Early phone call today, need to see the surgeon tomorrow morning and his nurse before the pre op's are done on the next day. Friday it's off to see the GP for approval for surgery, basic visit, afternoon so will be out and about.
Housing for me is set, I will stay at Fisher House, thanks to the help of some wonderful patient advocates and people who have donated the funding for this house, it's a place on campus, close to the hospital and room and food available. No driving back and forth into Maywood every day while JR undergoes surgery and then the recovery period.
Chemotherapy and Radiation shrunk the tumor, stopped the cancer spread but was not able to save what was left of his colon. So, ostomy is going to be the end result. Something people live with daily and for many years. It is by God's grace that he has stayed this healthy for so long. Just difficult going through all that we have in our almost 3 years together, having just celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary, we have spent most of our time in and out of hospitals for one reason or the other, getting him healthy was the first goal once he got to Illinois in 2009. He and I married in October and 2 days later spent 24 hours at Hines VA getting his blood counts back to normal, he has iron deficient anemia and takes a daily supplement to keep his hemoglobin up to 11. February of 2010 brought the remove of all of his teeth and a huge mass that was sent off for biopsy and found to be a ghost cell tumor, benign but had to come out. April of 2010 that was removed along with the left side of his sinus cavitiy and jaw bones, which were replaced by a bone and skin graft from his left leg. Healing has been slow but steady and we were on the way to him getting implants for his teeth when things took a turn for the worse. August of this year, right after my check up with cardiologist from my minor heart attack, he was diagnosed with colon cancer, they never staged it, but put him immediately onto 24hour chemo treatment and in weekdays for radiation therapy, A long 6 week process during which time he contracted C Diff, as did I. Which put him in the hospital for over a week and me home recovering on my own.
We have had time since just before Thanksgiving to spend together and it has changed our lives. More "Us" time, watching TV, playing scrabble together and planning the next step that starts this week.
Surgery will be long, and healing will take time. He has to have the strength to get up and moving and we will both be using support systems that are being offered to learn what the next steps are.
As we go through this journey, please remember, things happen for a reason. I believe that he and I were brought together for a reason, he was so ill when I became his friend, that we fell in love and got married, just happened. I do not ever feel like I got a "bad deal" God never gives me more than I can handle, I just sometimes have a difficult time letting Him handle what He will take over from me.
May you all find that someone who is your match, a lid for every pot as a friend from the Netherlands tells me. He is my pot and the fit is just right, sometimes a bit off kilter, but that is life.
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