Another Day - Another Test

I had planned to go over to M A's house yesterday to help her with computer, but ran out of time as Kats arrived earlier than expected. We cooked dinner and hit the sack with our electronics. He taught me how to play "Angry Birds" on his new Ipad he got for birthday/retirement.

Since he retired our plan had been to go on a vacation to Yosemite. But, with all the medical appointments it has been put off. Now it wont be possible because they are having snow. At 13,000 feet, driving in the snow is no fun, especially if you don't have chains. Now vacation plans are on hold. What bad luck! The guy retires and the very next week his girlfriend gets diagnosed with a chronic cancer.

The Rheumatologist's office called to schedule my Reclast infusion for osteoporosis. I had just discussed the subject with my mouth doctor at UCSF. That is a big concern of hers since she see's so many patients with osteonecrosis of the jaw. I also mentioned to her my recent visit to the dentist and the necessity of having that one last wisdom tooth extracted. Now that she knows my leukemia diagnosis, she says don't hang onto it any longer even though it is my only tooth on that side. (I have missing teeth because of Sjogren's Syndrome). A discussion with the Oncologist and he agrees it should come out asap, before we start any chemo.

So here's the problem. Reclast can possibly cause Osteonecrosis which is more common in people with illnesses such as Cancer, Osteoarthritis, Osteoporosis.

Gee! Would that be me?

Yet, if I do without Reclast (once a year infusion), Osteoporosis can run rampant. Well, I guess it couldn't run, maybe crawl, or waddle rampant.

If I schedule the Reclast appointment, I will have to wait five weeks or more before getting my tooth pulled. Not a good idea since there is already infection. So, I will get the tooth pulled first and deal with Reclast later (when I am on chemo). People who get Reclast too soon after a tooth pull are much more susceptible to osteonecrosis.

I wonder how many other patients know to ask the kind of questions that bring out this information? It's a balancing act. If I hadn't consulted with each of these doctors it wouldn't have occurred to me that there might be an issue. Then where would I be? I'd be a toothless hag bent over in a lot of pain, grouchy and crotchety and angry. Where the heck is my broom?

Today, I had an appointment for an abdominal CT. I knew I had to arrive a couple hours early so that I could drink some fluid. So we planned to drive down to the beach and take pictures of the big waves and just soak up the beauty. We had a lot of rain in the last 24 hours and mother nature stirs things up really awesome along the beach. Breathing in that air is exhilarating. I need some of that!

However, arriving at the appointment, I learned I have to drink a half gallon of "stuff", one cup at a time every twenty minutes. So, there went our plans! I crocheted on my Grand Niece's crib blanket. I can hardly believe I'm going to be a great grand aunt soon! Kats played Angry Birds on his Ipad while we waited. I get frustrated with the game because my hand eye coordination sux.

Since I fell and bashed my shin against the bathtub the other day, my front thigh muscles have been killing me. I must have spasms in them because I tried to catch myself in the fall. I was successful and now they are paying me back. Getting around right now, I have to use my roller walker. Not at home. I just cling to the wall and yell with every step. Outside, I don't want to scare anybody, so glommed onto a walker helps a lot. Damn! I'm looking more like an old lady every day!

When it was time to have the scan the technician called my name. I "drove" my handy dandy walker as I followed her down the hall. Imagine my surprise when she leads me right on outside and into the parking lot. Inside a large trailer (super duper mobile home?) is where the CT scanner lives. I wont go into the logistics of going down hill on that wet surface. She never looked back once to see if I was caught up to her. If the place hadn't been abandoned I would have mentioned it. But, evil me, I figured when we did get to where we were going she would turn around and wonder what happened to her patient. Then maybe I could whine that she left me behind. Ha! (okay, that was a bit of Little Old Lady Syndrome. Wasn't it?) Because there are stairs to climb in order to get into the CT, there is a "lift". So, she was lowering it while I caught up to her, and I didn't get to whine. Really, I was nice to her and didn't say a word. After all, she has control of me while I'm lying down in a freezing room with a big donut machine whirring around me.

With my pelvis the way it is I have a little difficulty getting settled onto that plank one is supposed to lie upon while said machine whirs. Once settled in, we proceed. She goes in the other room behind the glass. I lay there not moving and taking in a breath and holding it on command. Soon we are finished. Or so I thought. She then brings out some IV equipment. Nobody told me about this!

I haven't got many good veins left except for on the back of my hand and I tell her, but she insists it's better to go elsewhere. She wasn't unkind about it, just professionally concerned. I've been through this routine enough times that I know resistance is futile, and I want to get this over and done with for heaven's sake. It is already past 8 PM!

This is when I learn that the abdominal CT my doctor ordered includes everything from my shoulders down to my "sitting bones" as she put it. I told her I only had one sitting bone. She looked at me funny, but I didn't give her any further information.

Once the test was done, we had the chore of getting me off the plank. Now mind you, I could have blown this young woman into the air like blowing on a dandelion at the end of it's bloom. So, I don't know who was in more pain getting me upright. She had to stay with me as I sat to make sure I wasn't dizzy, she said. That was when I asked her if she saw my single sitting bone.

I was so glad it was over, and so glad Kats was there to drive me home. He said he was exhausted and now he understood how it was for me driving myself here and there for all this kind of thing.

While we were doing this, his sister had called him to tell him that a man killed his fellow employees right near their home and was being sought by police who had locked down the neighborhood. She wanted to know when Kats would be back home. Needless to say, she had to stay inside with doors locked. I'm sad she had to be by herself like that. Pretty scary. We had some guy do that in Santa Cruz recently who ended up entering a Pre-School. This guy in Kats' neighborhood had tried to kidnap a woman and she escaped but not until he shot her in the leg.

The last I knew, they hadn't captured the man.

When we got back to my house, we learned that Steve Jobs had died. I knew him and his (first) wife a little bit when their kids attended the same Montessori school that Xavier did. He had arranged to have Macintosh computers in the classrooms, when X was about 6 years old. That kid learned how to use a computer before I did!!!