Keeping things interesting

 I used to be boring. Seriously. Before cancer, pre-2018, I'd never even had a cavity or a broken bone.

Now I have a blood clot.

I guess officially it is a DVT though it is in the upper inside of my beleagured right arm, not either leg. Never even thought about getting one there. Saturday morning I awakened to a more-swollen-than-usual hand and an arm that felt like it was someone else's but had been sewn onto my body. When I bent my elbow for a few seconds and then released, the skin went from pinkish-purple (not my usual skin tone) to yellow-white before returning to the shade of rose. 

Of course it was on a Saturday. Of course I'd just seen my oncologist and my PT gal on Thursday. So here's me, playing phone tag with the oncologist on call whom I've never met. He encouraged me to go to the closest ER but that one didn't have ultrasound availablility until Monday, so we rerouted to the hospital attached to where I had chemo, got my vascular ultrasound, and within 15 minutes of being finished was formally informed of the blood clot. However, the tech had already showed me on the screen the spot that didn't squish together under compression of the doppler wand, so I was unsurprised to get the news.

I have been on 2.5 mg of Eliquis as a preventative measure since my venogram on April 20th, with the hope that this wouldn't happen. I didn't really dream that it would be an issue, but here we are.

I discontinued the Eliquis and have been upgraded, lucky me, to twice daily injections of Lovenox for a month. On Saturday, the hospital gave me a dose and a half, I think, to tide me over until my prescription was filled. However, the pharmacy was out of stock and won't have it until today, so yesterday it was back to the hospital for another dose to get me through until I can pick up the meds. Thankfully, the ER doc from further away coordinated with the closer one so I was able to get yesterday's dose without the longer drive. I love it when a plan comes together.

Poor Dada had no idea what he was getting into when he vowed, "in sickness and in health" and probably never dreamed that he would be giving me shots in my belly, the outsides of my thighs, and the back of my left arm since the right is off limits due to the lymphedema. Once again, I am more medically interesting than I want to be!

Just checkin’ in

 I dunno what all y’all are doing, but I am spending more time shimmying (to music popular when I was in junior high) atop my rickety step ladder in the basement than I am painting. 

For those who are curious, that would be Guns & Roses, Aerosmith, U2, and so forth. Tomorrow I might switch it up and go way back so I hear Solomon Burke’s “Cry to Me”…

For those of you curious about the other part, it’s Dragonfly by Behr paint, which is a gray-green that I hope will go well with the tile we have yet to purchase. I’m doing the cutting in, the boys can enthusiastically (or not) roller the rest. I have just enough of my Dad in me that I want to be precise so I have to keep reminding myself that:

A) I have one good, non-dominant arm and a less good dominant arm in a compression sleeve with a fun knee sock over it to protect it from paint. I cut the toe off so it’s working very well! I had PT yesterday and the gal said, “hey, you’re already warmed up and it won’t take me 15 minutes just to work you loose enough to do anything with! Can you pant before you come every time?”

B) It’s a basement. We will not be hosting the Queen. 

I did renew a pool pass which I do intend to use, but as the nights here have still been in the 50s I am not ready to get into a pool for the early morning lazy river walks yet… maybe next week. 

So, back to the stepladder!

And happy birthday to Mama Dean! Have a great day!