Archive for May, 2007

Thursday, May 31st – Day 10

Thursday, May 31st, 2007

Hi Everyone,

Well my day started out with Mom calling to say that Mike was having his worse morning yet.  She called him this morning and he was in terrible shape.  Then she called him this afternoon and asked how he was doing and he said “Better”.  That was a great relief.

I just had a one minute chat with him.  Mike said his Doctor was in twice today and changed his meds.  I said, “Wow, you must be important!”  Mike said, “This is serious business you know!”  I replied, “It sure is especially when it is about one of my brothers!”  Anyway, he was getting some rest and feeling better.  I am very glad. I told him that it was very special to me to spend the day with him yesterday even though we couldn’t talk.  It was good just to be with him.

Keep praying and know that we thank God everyday for all of you who have been supporting us through your thoughts and prayers.

Talk to you tomorrow.
love, Ann

Wednesday, May 30th – Day 9

Wednesday, May 30th, 2007

Hi Everyone,

Well, I went to see Mike today and I think that Mom and her friends wore him out yesterday!! ;-)

Just kidding.  He was in bed all day and sleeping for most of it.  It wasn’t because of yacking with Mom though it is because his counts are low and his throat is very sore.  He is on Morphine for the pain which accounts for some of the sleepiness.  He can’t eat and he can barely drink any water.  Believe me, they are keeping him hydrated though!  It is all just part of what happens when you have a BMT.  I talked to Becky his nurse and she said that hopefully in 4-5 days his counts will start going up.  That will mean engraftment has happened (in terms that I can understand it means that Rick’s cells are getting to work in Mike’s bod).  He will probably have a few more bad days.

I just sat in his room and smiled and waved at him when he opened his eyes, fetched the urinal for him, read his copy of the Ann Arbor news and did some puzzles.  I held his hand before I left and assured him that in a few days things would start looking better.  I told him how proud we all are of him for doing this and how much we love him.  He just smiled his best Mike smile (that’s the one with his eyes squinted shut).

Please keep up the prayers!!  Thanks again for everything.  All the positive messages are very helpful.

love, Ann

Tuesday, May 29th – Day 8

Tuesday, May 29th, 2007

Hi Everyone,

It is 5:40pm and I just talked to Mike.  His throat is very sore.  They got him some meds to help with that.  He is on a liquid diet because he is having such a hard time swallowing because it hurts!  He was resting before he had dinner.

Mike said mom and her friends came for a visit before lunch and then they went out for awhile and then came back in the afternoon.  He said it was a good visit.  I am planning on going tomorrow and my friend Brenda (alias ‘pajama girl’) is riding alone with me.  She’ll say hi to Mike and visit for a short time the head to the family room to hang out while I stay for awhile with Mike.  Mike met her at my house this past Christmas.  My friends come over the morning after Christmas for “coffee” (oh and Baileys).  Anyway, she wore her Christmas flannel pajamas and hence was nicknamed ‘pajama girl’ by Mike and our brother Joe.  He didn’t seem to object when I said she was coming with me!! ;)

Anyway, I also just read an ‘e’ from my cousin Sara who visited Mike this past weekend.  She said she and Mike had some good talks.  He is having a rough time right now.  She did get into this website with him and showed him the great comments that people have made.  I think that lifted his spirits.  It is such a ‘one day at a time’ type thing to go through.  Sometimes we’ve told him to just take the next few minutes or an hour at a time.  He knows that he has a lot of support and he really appreciates it.

Please keep praying for him that he can just stay focused on getting through this and moving on with his life.  Thanks again for all of your support.

love, Ann

Monday, May 28th – Day 7

Monday, May 28th, 2007

Hi Everyone,

I called Mike around 6pm and he was trying to eat.  So, I told him I’d call him back.  I did about 45 minutes later.  He just isn’t having a good day today.  We knew that this would happen but I always feel helpless when there is nothing I can do to change the situation.  Mike is getting sores in his mouth and he had a nose bleed today.  Not too bad a bleed, because believe me he has had some bad ones over the years, but still enough to make him nervous. 

Sara, our Ohio cousin, stopped back in this morning to see him on her way home.  She was there when his Doctor came in so she got to talk to him.  He mentioned something about Mike possibly being released next Monday.  But, as the nurse told Mike later, many get released and then are re-admitted for a few days here and there.  Sometimes they need the bed space I quess.  But also you never know, because it all depends on how Mike is doing on Monday.  Things aren’t going to get better quickly since his counts are so low now which means he can’t fight off infections, etc.

Mom and her friends, Sue & Joyce are heading to see him tomorrow and I am still planning on going there on Wednesday.  I told him not to be afraid to tell his visitors to get lost for a while if he needs to nap or just rest.  I always take something to do with me in case he needs a break.

In case you didn’t see, my brother Joe, set up a ‘Donations & Gifts’ page on this website in case anyone would like to make a donation towards Mike’s medication.  He won’t have coverage for his meds once he leaves the hospital.  They could range between $6000.00 and $10,000.00 per month.  Anyway, he even has it set up with PayPal in case people want to use their credit cards. 

We (Mike’s family) really appreciate everyone’s support during this time.  Without your support and prayers this would be almost unimaginably difficult for all of us.  Mike is going through the toughest part but we are all dealing with this too.  Your prayers just give us tremendous support.  Thank you all so much.  Keep up the good work prayer warriors!!

love, Ann

Sunday, May 27th – Day 6

Sunday, May 27th, 2007

Hi All,

I just talked to Mike.  He is watching Nascar.  He said Sara (our cousin from Ohio) came this afternoon for a few hours.  Nice visit!!  He walked around the unit 6 times today. 

Mike said he is starting to have some reactions such as sores in his mouth.  Not fun!  He is hanging in there.  I didn’t talk long.  He sounded tired. 

I’ll be seeing him in a few days in person.  I hope and pray that his side effects aren’t too serious and that he will be able to hang tough through the next few weeks.  It is still very critical and so keep the positive thoughts and prayers coming his way.

Thanks for all of your continued support.

love, Ann

Saturday, May 26th – Day 5

Saturday, May 26th, 2007

Hi Everyone,

I called Mike tonight.  I knew that Rick & Sal and Mom were all going to Ann Arbor today to visit Mike.  He said it was a good day.  He enjoyed their visit.  Mom brought Mike an i-pod that Joe stocked with music for him to listen too.  Mike was using it when I called.  He really likes it and hopefully it will get him through the next few weeks when he just needs to zone out of all that is happening.

His counts are still going down (which is good).  He walked 11 times around the unit today.  I am thinking that is more than a half mile walk.  I think 17 times around the unit is a mile, but I’m not sure.  I’ll have to check that out again when I go see him this week.

Our cousin Sara, from Ohio, is visiting Mike tomorrow and then spending the night in Flint with Mom, then back through Ann Arbor on Monday with another visit to Mike as she heads back to Ohio.  Sara is more like our sister than our cousin!  It is so good to have her and her husband, Ron, supporting us through this big event!

Well, I need to go to bed.  I hope this post finds all of you well.  Keep praying and knowing how much we appreciate it!!

love, Ann

Friday, May 25th – Day 4

Friday, May 25th, 2007

Hi Everyone,

 I talked to Mike tonight.  He was actually watching a movie.  He said that he didn’t sleep last night and that they were going to try some different meds tonight.  They are pumping him so full of liquids that he’s up every hour to go to the bathroom.  Not much sleeping with that going on!

Mike did get out in the unit and walked around it 8 times.  That is really great.  Two days ago he didn’t hardly get out of bed and then yesterday and today he is out walking the unit.  I hope that he can keep that up because it will help him get better.  I told him I was going to try and get down to see him next Tuesday or Wednesday since I don’t have to teach on those days.

I also talked to Mom today and she said that his Doc. came in and told Mike that there are still going to be some tough days ahead before things start getting better.  So keep up the prayers because I know that they are helping Mike deal with each day (and night)!

Talk to you tomorrow.
love, Ann

Thursday, May 24th – Day 3

Thursday, May 24th, 2007

Hi All,

Bruce and I had a great visit with Mike today.  It was soooo good to see him and give him a hug and just be with him.  He still looks scruffy with the white beard coming in, but hey – he has hair!!!  Anyway,  we visited with him in the morning.  Then Bruce and I hiked down to ‘Casey’s’ and bought a couple sandwiches and went to the park and ate.  Then we hiked back up to the hospital.  It’s probably a little over a mile one way. Once back to Mike’s room, Bruce read the paper and I walked with Mike around the unit.  We did two laps.  From the comments we received, everyone was glad to see him out and about.  He needs to be out walking so that he doesn’t get pneumonia.  He can’t go off the unit and he has to drag his ‘buddy’ (the IV pole) along and wear a mask, but he did it!  I told mom to tell anyone who visits with him to take him for a lap or two.  He is much more motivated with someone walking with him.

He looks good.  He feels very tired and his nights and days are mixed up.  Meaning that he sleeps during the day and is awake at night.  They are changing a bunch of his meds today so they think that will help him get his days and nights straightened out.

Anyway, keep up the prayers – they work wonders.  This is still a critical time.  Thanks for everything!  Oh, I also told him about messages that have been posted on the site.  He was very pleased.  He hasn’t checked the site out yet because he has been too tired, but hopefully he will soon.

love, Ann

Wednesday, May 23rd – Day 2

Wednesday, May 23rd, 2007

Hi Everyone,

Mom and our friend Sue went down to see Mike today.  He is very tired but doing good.  His counts are going down and that is a good sign.  He is still in the critical time for the BMT but I am glad that there are some “glimmers of the sun” in his recovery so far.  Mom said that he cleaned his plate at lunch today which is an improvement since he wasn’t feeling well and didn’t want to eat too much.

Bruce and I are heading to UofM tomorrow to visit with him.  And then our cousin Sara will be seeing him on Sunday and Monday. 

It is very hard for me not to be able to see him more often.  I would spend every day with him if I could!  I know that I have said it many times but “Thank You All” for your support of Mike and our family during this time.  It would be very difficult for all of us if we didn’t have the prayers and support of our friends and many people who we don’t even know personally.  I know it was on Prayer Networks from coast to coast.  That just lifts our spirits!

Talk to you tomorrow night after our visit in person to Mike.  I am taking him some homemade chocolate and butterscotch chip cookies.  I wanted to make him oatmeal raisin, but he can’t have raisins right now! 

love, Ann

Tuesday, May 22nd Day 1

Tuesday, May 22nd, 2007

Hi Everyone,

We are finally counting forward on our days.  I just talked to Mike.  He is still very tired.  They gave him some Benadryl so hopefully he’ll nap this afternoon.  The Radiation took about 2 hours and he had to lay flat on a skinny table and not move.  It was very difficult for him to do but he did it!  Then they did the transplant right in his room.  It took about an hour.

Today he was given some platelets.  He was having a little reaction and he had a nose bleed and under his jaw was puffy on both sides.  Hopefully that will subside.

I didn’t talk to him long because I was hoping that he could sleep.  Bruce (my husband) and I are still planning on going to see Mike on Thursday.  He said that would be fine. He’s hoping to feel a little better by then. 

Keep the prayers coming Mike’s way.  We are at the critical time these next couple weeks.  Thanks for all the prayers so far.

love, Ann