Rebooting Melissa

So Day 13 (Sunday) was uneventful! Went into HIPOP for an hour or so, blood taken, counts checked then back. It’s amazing how routine it all becomes.

Monday was the big day! We got to Hopkins at 7:45am. The Hickman was supposed to be removed in the other building initially but was moved to the Weinburg building which was handy.

Mel was taken away, given some Lidocaine and the catheter came out. Took about an hour, from start to finish.

We then went up to IPOP for Mel’s final weighing/vitals etc. The Nurse Practitioner, Janice, who was great the whole time, talked us through the discharge.

Mel will take an antibiotic for the next six months. She was supposed to take Bactrim but remembered at the last minute, under prompting from Janice, that’d she’d had a previous sulphur reaction so was given an alternative.

We were out of there by 09:30 and headed back to the apartment.

We’ll be heading home tomorrow and will arrive back Thursday night.

Things to report so far:

Mel’s MS fatigue has improved a lot. She’s still tired but it’s more an anemia thing and lack of activity. You MS’ers will know what I mean, the MS fatigue is just different.

Also, her bowel movements (sorry Mel) are a lot better, the first time in a year and a half she’s been able to go without the need for laxatives. Even during chemo she needed the laxatives! It was her first MS symptom and was always a good barometer of an upcoming attack, pooing got harder as the attack came.

Vision - no double vision for some time, that had been in remission for about a month prior to HiCy, let’s hope it stays that way.

Residuals- still weakness left side, numbness on hand. ‘Pulling’ sensation when looking hard left - muscle problem that developed over the past year.

All in all though things are great, best they’ve been in ages. Itching to get back home now and get back to work. I must take this opportunity to thank my employer and everyone back home covering for me, without your support this would have been a lot harder. Mel’s colleagues and employer too - they have been so supportive and flexible.

This’ll be the last post until the weekend when we are back home in sweaty, sticky Houston - I can’t wait I haven’t had a good steak in a month, it’s so bad my pants button up first go!

Thanks for all your comments, emails and messages.

There’s another thisisms regular going through the protocol now - Davis- I hope she’s doing well and I know there are a number of people soon to go to Baltimore. Mel stopped by her room on Sunday, she’d completed the chemo with no drama or vomiting.

Chris you must have a really weak stomach man!

The Johns Hopkins facitlity is first class with superb physicians and nursing staff - you genuinely could not be in better hands. Drs Kerr, Brodsky and the others really know their onions! The IPOP people are the best in the business.

And a friend of a friend of Mel’s mum’s college room mate’s Rabbi reckons Dr.Brodsky is the best in the world at what he does, so that was good enough for me!

See y’all in Houston,

Jamie.