Monday, September 10, 2007

Crash

It's so much more fun to give glowing reports of happy news, and I've been lucky to have lots to share. But let's face it - cancer sometimes has its bad news moments.

My blood cell counts have crashed. I don't know all the details, but I'm neutropenic (very low white cells - very vulnerable to infection) and the other stuff is "pretty low". I was in an audit all day and so the nurse relayed the message to my husband, who did his best to capture the salient points without knowing all the detailed questions I would normally ask.

It's almost like my body kept hearing me brag about how I'm at the end of a twelve-cycle treatment regimen, and said, "Wow - I've had THAT much chemotherapy?? I guess I should be sick by now!" I wouldn't be surprised at all if I suddenly woke up bald, if my body lets my hair in on the secret.

These lab results were from a blood draw on Friday. Since Friday I've eaten lots of raw fruits and veggies, and I've shaken many hands. I spent most of Friday night and Saturday morning in our filthy garage, getting ready for our neighborhood garage sale and getting lots of bruises (thanks to low platelets) and exposure to unimaginable germs. Who knows what I could possibly be incubating at this moment. Sleep deprivation and a busy/stressful week do not help, either.

(Quick -- tell me a joke, because laughter boosts the immune system!)

I'm hopeful that next week's MRI scan will be good, so that treatment won't be necessary. If that's the case, then I just need to be the bubble girl and avoid surviving glioblastoma by dying of a freak infection.

It's a prayer moment!

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

A joke for Krista:

True story!

Driving through the city tonight I saw a new shoe store. Called "Get Outside Shoes!" the windows featured large pictures of kids playing on swings and doing other outdoorsy, active things.

Next to the pictures, in big letters, it said "order online!"

So I guess by "Get Outside Shoes" they really mean "Get [The Kids] Outside!"

Deena said...

Krista,

Here's the Good Clean Funnies site - some are groaners, some are good, and all are ones you could tell your little boy or your bishop :-D. And don't forget the LDS ones once a week on Meridian Magazine.

http://www.gcfl.net/

Love,
Deena

Kate said...

It is indeed a prayer moment . . . and mine for you will always continue. :)
As for the joke, I heard one this weekend that I know you will love:

How many choristers does it take to change a lightbulb?

I don't know . . . no one ever watches them! :)

Emily B. said...

Hey Krista, I just read a funny joke:

The first stop on my vacation was my sister's house in Montana. She's extremely organized -- before she leaves on a trip she always types up address labels for her postcards. This time, I figured I did her one better. The second day of our visit, I boasted, "You'll be impressed. I've already written thank-you notes to everyone I'll be staying with. They're all stamped and ready to go."

My sister was silent for a moment. Then she asked, "You mean those little envelopes I saw in your room and mailed this morning?"

Ha ha! Hope you are healthy and germ-free! I want to see you at our Twilight book night!

Emily Beckham

Anonymous said...

A Clean Joke for ya'll

There once was a blind man who decided to visit Texas. When he arrived on the plane, he felt the seats and said, "Wow, these seats are big!" The person next to him answered, "Everything is big in Texas." When he finally arrived in Texas, he decided to visit a bar. Upon arriving in the bar, he ordered a beer and got a mug placed between his hands. He exclaimed, "Wow these mugs are big!" The bartender replied, "Everything is big in Texas." After a couple of beers, the blind man asked the bartender where the bathroom was located. The bartender replied, "Second door to the right." The blind man headed for the bathroom, but accidentally tripped over and skipped the second door. Instead, he entered the third door, which lead to the swimming pool and fell into the pool by accident. Scared to death, the blind man started shouting, "Don't flush, don't flush!"

Have a great day, Krista...

Jer

Anonymous said...

Hi Krista,

Can't think of a joke for ya right now, possibly because its 3 o'clock in the morning and I'm barely functioning, but I will offer another prayer for you. Love ya!

Teri