No transfusions for second week in a row
on Nov 13, 2009On Monday I got my blood drawn in "Danny's Room." This is a small room down the hall from the major infusion room. It can fit two patients, or sometimes three, and is presided over by a cool nurse named (duh) Danny. He works with another nurse, or, s...

Bad dog, silly me
on Nov 8, 2009OK, OK, there are no bad dogs, just clueless owners. I actually think there are some bad dogs, such as my golden retriever, Charlie, who attacked me over a piece of banana bread years ago, raging at me and sinking his teeth into my thigh and stomach.

Clinic: The good and the annoying
on Nov 4, 2009 in Dr. Francisco Marty Voriconozole Prograf fungus Monday was another rare no-transfusion day, but it was still interesting.While waiting for my appointment with Melissa, I went into the infusion room to get my egg salad sandwich and bag of chips from the cart. I need to get it before I am scheduled...

The creature, unmasked
on Oct 31, 2009 in powder post beetles Terminix termites The other day I wrote about scary words coming from my basement.Today it was scary sounds.The Terminix man was here, making a racket. Pound pound pound. Chip, chip. Then, the sound of wood chips falling down. Maddie lay on her bed, her ears up. She l...

Oy vey, I have shpilkes
on Oct 28, 2009 in Yiddish transfusions red blood count platelets white blood count In light of my financial problems, the words that I heard coming up from my cellar yesterday were especially scary.Having finally broken down and turned the heat on a couple of weeks ago, I really wanted heat on Tuesday, a damp, rainy day. I felt esp...

Big hug
on Oct 25, 2009 in Holyoke Country Club Ahimsa Yoga Center A big thank you to those who participated in the fund-raiser last night. That means Erin and Pat, who organized it, and all the friends, family and neighbors who came and/or donated. There were two tables of incredible raffle prizes, plus music, danc...

Torture
on Oct 21, 2009 in Anita Diamont Ativan Andrew Weil Jon Kabbat-Zinn Nazis Holocaust I dreamt I was in a line of people slowly walking. Somebody pulled me aside and said I was going to be tortured. "Why me?" I asked. "Just because," he answered. He told me they were going to put needles through my eyeballs and do other painful things...

Betwixt and between
on Oct 18, 2009The other day I went to pick up a prescription at our pharmacy in the Big Y supermarket. It didn't look crowded, so I didn't put my mask on. My white count has been steadily good – 6.9 at last week's visit – and I'm eight months out, so sometimes...

Moving forward, moving backward
on Oct 14, 2009Yesterday I got the final results of my bone marrow biopsy. Everything is normal, and I am 100 percent donor. Yay!Still, it was a down day in terms of platelets and hematocrit. Last week I had 27 platelets and left without a transfusion; this week I...

Too weak or too strong?
on Oct 9, 2009Dr. Alyea put in an order for home-based physical therapy for me because, in addition to weakness in my legs just from being in bed so long, the issue is now compounded by prednisone, which can cause muscle weakness. Although I am slowly tapering the...