the road is long....

not much changing on the rehab front.  my mom continues to get therapy but the progress is slow.  my dad had to go to columbus yesterday so my brothers and i took turns visiting and helping her with things.  i had lunch duty complete with airplane noises as she got bites of food.  priceless.

she spends her days watching tv, listening to books on tape and trying to get her strength back.  she is really appreciating the cards and notes that people are sending.  

more to come as it develops.  keep up the prayers!

blessings,

tim

little by little....

my mother is beginning her second week at Drake Center.  i wish i could tell you that she is making wonderful strides and is up and waltzing around the room.  unfortunately, the going continues to be slow.  her speech is improving and there may be "some" improvement in her motor skills.  regardless, we continue our prayers and positive thoughts.  

she is getting a flock of visitors as the policy at drake is more loose than jewish.  if you'd like to visit, give my dad a call.  he continues to be her gatekeeper.  we took her a CD player so she could listen to books on tape.  she needs a distraction from the endless gunsmoke marathon my dad watches on TV Land....geesh.

thanks for your continued well wishes.

blessings,

tim

the move to Drake Center...

my mother has made the move from jewish hospital to drake center.  she is in room 406N there (for those of you sending cards).

our family was there to see her today and it's much the same as it was at jewish.  it is a hospital-like setting with the facilities to help her rehabilitate her motor skills and get "back on her feet."  we'll take it a week at a time from here.

please continue you prayers for her.  she is battling but always could use the love and support of her friends.

blessings,

tim

rehab facility in the offing....

my dad, brothers and i met with the oncologist today about my mother.  according to him, my mom is fast approaching the day when she will be discharged from the hospital.  she is done with anti-biotics and her blood numbers are all about back to "normal" levels.  her leukemia, he expects, is in remission.  they will do another bone marrow scan in a couple weeks to confirm that.

she still has diminished capacity when it comes to speech and motor skills.  her speech, however, did seem a bit better today when we saw her.  it was one of those (rare) days when my dad and all my brothers were there at the same time.  i can still count those moments on one hand over the last 10 years (excluding holidays).  

the outlook for my mom is still a challenge.  she can't go home until she regains some mobility.  the folks from the drake center will come again to see her tomorrow (we thought they were coming today) to see if she qualifies to be admitted into one of their programs.  keys to her being admitted to drake center around her desire and motivation to rehab and her nutrition (she's gotta eat!).  for the last couple weeks, she has not had the energy to really put into rehab (or eating).  the hope is, with her blood numbers better, that she will regain a bit of energy that will help her through.  the IV nutrition needs to come off and she needs to pick up the eating.

we don't know how long the disease will be in remission.  most leukemia of this type (AML) recurs in patients.  it's impossible to know how it will effect her down the line.  we continue to hope and pray for the best.

please join us in prayer for her continued fight.  she needs every bit of encouragement to continue on the journey.  we can't begin to know what she is battling but we try to support her the best that we can.

keep my dad in your prayers, too.  you can imagine....

blessings,

tim

no real change....

quick update....

not much change in the last few days.  her blood numbers have improved and she is probably not long before being released from the hospital.  there hasn't really been any change in physical condition.  her speech is still troubled and her motor skills are very diminished.  my dad, brothers and i are meeting with her doctor in the morning to understand next steps, expectations, etc.

also, a person from drake center (rehab facility) is coming to the hospital tomorrow to evaluate my mother to see if she is able to be admitted there for her next step of rehab.  we'll see.

more to come.  thanks for the prayers and support.

blessings,

tim

keep on keepin' on...

sorry for the extended absences from the blog.  there is not much changing so it is difficult to talk about "new" things every day.

basically, my mother is still in jewish hospital trying to get her strength back from the latest round of chemotherapy.  she began this round as an out-patient procedure, but had to be admitted to the hospital when her strength, speech and motor skills deteriorated.  that is where she has been for the last week and a half.

today was the first day her blood counts moved up.  they have been hovering low since she has been in the hospital but the doctors believe her numbers are now on the upswing.  she is getting IV nutrition again due to her lack of energy and ability to eat a lot.  she will need to build her eating back up to be released.  

the doctor believes she will be able to be released sometime next week but, most likely, will have to transition to a rehab facility of some sort until her strength comes back.  this was to be her first of two follow-up chemo treatments so the second of those is now very doubtful.  they are having too much negative effect on her.  the doctors are not certain (nor can anyone really be) as to what that means for her leukemia and remission.  we hope to learn more about those things in the coming days.

please keep up the prayers for my mother (and father).  she is being tested as much as ever for motivation and a positive outlook.  so many of you have offered the kindest thoughts during her battle.  she REALLY appreciates it (and i don't use capital letters willy nilly).  we just soldier on day by day.....

"Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow, Creeps in this petty pace from day to day."

- William Shakespeare

blessings,

tim

back in the hospital

my mother has spent the last 6 days back at jewish hospital.  she has finished her second round of chemo-therapy and is very weak.  her blood numbers are doing what they are supposed to do, but it has left her unable to do a lot of physical tasks.  even the smallest of tasks is very difficult.  

they are taking very good care of her in room 3304 (good ol' room 3304) at jewish.  please keep the prayers and thoughts with her.  we are hoping she regains her strength and will be able to go home soon.

i will keep posting updates as her condition changes.

thanks for the positive thoughts.

"The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing"

- as repeated by Rev. Doug Mullins.

blessings,

tim

slow and steady wins the race....

it's been a little while since my last post and i have had a few questions about my mom.  

well.....she is finishing her second round of chemo-therapy (out-patient).  She had the last treatment on Friday and is recovering at home with my dad.  she is pretty weak and spends most of her day relaxing in her chair.  despite the extended time in the chair, she much prefers it to the hospital (no offense all of you fine nurses at the hospital).  

i will update a little more often to keep you all in the loop.  you can feel free to send cards and/or notes to them at home.  she still very much enjoys the positive thoughts.

please keep her in your prayers and thanks to all who have inquired about her condition.  the additional treatments are not a surprise and are very necessary to get her beyond the leukemia in the "longer" term.  she had a second "clean" bone marrow scan last week and continues to be encouraged by that.

thanks to everyone for the thoughts/prayers.

"In the race for success, speed is less important than stamina."

- B.C. Forbes

blessings,

tim