What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Stronger
What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger. But what if it does kill you? Where do the people that love you find their strength?
In January, my mom started acting very different. Her speech was slurred, she was slow to respond, she had visibly lost weight and something was just off. My sister and I finally talked her into going to the hospital, for fear that she had a stroke. She failed the touch your finger to your nose test miserably. They ran a multitude of tests before admitting her to the hospital. Turns out she had low potassium and extremely low magnesium. They treated her for that and dehydration while still running tests. She had CT scans, MRI's, x rays, and lots of blood work. Eventually two doctors entered the room to discuss the CT scan results. They discovered a mass in her right lung. Immediately my heart skipped a beat. I grabbed my moms hand and just squeezed it so she knew I was there. Where do you we go from here? They referred us to an oncologist, Dr. T. he later came by and set an appointment with my mom.
Step 1 was to determine if this was cancer although we were pretty certain it was. My mom had a biopsy performed while she was admitted to the hospital. About two weeks later, we met with the Dr. to get the results. When I picked mom up to take her to the appointment she informed me that the Dr. called the day before and confirmed cancer. I was upset that she didn't tell me, but I understood that she needed time to digest.
Step 2 was to meet with Dr T to ask questions, and determine treatment options. He told us the mass was fairly large and there is a second small mass on the lower lobe. She isn't a candidate for surgery so we need chemo and possibly radiation. He wanted her to get a pet scan to determine if the cancer has spread anywhere else in the body before we started treatment. Getting the PET scan was a freaking process. When we finally jumped through all the red tape (3 weeks later), the scan was a simple process. Once the results were in, we met with Dr T again.
Step 3 was the easiest part of all this. The cancer has not spread anywhere and didn't appear to be in her lymph nodes. HALLELUJAH! Dr. t told us all about chemo and what to expect. he set her up for 6 treatments and to meet with a radiologist. She met with the radiologist that week right after her first chemo appointment. The decision was made to treat with radiation and chemo simultaneously.
My mom has held up to chemo really well! She's maintained her weight although she is now bald. she does get sick for a few days after, but other than that she's living a normal life. She naps during the day, but still does all of her own shopping, cleaning, and cooking. This has truly been the best case scenario and she has been touch by God himself throughout this process. She just had a new PET scan after 6 weeks of treatment and we are currently awaiting the results. Once we have those results, I can determine how I'm doing.
Overall, as long as my mom is feeling ok, I'm good. I obviously worry about her, but I talk to her everyday. I can always hear when something is off in her voice. We are connected and although she tries hard to hide it, I always know. losing my mom right now would break my soul, she's my best friend. I just hope and pray that I have more opportunities to camp, bbq, and shop with my mom.
In January, my mom started acting very different. Her speech was slurred, she was slow to respond, she had visibly lost weight and something was just off. My sister and I finally talked her into going to the hospital, for fear that she had a stroke. She failed the touch your finger to your nose test miserably. They ran a multitude of tests before admitting her to the hospital. Turns out she had low potassium and extremely low magnesium. They treated her for that and dehydration while still running tests. She had CT scans, MRI's, x rays, and lots of blood work. Eventually two doctors entered the room to discuss the CT scan results. They discovered a mass in her right lung. Immediately my heart skipped a beat. I grabbed my moms hand and just squeezed it so she knew I was there. Where do you we go from here? They referred us to an oncologist, Dr. T. he later came by and set an appointment with my mom.
Step 1 was to determine if this was cancer although we were pretty certain it was. My mom had a biopsy performed while she was admitted to the hospital. About two weeks later, we met with the Dr. to get the results. When I picked mom up to take her to the appointment she informed me that the Dr. called the day before and confirmed cancer. I was upset that she didn't tell me, but I understood that she needed time to digest.
Step 2 was to meet with Dr T to ask questions, and determine treatment options. He told us the mass was fairly large and there is a second small mass on the lower lobe. She isn't a candidate for surgery so we need chemo and possibly radiation. He wanted her to get a pet scan to determine if the cancer has spread anywhere else in the body before we started treatment. Getting the PET scan was a freaking process. When we finally jumped through all the red tape (3 weeks later), the scan was a simple process. Once the results were in, we met with Dr T again.
Step 3 was the easiest part of all this. The cancer has not spread anywhere and didn't appear to be in her lymph nodes. HALLELUJAH! Dr. t told us all about chemo and what to expect. he set her up for 6 treatments and to meet with a radiologist. She met with the radiologist that week right after her first chemo appointment. The decision was made to treat with radiation and chemo simultaneously.
My mom has held up to chemo really well! She's maintained her weight although she is now bald. she does get sick for a few days after, but other than that she's living a normal life. She naps during the day, but still does all of her own shopping, cleaning, and cooking. This has truly been the best case scenario and she has been touch by God himself throughout this process. She just had a new PET scan after 6 weeks of treatment and we are currently awaiting the results. Once we have those results, I can determine how I'm doing.
Overall, as long as my mom is feeling ok, I'm good. I obviously worry about her, but I talk to her everyday. I can always hear when something is off in her voice. We are connected and although she tries hard to hide it, I always know. losing my mom right now would break my soul, she's my best friend. I just hope and pray that I have more opportunities to camp, bbq, and shop with my mom.
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