn and the kids.  We just finished a week at the in-law's rental cottage.  A nice break. 

My left hand goes pins and needles and numb when I use it, otherwise the side effects of the pills are minimal.  Well, aside from the odd bout of diarrhea.  Of course, that just keeps things exciting. 

My feet also go numb sometimes but no more pain in the feet and they don't get as numb as my hands, particularly the left hand.  The feeling on my left fingertips has not returned yet but now that I'm off the ox, I suppose I should finish these chemo pills that also affect my hands before I can determine if I've suffered permanent nerve damage.

This is WAY better than being on the bottle.  When I was on the chemo bottle, I couldn't eat or drink any cold food let alone touch them without wearing gloves.  If I reached into the fridge to grab something for the kids, I had to wrap my hand in a towel.  Plus, I had that PICC line going into my right bicep.  What a pain.  It's been so good to remove that.  I think I've had it out for a month now and I've been swimming regularly with the kids either in the backyard or at the cottage.  I'm starting to feel like a normal person.

My hair loss has started but that doesn't bother me as I know it'll grow back.

My appetite is good.  Maybe a little too good.  I've been porking up and enjoying summer eating.  Watermelon is good but I like to wash it down with potato chips.

I'm a big reader but usually just magazines, newspapers and websites.  This year, however, has been a little easier to set time aside to read more books and I found this in our collection.  My wife graduated from an American high school in Germany and now I see why this book was required reading.  It should be required for Canadians too.

Although, hard to get through the southern drawl dialect, it was a reminder of the hell of the Depression. 

My grandfather used to talk about riding the rails (roof of the boxcars) from Blind River, Ontario (near Sudbury) into the Prairies looking for work.  He always laughed when he spoke about it so I'm guessing he didn't have any friends or family starve to death.  I'm glad we now have social programs in place to ensure nobody has to be that destitute anymore.

The Pixies Were Here

We got back from the cottage last night, as is usually the norm for he who doesn't work (Saturday and Sunday getaways only) and our house has been fully cleaned.  My mom and older sister spent a good chunk of their weekend moving couches and giving things a proper cleaning at our house.  It was a big surprise to us and really appreciated.  My bathroom hasn't been that clean in months.

Big thanks to Brenda and my mom.  It was a total surprise to us.


On the chemo front, I have a few more days to go and then I can resume taking a reduced quantity of pills for Chemo 4 in an effort to actually complete it.  My left thumb is still red and pretty sore when I use it and my feet are sore when I walk on them but they're much better than they were last week when it was actually painful.

Chemo 4 On Hold

My feet hurt like hell again this morning and now my left hand with the numb fingertips has turned red and my left thumb hurts like hell when I move it.  My doctor phoned me this morning and her instructions were to stop taking the chemo pills for seven days.  After seven days if my redness and pain has gone away, I can resume the last seven days at a reduced quantity.

Now, in the evening, my feet and thumb are more pain-free.

I'm taking 5,000 mg of Xeloda daily but now it's reduced to 4,000 mg daily.  Fingers crossed that this doesn't cause any more funny side effects.  And, hopefully, my left fingertips regain their feeling in the next month.

I like motorcycles.
Kevin Lacombe on his new BMW at last weekend's St. Eustache Canadian
Superbike Nationals.  For six years I enthusiastically raced at the back of the pack
at the Nationals.  This year I haven't felt good enough to even spectate
at one event.  Maybe in August...

Chemo 4 Underway

My white blood cell counts rebounded and I got the green light last week to start chemo on the pills.  Two milestones here: Chemo 4 marks the halfway point (well, technically, after I'm done the two weeks of pills I'm at halfway for Chemo) and I actually rode my bicycle to Shoppers Drug Mart to pick up the pills.  It's only about 3 kms but it's the first time I've ridden my bicycle all year.  The surgery I had in April was all in the pelvis area so, despite the fact that I've been bicycle commuting to work for the last two years, I didn't dare get on my bicycle until now.  So, on July 10th, three months after my surgery, I was able to ride my bicycle.  That's progress.

Last week I had four medical appointments and one scheduled chemo pill pickup on a certain day.  That's almost five medical appointments in a week.  I've never broken the record of five but I've tied it a few times.  Hopefully in August things will be less busy.

I've been feeling good for seven days now.  I feel about 75%.  It was almost going to be 14 days of feeling good but my first day on the chemo pills were pretty rough.  This is like an episode of The Simpsons where the sign of "14 days Accident Free" has to be reset to zero all the time.  I think I'm not going to make it to 8 days in a row of feeling good because this morning I woke up with my feet in great pain when I walk.  It's on my list of side effects.  I have to call my doctor.  Thankfully, it only hurts when I walk but it hurts like hell.

We spent another weekend at the cottage and, because I had been feeling
good for a few days in a row, I talked Erinn into staying there alone.  She's
really enjoying it.  I'm at home with both kids.

I Flunked the Blood Test

I guess I didn't study enough. 

I went into the hospital yesterday for my 4th chemo infusion.  That marks the halfway point for chemo and a bit of a milestone for me.  I had really been looking forward to this infusion just because of the milestone.  Well, they made me run downstairs and repeat my bloodwork from the previous Friday because my white blood cell count was too low.  Two hours later, they let me know my white blood cell count was still too low.  The good news is my white blood cell count is 1.4 and they need 1.5.  I don't know what the units of measure are but that sounded pretty close to me.  They sent me home and said we'd give it a week so I go into a blood clinic next Monday to repeat the test.

Last week I found out I got approved for the pills at 100% expense coverage.  That's great news as it means I don't need future infusions.  So, based on this and failing the blood test, I asked the nurse if I could get this PICC line removed.  No.  Really?   Next week's infusion will be this bottle.  Odd, I should start the pills next time, not the bottle.  The bottle is on your chart so we'll keep it that way.  Bummer, I was really looking forward to swimming with the kids.

So, when two time Canadian Superbike champ Francis Martin was told by 4 out of 5 doctors that he shouldn't race with that broken pelvis, what did he do?  He consulted a 5th doctor. 

I got home and phoned the hospital.  I got a different nurse and an appointment to have the PICC line removed...the next day.  I will have it out in an hour.  Tee hee!!!



Kate, Maggie and Grandpa.  We had a great July 1st weekend at the cottage.
Odd that the guy who doesn't work was only able to attend for the weekend.
My medical obiligations during the week pretty much snooker me for making
the most of my time off work.  Cancer is my new job.

So, due to this delay and the three week rotation on the pills, my chemo will now end in early October 2012.  That'll make it a full ten months of cancer treatment in 2012.  A year to remember.

Having said that, I feel I'm nearing the finish line.  I have a lot of crap days on the chemo but October is just around the corner considering it's been cancer fun since mid November 2011.  Lots of uncomfortable tests in November and December with radiation-burn-your-ass treatment starting in January 2012.  And, hey, nothing can be as bad as that goddamned surgery in April.  Two weeks ago I started putting on my own socks but my pelvis is still numb.

Maybe at my next post the feeling will be returning in my left fingers.  I haven't felt those fingertips since this began about eight weeks ago.   Thankfully, the feeling returned in my right fingers.




This is the PICC line that enters my bicep and stops about
1 cm short of my heart.  I used to get my chemo treatments
through this PICC line.  Essentially, it's a small hose that acts
to protect my veins as the chemo is injected.  Chemo rots a lot
of stuff, including my veins.  I can't get it wet.  I cover it in the
shower.  I have seven large medical supply boxes at home to
simply deal with the PICC line.  It comes out in an hour. 
Good riddance.



Chemo 3 Sucks Rocks

Chemo 3 hit me hard.  The dose didn't increase at all but I'm feeling the cumulative effects of the chemotherapy.  I was in bed for 16 to 18 hrs per day for five days straight on my 3rd chemo treatment.  Plus, instead of not being able to feel my fingertips on my left hand, all the fingers on my left hand started going numb and the fingers on my right hand started going numb a few days ago which was about 7 days after the start of chemo 3.  Throw in a few bouts of diarrhea in the wee hours of the morning and it made for an all around miserable time.

Here it is nine days after the start of chemo 3 and I'm well rested and I feel 70%.  Pretty darned good.  The feeling in all my fingers is starting to return.

We had an appointment with Dr. Goodwin, my chemo doctor, yesterday and after I described my symptoms she immediately piped up that we were stopping the oxaliplatin.  Yay!!!  She's worried about permanent nerve damage in my fingers and it obviously is way too much for me.  I shouldn't be in bed for five days straight.  I should feel tired and need to nap for 1 hr each day but that's the extent.

So, now that I'm ditching the ox next week it also means I don't need injections of calcium and magnesium for one hour which were to counteract the neuropathic effects of the ox.  The main drug now will just be the fluorouracil (5-FU as it's commonly called) and associated steriods, leucovorin injection and whatever the hell else they jam into me.  Instead of the 3.5 hour chemo injection that I had last week, I can expect a brief 1.5 hour injection period at the hospital and then they'll send me home with my bottle of 5-FU hooked up to my hip for 48 hours. 

I'm feeling a lot better about this.  The news got even better.  Because I'm only on the 5-FU, Dr. Goodwin suggested moving me to the pills instead of the bottle.  Holy crap, I almost kissed her!  That means the PICC line in my bicep could disappear and I won't have restrictions of going into the hospital or being at home to take my chemo.  I could just take pills on my own.  The pills are capecitabine and, once processed by my liver, acts the same as 5-FU.  The goal would be to start these in mid-July for my 5th treatment.  I would take these for the four remaining treatments for 14 days straight followed by 7 days of no pills on a three week rotation. 

The pills, like the bottle, are expensive.  Each treatment would be about $2,500 to $3,000 and this brings it to over $10,000 for my four remaining treatments.  My government health insurance covers 80% of my prescriptions so my out of pocket portion would be in the neighbourhood of $2,000.  The good news is I've applied for a manufacturer's program which may pay the remaining 20% not covered by my insurance.  I'll probably get news on that in a week or so.  Interesting that the manufacturer of the pills has a program to pick up 20% of the tab.  I see it as a sales gimmick.  It allows them to sell more pills at the expense of reducing profit from 300% to 280%.

3rd Chemo Tomorrow

We just got back from the cottage last night.  We've been twice since I last wrote.  We're trying to take advantage of the breaks in medical appointments whenever we can and so far the weather has been cooperating.  This week I have four days in a row of medical stuff.  Pretty typical. 

This past week was my good week as the chemo side effects tend to subside after six days.  I was feeling good until Friday.  We planned to head up that night after Kate's soccer.  Then I got sick. 



This is why I got my chemo moved from
Thursday to Tuesday.  Kate started playing
and we get shafted with Friday night games.
Now, with the chemo bottle removed on
Thursdays, there's a hope I may be feeling
well enough to attend instead of only
being able to go every second week
(non-chemo weeks).

 

When you're on chemo, your immune system is pretty much reduced to zero resistance.  Maggie had a runny nose for a few days and then I got a wicked sore throat on Friday and extreme fatigue on Friday afternoon.  Instead of packing for the cottage, I slept.  Erinn, once again, did all the packing but at least this time I was able to drive.  On Saturday at the cottage, I slept some more but by Sunday I had recovered enough to feel 80% which is as good as I've felt in the last many months.

 This morning, after bloodwork, we went to an appointment with the urologist.  I've never been known to have a bladder of steel but the surgery made it smaller than ever.  I'm still healing from the surgery and the radiation and chemo makes it even worse.  I'm told most healing will happen over the next two years so I'm glad there's hope.  We'll see how things are in another six months.


It's a pain not being able to swim at the cottage.  We ordered a swimming sort of wrap thing for my arm but the incision on my ass hasn't fully healed from the surgery.  It was nearly healed but the chemo made it worse and it hasn't been able to gain any ground.  Due to this I didn't want to expose it to lake water.  I'll ask my surgeon on Wednesday if swimming in the saltwater pool at home is okay.



Erinn has been changing my dressing on my ass daily for the last two months now.  I affectionately call it "Packing my Fudge".  She doesn't find that amusing.



Myself (#48) and TEAM SHOULDERCHECK friend Alan Burns at
my last race which was Shannonville in 2009.  The Canadian
Superbike season opener kicks off this weekend at Shannonville.
Stay glued to your TV sets for the six month tape delay or
check out the next day results at http://www.csbk.ca/



Good News

I got two pieces of good news right before my second chemo treatment.  First off, I begged my chemo doctor to lower my dose of chemo and, once I described my symptoms, she agreed.  Looks like that quantity of drugs for my weight was just too much for my virgin drug-free body to handle.  She has lowered my oxaliplatin by 15% and the fluorouracil by 10%.  However, to counteract the tingling hands I now get two 30 minute injections of calcium and magnesium.  Hmm...sounds so natural like I'm going to a health spa.  I'll take cucumbers over my eyes if I can dump the oxaliplatin or fluorouracil.

The bottle came off this morning and, so far, my symptoms of the 2nd chemo are far reduced from the first go-round.  I'm not as tired and only my left hand is pins and needles and very temperature sensitive.  I've also discovered that lukewarm drinks are really too cold for me to drink as I get a lump in my throat and slight pins and needles in my mouth.  I know from last time the temperature sensitivity will wear away in a few days.  I'm just glad not to be in bed for five days straight with a sixth day of feeling 50% like last time.  I'm optimistic this round will be better.

Now that I'm on chemo I have to rinse my mouth with Club Soda
every four hours until...September.

My chapped lips are much better as well.  My appetite is reduced but I feel okay so long as I can nap.

The other good news is my ostomy nurse, who visits twice per week, has declared me free to do the colostomy stuff without her.  That's great as it no longer obligates me to be home for her visits twice a week.  Now I just have my once a week PICC line visit to either disconnect the bottle or change my dressing.  Phew.  From three home nurse visits per week to just one!

Because of this, there's an opening in the calendar and tomorrow we're off to the cottage with the kids for three days.  Somebody pinch me!

2nd Chemo Tomorrow

It's been two weeks since my first chemo injection and I get the second one tomorrow.  I'm counting them off until I'm done all eight. 

First, I should share how the first chemo went.

I get my chemo at the Ottawa General Hospital Cancer Clinic.  Thankfully, this wing is really nice and only about three years old.  I like new, especially when getting depressing cancer treatment.

What my routine consists of is an injection of chemicals for 48 hours every two weeks.  It starts off at the hospital where I get the first series of chemicals over 3 hours and then they hook up the last chemical to a bottle on my hip and it's piped into my PICC line in my arm and they send me home.  46 hours later, the bottle is empty and a nurse comes to my house to remove the bottle, flush the line and change my dressing.  A week later, another nurse comes to the house to change my dressing in the PICC line.  I hadn't realized I'd need a second visit a week later so Erinn will learn how to change that dressing and flush the line so we can actually go to the cottage for more than just Saturday and Sunday every two weeks.  My littany of medical appointments and nurse home visits (3 times per week) is really cramping my style.  I've been trying to be positive and make lemonade out of these lemons I've been dealt so I was hoping to enjoy cottage time every second week but we're still figuring out how to make it more than just four days a month.  And goddamned weekends at that.  I had a glimmer of hope of going Saturday to Monday in two weeks but I'm unable to change a doctor's appointment I have on the Monday.

Oh yeah, two weeks ago, after climbing the two flights of stairs for my chemo treatment, I was in the lazy-boy for my injections and my pulse was only 42.  Weird.  Sometimes, if I'm relaxed I can lower my pulse to 50 but I think I'm normally around 60.  The nurse was also concerned with my blood pressure but it's normally 100/60 so she ignored the warning bells on the machine for my heartbeat.  Erinn, on the other hand, was worried I might croak right there.

Chemo Process:

Here I am with my chemo bottle on my
hip.  It stays there for 48 hrs.  After my
PICC line insertion, I worked up the
courage to sit in a barber's chair.  It actually
went well and I'm sitting a lot more now.
185 lbs and ready for hair loss!

The first pills I take are anti-nausea pills.  One in the morning, one at night for three days.  They are compulsory.  Then I take steroid pills.  Then they inject me with leucovorin which is used to increase the activity of the 5-fluorouracil (5FU).  It only has a few side effects of seizures and fainting with rash and swollen face/lip/tongue/throat.  Not so bad.

Next is oxaliplatin which is another chemo drug specific to colorectal cancer.  The main drug is 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) which starts injection in the hospital through the bottle hook-up and then I'm free to go home.   Between the ox and the 5-FU there are ten pages of potential side effects, some of which I went through last week.

When I was getting my first injection they gave me the literature on the drugs and a pair of work gloves.  The gloves were for reaching into the fridge at home.  What??  One of the side effects is a severe sensitivity to cold items.  I cannot touch or drink anything that is not lukewarm or warmer.  It kicked in within an hour of my first injections.  I went to the washroom in the hospital dragging my IV pole with me and I got an electric shock from the hot water tap when I washed my hands.  I had to let the water warm up before I washed as it was a strong pins and needles in my hands.  From that I learned not to put my lips on anything cold and Erinn removed things from the fridge for me while I waited for them to warm up before I drank or ate.  We've learned to leave a small bowl of fruit on the counter for me so it can be room temperature.  Thankfully, this side effect disappeared on day 7 so I celebrated by eating ice cream.

I also have a severe skin sensitivity to sunlight.  Combined with the lowered immune system and mouth sores, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and poor appetite, I should be able to lose another five pounds without too much trouble.  I haven't experienced mouth sores but my lips are chapped like crazy.  I'm not even in the sun but I've gone through all my chapstick at home.  Time to buy more.

And, right before my next chemo, my left fingers are still pins and needles from my last injection.  I don't think that'll get better by tonight and it'll certainly get worse tomorrow.

Tomorrow's chemo will be easier.  Erinn can stay at home and I'll bus it into the hospital then call for a ride home. 

I can't wait to end this!!

Chemo Sucks

Tonight, for the first time in over six weeks since my surgery, I sat at the kitchen table and ate supper with my family.  I used a cushion for the hard wooden chair.  Ever since I got out of the hospital, I've been eating my meals in a lazy-boy or couch in the next room. 

I've also emerged from my chemo fog today.  On Thursday I spent just over two hours in the hospital being injected with chemicals and then they sent me home with a different chemical bottle on my hip which is piped into my PICC line.  The bottle was removed on Saturday and emptied right to the 46 hour mark. 

Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday were hard days.  Tuesday, I emerged from the side effects but I was very groggy.  This morning I was feeling good enough to go for a slow 2 km walk with Erinn and Maggie.  I had to lean on Erinn for most of the walk but I didn't need to nap today whereas yesterday I spent most of the day in bed. 

I still feel tired but I'm okay if I lie down and read.  I'll post more on the chemo later.  Here's to a better day tomorrow!

PICC Line Installed

What a great weekend.  The temperature was around 30C for Sat, Sunday and Monday.  These were three great days in the backyard with the kids, family and friends.  I've been trying to look at the positive side of things and the only positive side of going through all this cancer treatment in 2012 is the time I have to spend with the kids and Erinn and this May long weekend officially kicked off beautiful summer weather.

My mobility is getting even better.  On the weekend I tried sitting in comfy, cushy chairs.  I was able to do that for a couple of hours at a time.  But, even this morning I ate breakfast sitting upright on the couch and now my tailbone is sore. 

I got some bad news on Friday afternoon from the hospital.  They answered a question I had the day before.  No, I cannot swim with the PICC line.  Grrr....

That was really depressing since I'll have the PICC line until September just when all the nice water weather is done.  I told Erinn I'd only do two chemo sessions and then by late June I'll switch to the chemo pills.  That created a bit of tension. 

You see, the PICC line is limiting enough as it is.  It's basically a hose inserted into a vein in my right bicep that follows its way about 1mm shy of my heart.  The reason for this is to distribute the chemo and keep my veins safe as the chemo rots my veins.  The chemicals will be instantly diluted when they're ejected right beside my heart and then distributed throughout my body.  Because of this, I cannot move my right arm repetitively.  In January I was told I could not shovel the driveway or do other repetetive motions regardless of the weight for fear the PICC line moving inside me.  Now that it's summer, that would mean paddling or doing weights or lots of swimming.  Of course, due to the surgery, I can't lift a goddamn thing until July anyhow.

Later that day we found out there are options.  I can have a Port surgically implanted in my chest.  It looks like this was the common way to get your chemo treatment until the PICC came along.  The nurse explained that it is surgery and it'll be low priority surgery to have the port removed so it may take 6 months to have it removed once I'm done with it.  I said put me on the waiting list to have the Port installed and I'll do the first two treatments by PICC line.

Also, in looking on the internet, we found some products that wrap around my arm to protect the PICC dressing for swimming. 

So, yesterday, I got my PICC line installed.  The nurse there was very helpful and explained that I'm getting a new-technology polyeurathane PICC line.  She said I only had the old type of PICC line for one week back in January so I didn't really have it long enough to realize the drawbacks.  It would break inside people's bodies after it's been installed.  Sounds like a drawback.

The states have been using this new polyeurathane PICC for years but, due to tendering, it has just come to the Ottawa General Hospital the last two weeks.  She also explained that I don't need to worry about the PICC line moving due to arm motions anymore so I should be okay paddling but I probably can't do weights because my arm will get very sore very early.  Well, that was encouraging to hear.  I can listen to my body and stop when I'm sore but I was always worried about having the PICC line move inside me and I wouldn't be aware of it.

On the May long weekend, about a dozen to 20 of us head off to Vermont from
Ottawa.  I had probably been about five times in a row until I started racing a lot in 2000 to 2009.
I went again in 2010 then 2011 knowing I would go every year thereafter. 
Of course, cancer puts your life on hold.  My motorcycles have been parked since the April surgery
because I can't sit on them.  I'll go again in 2013. 
Mind you, it was so swelteringly hot that being by the pool with the kids
 all weekend was a great consolation prize.

So, the PICC line is in and we've ordered an arm wrap from the states to enable swimming.

Tomorrow, I go to the Ottawa General Hospital for my first chemo treatment.  The first of eight biweekly.  I'll be scratching each one off the calendar.

Clear the Roads---I'm DRIVING!!!

And the roads are so much wider now that I've started using front lawns and sidewalks as well.

Yep, I've turned a corner.  It's been nearly a week now that I've been able to stand and walk around without feeling faint.  This is good.  I still can't sit in a chair but yesterday I tried driving and I found that sitting in the driver's seat was way easier than sitting in a chair.  I can support a lot of my weight with my thighs and my right arm on the arm console.  It's pretty much perfect although I haven't gone beyond Orleans.  A long driving trip for me might be to drive into Ottawa and we ain't ready for that yet.

I also tied my own shoes just today.  It was a bit of a stretch but Erinn wasn't around to tie my shoes.  What was I to do?  Thankfully, she had already put my socks on for me that morning. 

The walking has become easier and, due to time constraints, I'm only doing one 2-3 km walk.  That's plenty.  My bowels are working fine now (I had about four rough days after the sleepless popcorn night) and I'm getting used to things.  I've started introducing whole wheat bread and so far no pain.  I eat an orange every morning and I may venture into more fresh fruit territory soon.  Although, I'm cautious.  Everything I ate after the popcorn caused me a lot of pain so I don't want to overload on fruit right away but I sure miss it.  As a vegetarian, I've become pretty sick of white bread and eggs. 

For Father's Day, I hope to be able to sit in a chair.



My in-laws were over last week to open our pool.  It was greatly appreciated.  Just in one week my
mobility has greatly improved.  I still can't lift anything but I can walk without fainting.
We've had sunny days but I won't turn on the pool heater until our overnight lows are in double digits.
Of course, that didn't slow down Kate and Maggie who each took turns running down the steps
up to their shoulders in 59F (15C) water and then shrieking about how cold it was.
This weekend looks great.  Time to fire up the heat!



Happy Mother's Day

It's been four weeks since I had the surgery and I'm definitely feeling much better.  Now I understand what the surgeon meant when he said it'll take 3 months to heal up from it.  I still can't put my own socks on or tie my shoes but now, with the nicer weather, I skip the socks and I can do up the velcro on my sandals so I'm pretty much self-sufficient.  I still can't sit which also means I can't drive but maybe we'll have some progress on that in the next couple of weeks.

Last week my JP Drain was removed as were the sutures on my backside.  What a relief.  I feel more human.  Just having the JP Drain removed was a blessing.  Plus, two days ago was the first time I was able to walk around without feeling faint or light-headed.  I may have turned a corner. 

I've also stopped losing weight.  I've lost 14 lbs in the last four weeks.  I'd be happier if it was 20 lbs but I was feeling pretty faint so I'm just as happy to stop here.

I got a voicemail that my chemo will start May 23rd.  I'll go into the hospital and they'll inject me for hours then hook me up to a bottle.  I'll wear the bottle for 48 hrs at a time in two week rotations.  I understand it'll tire me out for one week out of every two weeks but I hope that one week of tiring me out is really only 4 days.  That'll mean 10 days of feeling okay.  The chemo is only 8 treatments (4 months) so I should wrap up around Sept 1st, barring any illness or a low white blood cell count.  I'd be pretty lucky if I was healthy on those counts so I expect the chemo might not end as per that schedule.   It may get bumped out a few weeks.




Erinn took us to M&M Meat Shop yesterday for their annual Crohn's and Colitis fundraiser BBQ. 
100% of all money collected (collected, not raised) goes to fight Crohn's.  Our dear friend
Shannon has suffered from Crohn's since she was a teenager. 
Hey, they even had veggie burgers and veggie dogs!
http://www.mmmeatshops.com/en/aboutmm/donations.asp



The kids are waiting downstairs with gifts for mommy.  I think they understood not to wake Mommy this morning.

It's 11 am and Erinn is still sleeping.  I'd say I've done well on giving her what she wants this Mother's Day.

P.S.  Today is also our 17th wedding anniversary.  We did nothing to celebrate it but we had a fantastic day in the backyard in the sun with the kids.  Nice, warm 24 C day. 

Surgery Cancer Results

I got some good news yesterday.  We had two medical appointments which made it the busiest day of my life since I got out of the hospital nearly two weeks ago.  In the morning, we saw Dr. Goodwin, my chemo oncologist.  She let us know that the pathology reports from the surgery showed no cancer remaining in the parts that were removed from me.  That's good news as it puts my survival rate at 85 to 88%. 

When I was in the hospital, my surgeon visited me daily (including weekends) and I was asking him about this pathology report.  I asked if the report came back all clear, would my chemo plan change to something much lighter?  He explained that because I was young and healthy, I would get hammered as hard as they could to kill any potential stray cancer cells without killing me.  Oh yay.

To bump up my success rate even more, I will be going on the chemo bottle for a couple of days in a row in two week rotations.   It will be Folfax and it's much more potent than the pills I was taking in January and February (Xeloda).  I will have a PICC line inserted into my bicep again to feed the chemicals to my heart (it stops about 1 cm shy of the heart) for distribution.  As noted before, the PICC line is necessary since these chemicals destroy veins.  They get dumped adjacent the heart from the PICC line where they are diluted in a lot of blood and the heart immediately distributes the Folfax throughout my body. 

All this is done to increase my survival rate by another 2 to 3%.

The drawback is the side effects.  Many side effects are temporary but some are permanent.  I see death listed.  I'm going to ask if that's a temporary side effect.

Death by Popcorn.  I'm on a low residue diet which means no fresh fruit, no whole wheat and no fibre. 

The night before my appointments, a friend came over and he brought some snacks.  I didn't realize popcorn

was full of fibre.  I probably ate 1/4 of the bag.  Well, a few hours later, I stayed awake in bed as my bowels did

painful sommersaults.  It was agonizing and I only slept about three hours all night.  For my morning appointment, I asked for a hospital bed and I writhed in pain during half the debrief from the chemo doctor as my bowels passed the last of the popcorn.  Ugghhh...

The good news is a lot of these side effects appear in the 5 to 6 month treatment time period so they're going to stop me at 4 months.  I like the shorter 4 month time period even if it will make be bedridden in two week rotations instead of 3 week rotations.  I'll take 4 months and the possibility of minimal side effects any day. 

Another side effect I'm worried about is losing feeling in my hands and feet.  This temporary side effect can also be permanent and I know one person who has suffered this.  My surgeon yesterday afternoon also relayed the info about one of his patients a couple of years ago who also suffered from this and it shattered him.  He was a National Arts Centre pianist.  I'm sensitive to this as I still don't have restored feeling in my left fingers.  They're only about 90% restored from the surgery and it feels really weird.  My surgeon says the feeling will come back but it may take another month.

In the afternoon we had a followup with my surgeon, Dr. Weaver.  I had to lie on a couch outside the elevators while Erinn waited half an hour in the waiting room for our appointment.  It's tough when I can't sit anywhere and standing is not very relaxing.  Plus, I was feeling faint and weak all day yesterday due to a flirtation with popcorn torture.

My surgeon is happy with my healing and tells me the JP Drain can come out next week.  Great!!!!  I get the sutures out of my backside next week by the home care nurses and the drain will follow.  It'll be a great week next week.  Another week or so after that, I'll start my chemo treatments.  May the games begin!!!

Jackson-Pratt Drain

I still wear the Jackson-Pratt (JP) Drain.  Another weird medical thing.  I keep it tucked inside my Hugh Hefner leisure pants so the kids won't see it.  I thought the hose entered my pelvis through the incision but it took me a whole week to work up the nerve to actually look south of my belly button.  I see they drilled another hole through my abdomen and the hose enters my pelvis a few inches to the side of the incision.  Yuck.



I'll be done with the JP Drain when it starts collecting 30ml
or less of waste fluid per day.  So far, I'm double that.  Maybe
only two more weeks and I won't need it anymore.  Fingers crossed.

I lost another four pounds this week while at home.  That's surprising cause I no longer exercise.  I can stand so I still walk twice a day and I guess that's pushing it because I'm faint when I walk and I have to lie down when I get back.  Maybe that's exercise in itself after big surgery like this but it sure isn't anything that would burn any calories.  I definitely have noticed that my legs and arms have shrunk dramatically and so have my love handles. 

I think I'm losing weight because I'm eating less.  In the hospital, I got recalibrated on portion control.  When I graduated from ice chips and jello, I was fascinated with the meals I got.  They were small but all measured and itemized on the menu receipt that came with the meal.  250 ml of tomato soup, two crackers, one pepper packet, 125 ml of milk, etc.  I thought the meals were small but it took me 90 minutes to eat one.  I remember reading in a National Geographic how our portions in North America have strayed from the standard.  A steak should be the size of a deck of cards.  One serving of fruit is the size of a baseball.  Wow, try and open a restaurant based on those standards and you'd be out of business in a year!

I'm down 10 lbs since the surgery but that's just getting rid of the fattening up I did to prepare for chemo and radiation.  Also, surgery sliced 5 lbs out of me.  Funny, I bulked up for chemo and radiation but I didn't lose a single pound during that period.  Now, I'm just my usual 10 lbs overweight instead of 20 lbs.  I'll try and lose another 10 lbs. 

I still feel stronger every day.  I mark that by how easy it is to get out of bed and get off the couch/lazy-boy.  I still can't sit so I spend a lot of time reading or watching TV or playing Playstation.  Pretty sedentary lifestyle.  I look forward to sitting so I can be on the computer without kneeling on the floor.  It's funny, when I get off the lazy-boy and walk upstairs or to the next room, I almost always have a headrush and then I think that maybe I'm spending too much time laying down.

I also look forward to when I can tie my own shoes.  Right now Erinn has to put my socks on me and tie my shoes for my walks.  Before the surgery, I could touch my hands flat on the floor.  It's amazing how abdominal slicing changes things.  I was also told I can't do dishes or load the dishwasher due to twisting motions.  And I can't lift or sit so folding laundry is out too.  I can watch TV,  read and ask Erinn to do things for me.  She's a trooper.  She does everything for me and serves me my meals on the couch.  What a saint!  I'd buy her something for Mother's Day but she hasn't given me any money and I can't go anywhere that I can't walk to.  Oh well, next time...

How Did The Mathematician Deal With His Constipation?

He worked it out with a pencil.

Thankfully, no mathematicians required.  Things started moving properly on their own around 7pm last night.  That's eight days after starting to eat solid food and eleven days after surgery.  All in due time...

This surgery was much more difficult than I thought.  I knew it was major surgery but I didn't realize just how major.  Erinn has had both of our kids by C-Section and she says I got it way worse than her.  Fair enough, I had a baby by C-Section and then they rearranged my guts.  It actually feels like they put a cinder block in my pelvis area between my two hips.  That's just how strange and heavy everything feels.  Of course, it's not as clean as a concrete cinder block with all the blood, gauze and hoses still hanging out of that area.  Plus, in the middle of my pelvis, I'm still numb from the slicing.  Erinn recalls that taking a couple of weeks to thaw from when she had a C-Section.  Can't wait for those nerves to regrow.

This morning the nurse came by and said my incision looks great and she tore off the dressing for the last time.  No more dressing.  Every two days I've had a dressing change over my main incision and tape on skin always hurts but tape on skin in the pelvic area is particularly sensitive.  The dressing was about 10 inches long by 5 inches wide from my belly button on down.  Glad that's done now.  Just a smaller dressing around the JP Drain and that stupid hose and bottle coming out of my pelvis to collect my waste fluid from inside my body.

I feel stronger every day.  I still can't sit but right now I'm kneeling at the desk to type this.  Not the most relaxing position but there's a lot more carpet at home than at the hospital.  Lazy-boy reclining is still good and getting in and out of the lazy-boy has gotten much easier. 

I may not be able to sit but I can walk.  I walk 4 to 5 kms each day.  I've been walking to the Ottawa River recently so I do that once in the morning and once in the afternoon.  I feel very light-headed when I get home so it's nap time but at least I'm able to do it.

I can't touch my shoes.  Erinn puts my shoes on and ties them for
me and, dressed like a Walmart shopper,  I go walking, rain or shine.
The weather hasn't been good lately but I don't care.  I still feel
groggy from the meds I was on (no painkillers for me in 1 week)
and I know when I'm feeling better, the sun will come out.

Morphine Bungs You Up

And I'm really going to start drinking LOTS of water to loosen things up.  Still no bowel movement.  Oh well, what can you do?

I'm so happy to be home.  Erinn had a tough time while I was in the hospital.  Our five year old, Kate, caught a stomach virus at school and just as she got better, our three year old, Maggie, caught it.  I came home the next day.  I thought it best to sequester myself in the basement away from the kids while I healed on the lazy-boy.  Brilliant plan.  I can also take a break by kneeling on the carpeted floor in the basement.  So good to be back in front of my TV and watching what I want on the PVR.  Lotsa racing to catch up on and lotsa racing to watch this weekend.

I cannot sit.  Doctor's Orders are not to sit for more than 5 minutes at a time.  No problem.  I can't even sit for 5 seconds.  If my ass could take it, my torso couldn't hold me up.  I was pretty sure I might be able to flop out at home in the lazy-boy, though.  And, yes, I can so long as I'm in the fully reclined position.  The next day Erinn made my life easier and got me bendable straws!  Small pleasures.

I walked with Erinn to the end of the block and back on Friday afternoon.  The next morning I walked all the way around the block and in the afternoon I did two laps.  All involve a lie-down afterwards.  This morning I quadrupled that distance by walking 1.2 kms to my parents' house.  I laid down on their lazy-boy before I walked home.  When I got home, back in the basement on the lazy-boy I went and Erinn brought me my lunch.  She's so good to me.  My parents are about 100 metres from the river so I'm sure in a few days I'll be walking all the way to the river.  I'll just have to bring a leather lazy-boy...

The nurse came by this morning and removed my 23 staples from the belly-button on down.  That's great.  Small progress.  What remains below are sutures, a Jackson-Pratt (JP) drain and the colostomy, which is permanent.  My pelvic area is still numb from the epidural.  That may last another week or two.  It feels weird.  A nurse will come by every Tuesday and Friday for the next few weeks.

The JP drain is weird.  I did a quick search on the internet to see when it originated but I couldn't find anything.  I'm guessing the late 1800's because that's how primitive it is.  It's a rubber ball with a clear hose on it.  The hose goes right inside my front pelvic area and drains the waste fluid from my wound inside my body.  When I'm draining less than 30 ml per day, I can remove the drain.  That may take another 3 weeks.  So far, I'm still draining 100 ml of waste fluid a day.  It looks like diluted blood.  How do they learn to come up with things like this?  "Well, he lived past the surgery for two weeks.  I wonder what killed him?"






That's me a couple of years ago.  I can't imagine bending my legs like that anymore.  One of the big carrots for getting home this weekend was to catch up on the motorcycle racing that I missed last weekend and watch more racing.  This is a big weekend.  Supercross in Seattle, AMA road racing in Atlanta and World Superbike in Assen, Holland.  I'll be cheering for Canadian Brett McCormick in World Superbike.  Brett, from Saskatoon, put TEAM SHOULDERCHECK rider Alan Burns and myself down one lap quite nicely at the Mosport Nationals a few years ago.  Then he went Pro and continued to decimate the field.  Good luck on the world stage, Brett!!!



Day 9: Jailbreak

The hospital, as lovely a place as it is, was really wearing on me the last four days.  I couldn't leave until I had a bowel movement.  I had gone into the hospital being told it was 7 days but I thought I could accelerate that to 6.  When I still couldn't walk after Day 4, I realized 7 days wouldn't be so bad.  Now I was walking everywhere but I had yet to have a bowel movement.

Daddy and Maggie.  Home after eight full days in the hospital.
Barely started the 9th day.

When my surgeon came in to see me again at 8am, he was discussing how important he felt it was for me to have a bowel movement before I left the hospital.  I saw another escape window closing so I cleverly changed the path of the conversation.

"I'm leaving in an hour.  What kind of prescriptions do I need?  I promise to pray to the bowel movement gods at home."