Hello again!!!!!
Well, I did say in my last post that I probably wouldn’t get to do another post until after the New Year, didn’t I? But I really didn’t think it would be this long before I got to write something.
Life has been a bit of whirlwind these past few months. There’s been quite a lot going on for me: work, home, health & friends have kept me very busy. Isn’t it funny how time seems to fly by faster, the older you get? My friend has a theory that it’s because the older you get, each year is a smaller percentage comparison to your life - interesting theory, I think.
Anyway, let’s get on with what’s new…………
January 2007:
Health-wise, things were not looking too bad. I had quite a bit of energy & apart from the dreadful pain in my hips, all other symptoms were a breeze at that time.
I got my first ‘promotion’ at work. I took on a bit more responsibility & got a pay rise for it too. This was when I really started to carve my little niche within the company & so far, it’s working nicely, thank you very much!!
February 2007:
I had my 42nd birthday. Tried to persuade the family to forget it (didn’t really want to get any older – lol), but they weren’t having any of it. I had a lovely lunch out with my daughters & a real fun night out with a bunch of friends –a superb day (& not a drop of alcohol passed my lips)!!
I started regular dog walking with a friend too. I don’t have a dog, but absolutely adore hers. He’s a black flat coated retriever called Harvey & he’s absolutely adorable. We’ve been on several walks over the weeks, a lot of them quite taxing but oh so enjoyable & it gives the 2 of us an excellent opportunity to have a good old gossip & chin wag, which is something we both excel at – lol!!
March 2007:
My 2nd promotion at work & yes, another pay rise! Certainly no complaints coming from me on that score. My main job is senior administration, but now I took on the management of our company’s courses as well, which we offer to externals & offer on a continual basis. I get a lot of satisfaction out of this part of my job & have already received praise for my “natural flair” in the marketing & organisation of the courses.
Our company offers all employees a sizeable sum to join a sporting club so I used my money to join the local gym – something I never in my life before would’ve pictured myself doing. I always imagined gyms to be full of muscle-bound men, but in reality, our gym couldn’t be more the opposite! I go 3 times each week, Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays, before work & am really starting to feel the benefit of it, both physically & mentally – I just hope that I can keep this up during treatment. I also started doing Tai Chi as part of my gym membership; I must look such a prat when I do it ‘coz everyone’s going up & left & I’m going down & right, but never mind, at least I’m giving it a go & it does relax me quite a lot.
I had my liver biopsy appointment on 20th March, which turned out to be a disaster & ended up in me writing a letter of complaint to the Chief Executive of the hospital. Having arrived in good time for my appointment & changing into my pyjamas, I was asked if I’d had my ‘clotting time’ blood test done prior to my appointment. “Yes”, I said, very confidently, “I had it done last week”. However, having checked my notes & rung the pathology lab twice, it turned out that I’d had the wrong test done & without a recent coagulation screen, they couldn’t do my biopsy. I was absolutely fuming!! Not only had I booked the entire day off work & arranged transport, but I’d spent ages psyching myself up for the biopsy. The staff in the X-ray department were lovely & very sympathetic. They gave me another appointment there & then for 17th April & also a blood test form – the correct one, I must say. So, when I left the X-ray department, I went straight to have my blood taken & then, as soon as I got out of the hospital, I rang my chocolate teapot (Hep C nurse). I told her what had happened & she proceeded to explain how it was the medical secretary’s job to send out the blood forms & that there had been a lot of sickness amongst the staff of late. I told her I didn’t want to hear the excuses & that I was going to write a letter of complaint, which I promptly did when I got home. I received a final letter to that complaint early in May & [knock me down with a feather], after a full investigation, the hospital are changing their procedure - it will now be the responsibility of the X-ray department to send out the blood forms!!! Quite a positive result, I thought.
April 2007:
Okay. So what happened last month??? This was a very eventful month……
It started off terribly, with my dad getting Belle’s Palsy, which is a viral condition (same virus that causes shingles) which results in one side (or far less common, both sides) of your face becoming paralysed. My mum thought he’d had a stroke & was worried sick. Dad hates going to the GP & had to be pushed to go. He was then sent to the hospital on a Friday evening, where I took him straight from work. He was kept in overnight, but home the following day with tablets & told to get plenty of rest. I think it frightened him, ‘coz for once in his life, he actually did as he was told & it settled down pretty quickly – within 8 weeks or so.
On 14th April I went to Derby for the NCHN conference. What an exhausting, but informative & pleasurable weekend!! I was soooo nervous, not knowing anyone – but that didn’t last long. I wasn’t the only one who didn’t know people & having something so strong in common, I felt so at home with everyone there. It was a weekend jam packed with information & chat, not to mention good food & accommodation. I have benefited so much from that weekend & it’s inspired me to give whatever I can back to the support group, no matter how small!
I finally had my liver biopsy on 17th April. Being arthritic, the hardest part for me, was keeping so still whilst the doctor took the biopsy & then lying flat for the 6 hours afterwards. I bled too much from the first site that she chose to try, so she had to give me double the local anaesthetic & try a second site which was successful. The anaesthetic made breathing quite a chore for ages afterwards, but I was back to work the following day, having put the experience behind me & the memory out of my mind. My chocolate teapot rang me just over 3 weeks later to say she’d got good news – I’m only a grade 1 fibrosis so damage is very minimal. She also gave me a firm date to start my treatment – 24th May. This started to bring home to me what was actually going to happen, although it all still seemed like a bad dream. She also said that, if I respond well to treatment, I may well get away with only doing 24 weeks instead of the usual 48; I’m not sure how I feel about this. The consensus on the forum seems to be that I should do the full 48 irrespective of my response & I think I’m inclined to agree. I know I’d curse if I only did the 24 & then relapsed ‘coz then there would always be that element of “what if…….?”
I plucked up the courage to tell my immediate boss after I’d got my treatment start date. My manager is the director of HR, herself disabled & a very open-minded lady. I spent over half an hour with her & told her my diagnosis & all about the treatment & possible side effects etc. She was great. Her reaction was very calm & sensitive. We discussed the potential need for me to take time off work & she said that we could arrange for me to work from home on days where, although I feel able to work, I couldn’t face going into the office. She also said she intends to support me in whatever way she can & always to remember that I can go & talk to her at any time. How good is that?? I feel very fortunate to have such an understanding manager. Although there are 60 people in our office, aside from my manager, I only work closely with 2 girls, both of whom I supervise & are considerably younger than me. I didn’t tell them anything until last Monday (21st May). All I said was that I’ve got a chronic health problem for which I need to take a form of chemotherapy for a year. I touched on the potential side effects & asked for their sensitivity & support, which they promised to give me & I’m confident that they will. I also said that if they have any questions, to come & see me privately & I’d be happy to talk to them. I feel I gave them just enough information & feel happy that they will be there for me within the confines of work.
Life has been a bit of whirlwind these past few months. There’s been quite a lot going on for me: work, home, health & friends have kept me very busy. Isn’t it funny how time seems to fly by faster, the older you get? My friend has a theory that it’s because the older you get, each year is a smaller percentage comparison to your life - interesting theory, I think.
Anyway, let’s get on with what’s new…………
January 2007:
Health-wise, things were not looking too bad. I had quite a bit of energy & apart from the dreadful pain in my hips, all other symptoms were a breeze at that time.
I got my first ‘promotion’ at work. I took on a bit more responsibility & got a pay rise for it too. This was when I really started to carve my little niche within the company & so far, it’s working nicely, thank you very much!!
February 2007:
I had my 42nd birthday. Tried to persuade the family to forget it (didn’t really want to get any older – lol), but they weren’t having any of it. I had a lovely lunch out with my daughters & a real fun night out with a bunch of friends –a superb day (& not a drop of alcohol passed my lips)!!
I started regular dog walking with a friend too. I don’t have a dog, but absolutely adore hers. He’s a black flat coated retriever called Harvey & he’s absolutely adorable. We’ve been on several walks over the weeks, a lot of them quite taxing but oh so enjoyable & it gives the 2 of us an excellent opportunity to have a good old gossip & chin wag, which is something we both excel at – lol!!
March 2007:
My 2nd promotion at work & yes, another pay rise! Certainly no complaints coming from me on that score. My main job is senior administration, but now I took on the management of our company’s courses as well, which we offer to externals & offer on a continual basis. I get a lot of satisfaction out of this part of my job & have already received praise for my “natural flair” in the marketing & organisation of the courses.
Our company offers all employees a sizeable sum to join a sporting club so I used my money to join the local gym – something I never in my life before would’ve pictured myself doing. I always imagined gyms to be full of muscle-bound men, but in reality, our gym couldn’t be more the opposite! I go 3 times each week, Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays, before work & am really starting to feel the benefit of it, both physically & mentally – I just hope that I can keep this up during treatment. I also started doing Tai Chi as part of my gym membership; I must look such a prat when I do it ‘coz everyone’s going up & left & I’m going down & right, but never mind, at least I’m giving it a go & it does relax me quite a lot.
I had my liver biopsy appointment on 20th March, which turned out to be a disaster & ended up in me writing a letter of complaint to the Chief Executive of the hospital. Having arrived in good time for my appointment & changing into my pyjamas, I was asked if I’d had my ‘clotting time’ blood test done prior to my appointment. “Yes”, I said, very confidently, “I had it done last week”. However, having checked my notes & rung the pathology lab twice, it turned out that I’d had the wrong test done & without a recent coagulation screen, they couldn’t do my biopsy. I was absolutely fuming!! Not only had I booked the entire day off work & arranged transport, but I’d spent ages psyching myself up for the biopsy. The staff in the X-ray department were lovely & very sympathetic. They gave me another appointment there & then for 17th April & also a blood test form – the correct one, I must say. So, when I left the X-ray department, I went straight to have my blood taken & then, as soon as I got out of the hospital, I rang my chocolate teapot (Hep C nurse). I told her what had happened & she proceeded to explain how it was the medical secretary’s job to send out the blood forms & that there had been a lot of sickness amongst the staff of late. I told her I didn’t want to hear the excuses & that I was going to write a letter of complaint, which I promptly did when I got home. I received a final letter to that complaint early in May & [knock me down with a feather], after a full investigation, the hospital are changing their procedure - it will now be the responsibility of the X-ray department to send out the blood forms!!! Quite a positive result, I thought.
April 2007:
Okay. So what happened last month??? This was a very eventful month……
It started off terribly, with my dad getting Belle’s Palsy, which is a viral condition (same virus that causes shingles) which results in one side (or far less common, both sides) of your face becoming paralysed. My mum thought he’d had a stroke & was worried sick. Dad hates going to the GP & had to be pushed to go. He was then sent to the hospital on a Friday evening, where I took him straight from work. He was kept in overnight, but home the following day with tablets & told to get plenty of rest. I think it frightened him, ‘coz for once in his life, he actually did as he was told & it settled down pretty quickly – within 8 weeks or so.
On 14th April I went to Derby for the NCHN conference. What an exhausting, but informative & pleasurable weekend!! I was soooo nervous, not knowing anyone – but that didn’t last long. I wasn’t the only one who didn’t know people & having something so strong in common, I felt so at home with everyone there. It was a weekend jam packed with information & chat, not to mention good food & accommodation. I have benefited so much from that weekend & it’s inspired me to give whatever I can back to the support group, no matter how small!
I finally had my liver biopsy on 17th April. Being arthritic, the hardest part for me, was keeping so still whilst the doctor took the biopsy & then lying flat for the 6 hours afterwards. I bled too much from the first site that she chose to try, so she had to give me double the local anaesthetic & try a second site which was successful. The anaesthetic made breathing quite a chore for ages afterwards, but I was back to work the following day, having put the experience behind me & the memory out of my mind. My chocolate teapot rang me just over 3 weeks later to say she’d got good news – I’m only a grade 1 fibrosis so damage is very minimal. She also gave me a firm date to start my treatment – 24th May. This started to bring home to me what was actually going to happen, although it all still seemed like a bad dream. She also said that, if I respond well to treatment, I may well get away with only doing 24 weeks instead of the usual 48; I’m not sure how I feel about this. The consensus on the forum seems to be that I should do the full 48 irrespective of my response & I think I’m inclined to agree. I know I’d curse if I only did the 24 & then relapsed ‘coz then there would always be that element of “what if…….?”
I plucked up the courage to tell my immediate boss after I’d got my treatment start date. My manager is the director of HR, herself disabled & a very open-minded lady. I spent over half an hour with her & told her my diagnosis & all about the treatment & possible side effects etc. She was great. Her reaction was very calm & sensitive. We discussed the potential need for me to take time off work & she said that we could arrange for me to work from home on days where, although I feel able to work, I couldn’t face going into the office. She also said she intends to support me in whatever way she can & always to remember that I can go & talk to her at any time. How good is that?? I feel very fortunate to have such an understanding manager. Although there are 60 people in our office, aside from my manager, I only work closely with 2 girls, both of whom I supervise & are considerably younger than me. I didn’t tell them anything until last Monday (21st May). All I said was that I’ve got a chronic health problem for which I need to take a form of chemotherapy for a year. I touched on the potential side effects & asked for their sensitivity & support, which they promised to give me & I’m confident that they will. I also said that if they have any questions, to come & see me privately & I’d be happy to talk to them. I feel I gave them just enough information & feel happy that they will be there for me within the confines of work.
posted by Maria | 6:48 AM
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