Sunday, November 30, 2008

Sunday Afternoon

Friends and Family,

WoW....what an amazing week it has been. Honestly, all the days and night have run together for me. Two trips to the ER and an additional OR visit and 2 days in the hospital. I can only say now that I am blessed to be home and thankful the pain I suffered has subsided. I cried out to God many times and know now that so many of you called out to God and lifted me up...thank you.

It seems blood clots have been the culprit that sent me back to the hospital and to surgery again. My surgeon's partner Dr. Kram was so good to me/us and made life bearable when I thought I could take no more. I am still passing some clots, very much smaller and painlessly.

Thanksgiving Day was a day my family has looked forward to for so long. Turns out I spent it in the hospital but my wonderful family, my sons Chris and Patrick and their wives and children brought their personal T-Day wishes to me in my hospital room. It filled my heart with joy and gratitude and my eyes with tears..they are such good kids. Their T-day dinner was chicken wings 'cause they wanted to wait til I could come home for our real Thanksgiving dinner. I was discharged about noon on Friday and that evening we sat at my grandmother's drop leaf table filled with a bounty of food. Again, I was so full and even said I could not begin to ask a blessing on the meal 'cause I knew I would be crying.

God is so good and has been so good to me. The pain was almost unbearable and I cried a river of tears in agony but know now, I am so blessed and have so much to be thankful for.

Tomorrow is when I was supposed to return to the doc to have this catheter removed and a cystogram to insure the surgical connection between my bladder and urethra is intact. I am not sure that either of those things will happen?

I hate to continue to complain about my hand but it is still no better. Numbness and pain are constant in my left hand and I suspect I will be visiting my ortho doc to see what we can do about it.

It has been a good afternoon to bundle up and remember all the things we have to be thankful for. Today, a wonderful church friend weathered the rain and brought me a small gift.... a blue ribbon lapel pin. Just as the pink is for breast cancer survivors and awareness, the blue is for prostate cancer. What a priviledge it will be to wear it.

For all of you who are sharing this journey with me, thank you.....I love you for caring about me and loving me and my family. Some of you have spent hours in the emergency room this week and others still in my room, assuring me " it'll be OK". I have seen God in your faces and His touch in your hands....thank you.

I hope to give you another update tomorrow...til then, may God bless you richly.

I Love You All "Thank You Lord for Your blessings on me"

Mike

2 comments:

Mama Stroupe said...

Hey Mikey and B, I am just so-o-o glad that maybe, just maybe things are calming down for you. You both just need a little bit of rest, you think? You know we are a phone call away. Mike, if you need that ride to check out the hand, call us.

Anonymous said...

Hello Mike. You don't know me, but I have been reading and absorbing your journal. Just taking it in like Oxygen. Thank you so much for taking the time to write about your experiences in a frank and very open way. Your christian perspective is also so inspiring. You see, my husband just had his biopsy. We are praying it will all be okay, but the doctor had no smiles during our after-biopsy talk. (By the way, they mercifully konked my hubby out for his procedure!) His prostate is 36 grams, which he says is large. Much larger than the last ultrasound last year when it was 25g. His PSA is only 1.8, but it was slowly trending upwards, and he has a strong family history. His father is in the last stages of his battle with 'the beast'. I have my own health issues to deal with. My DH has been the one supporting me and pulling me thru each day. I don't know what's ahead for us, but reading about your experience has helped to clear some of the unknown from my head. Sometimes it's not anticipating what's coming that gets you, it's the 'not knowing'. I especially grabbed onto the part about the blue ribbon. I always wondered why there wasn't one for PC. It kills as many men as breast cancer kills women, yet it hides in the shadows, still peeking from behind the cobwebs, snatching people who are peacably going about their lives. Hubby's follow-up appt is Dec. 29th. I think we will make up a basket of blue ribbons to put out in the urologist's office. This is SO VERY important.

I look forward to hearing more about your journey. Thank you again for sharing it with the world.

Ellen