On Sunday, the infected area at the end of the incision seemed to be responding well to the Silvadene and Goldenseal treatments, but I noticed a swelling and tender area about an inch away from that spot, which caused us concern. You’ll recall, from the Jan 20 to 26 post, that the surgeon had suggested surgery to clean out the infection, if the Silvadene was not successful. Our decision on Sunday was to accept the surgical option, and, due to the low level of my white blood cell and immune system indicators, felt that this should happen as quickly as possible.
We headed down to the ER, once again….Once we finally saw the neurosurgery resident, he consulted with the surgeon and they agreed that surgery was indicated. They were able to come up with a surgery time of noon the next day. Because it was already 5 PM, it was decided that admitting me would be best so all the pre-op tests, etc. could be carried out. The alternative was to go home and be back by 7 AM the next morning. In either case, I was not to eat or drink anything after midnight.
Early the next morning I was advised that I was no longer on the surgery schedule for Monday, but would be for Tuesday at 11:15 a.m.. I promptly ate some food, they completed all the pre-op testing, was discharged, and I went home for the day.
On Tuesday, I checked in through the front door of the hospital. All the previous surgeries, I had checked in through the ER and came to surgery from a hospital room. In the Pre-Op area, Susanne and I asked whether it made sense to do a needle biopsy of the swelling before going ahead with surgery. One of the doctors explained that because the scalp has many layers the presence of an infection could be missed by a needle biopsy and there was also risk of infecting a clean layer. We recognized this as another step on the Fact-Based Spirit-Guided Path and indicated that the surgery should proceed.
Please be advised that this photo and explanation of the surgical area on my head may not be for the faint of heart but are illustrative of what was actually done. If you’re squeamish, you may just want to skip to the next paragraph.
The conclusion of the surgical and infectious diseases folks was that I have a staph infection. It was clearly resistant to the Keflex regimen I was given earlier in January so they prescribed a three week regimen of Ciprofloxacin and Rifampicin to be taken in pill form…..not another round of IV infusions like in September, yay!!
Because of the nature of the prescribed antibiotics, we provided the folks at the Block Integrative Cancer Care Center with a detailed list of all my drugs, supplements, and vitamins and requested that they review them for any potential negative interaction issues. We expect a report from them by Monday or Tuesday. Until then, we’ve taken most of the supplements and vitamins out of my diet.
I am to return to the surgeon’s on February 13 to, hopefully, remove the sutures and move forward with the chemotherapy.
I had initially planned to go back to work on Friday but, was pretty tired so stayed home. I have taken no pain-killers (even Tylenol) since Friday morning….YEAH!!
Today, Saturday, I feel much more energetic so plan to do some work from home today and tomorrow, including moving forward with preparation for submitting taxes, and expect to be back at the office on Monday.
The journey continues even with occasional speed bumps!!! The new hypno-therapy session tape (1/22/08) has been most beneficial.
4 comments:
Craig,
You are handling these "bumps in the road" with flexibility and patience. I'm glad you are beginning to feel a bit better. I'm also relieved that they discovered the nature of the infection so the more aggressive treatment will knock it out quickly. It is great that you will be attending an ECAP retreat in April. It seems that you are truly being guided and protected. And of course you are surrounded by prayers. Always.
The rest of the story….
We keep saying that if we put our car on auto-pilot it would probably get to the hospital without help! It felt like another one of those weeks of wearing a path there.
I feel like I did relatively well with managing fatigue and stress this week (except for a few hours when I mistakenly thought they’d operated in the wrong place!). I kept repeating my new mantra of “contentment under all circumstances”. I carried lots to do along with me so I didn’t get too restless with all the waiting around. So, some editing and reading got done that might not have happened otherwise. And, of course exercise walking all over the hospital complex!
I’m so conscious during these times of more intense events how grateful I am to have so many praying for us. I often find it more difficult to pray throughout the experience, as there are so many details to listen to and pay attention to. Having the accompaniment of others is such a blessing.
The week brought news of another friend diagnosed with cancer. How challenging the prevalence of this disease is!
So, more weeks of intense head care ahead with Craig. But, I’m grateful not to be back doing the IV’s. I’m now teasing him about the side effect from the one antibiotic. It turns all body fluids orange, so he’s now my orange Kool-Aid man! And I keep thinking we ought to be able to turn the maze of scars on his head into some kind of treasure map!
The spiritual strength I feel from the blog, let alone the strength I know that exists within Craig, humbles me. I have nothing but respect and admiration for my cousin. I feel his message of determination will be a motivating factor toward his recovery, and his continued journey through life. I wish we could turn back the clock, and revisit some great times, but my memory serves me well, and allows frequent and wonderful visits to the past, our family gatherings, and the closeness and joy we all shared. We can only live within today,yesterday is gone, and tomorrow is out of our grasp, but I believe in purpose and destiny...Craig's journey is only beginning, there is much yet to accomplish. Bless you, and your family my friend! Talk soon...
Dear Craig and Susanne
You are both wonderful, I called you asking for advice and you gave it willingly and quickly without any excuses!! God Bless you both!! I just discovered your troubles and you can be sure you will be in our prayers at our little Marriage Tansformation Workshop. You are in my daily prayers as well! This journey will not be an easy one and I pray that God sees fit to keep you on this earth with us for a long time to come!
Thank you once again for everything and the Best of Luck!!
Loving Bahai wishes
Joan Bauer
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