C'est la vie

Phil's been doing great this time around in the hospital, remaining upbeat, energetic and productive all the while managing to charm and befriend the nurses.  Having learned a thing or two (or three or four...) through the last round of chemo he has done some things this time through that have made all the difference.  


He set himself a routine which begins with morning hygiene then progresses to daily exercise which consists of walking two laps around the 3 South nursing station with his "significant other".  I am referring of course to the old ball-and-chain IV pole he can't go anywhere without because she is literally plugged into his chest through the port-o-cath.  Yes, my man has found another companion and he spends every waking (and dare I say sleeping moment) with her.  I'd be jealous but his new companion is extremely possessive and demanding and often wakes him up in the night with her constant chatter.  She demands attention and can be finicky and uptight.  She is a real high maintenance bitch and that is something I've never been accused of being.  Well, not to my face anyway.


Anyway,  he has also had a constant stream of visitors this go round and that has made the time fly by.  From me and the kids, to Tricia Reece (my BFF from WA who was here to help us settle in and get a handle on LIFE -good job by the way), to his brother David, my nephews Jason and Josh (the bald ones),  Mother Teresa (my sister), and my parents Pete and Joan Lehmann, he's had no shortage of well-wishers.  His room is usually full and occasionally SRO.  


His spinal tap went well and he's shown no signs of spinal headache and we're all breathing a sigh of relief.  He'll go through a few more maneuvers before discharge but it's looking really good so far.  He's been transfused with 2 units of blood and that pale ghostly look is gone.  If you're on Facebook you can see the pallor in his profile picture as plain as day.  Now he's got his rosy cheeks back as well as the energy he lost.  He must feel like half a million bucks by now!  


Overall this chemo has been more well tolerated than the last but we'll have to wait and see how precipitous the fall will be once he comes home, likely later today.  He's been on a much lower dose of dexamethazone (steroids) so he's less likely to drop hard on the roller coaster, but again, this is new territory for us.  


We expect to learn a lot in the coming days.  Thankfully, we are more prepared now and have a little more experience under our belts.  But it is what it is and will be what it will be.  C'est la vie.