Vicki’s Journey

Hi Everyone!

The radiologist gave us a date for my hospital stay.

I’ll go into the hospital on Monday, April 6th. They will do some CT scans and the procedure to place the tubes on Monday. Then they will implant the radioactive seeds and hopefully they will destroy any remaining tumor in my pelvis.

I’ll be in the hospital for at least 2 nights. I’ll have an epidural and I won’t even be allowed to sit up or move on my own, so if you reach out, and I don’t get back to you, please know how much I appreciate it even though I probably won’t be able to get back to you until I’m home. Your kind words provide me with so much strength even if/when I can’t get back to you right away.

We’re not sure yet what our next steps are after this procedure, and the unknown can be a little anxiety inducing, but we’re trying to stay positive and hoping for the best possible results from this treatment. One day at a time!

I’d really appreciate your encouragement, prayers, and positive thoughts as I embark on this part of my treatment! Thank you thank you!

Love to you all,

Vicki

Hi Again!

Thank you so much for the sweet comments and well wishes. The response to the blog has been so positive. It truly means so much to be able to connect with so many people! I feel the love and it’s helping me get through this difficult time. Thank you thank you. 🙂

So, this week has been an adjustment. Just last week, I had Elyse, Preston, and Elyse’s boyfriend, Wade, with me at every appointment. The doctors joked about my “posse.” We had trouble getting rooms with enough chairs for all us when we’d meet with the doctors. They said how much they loved my support crew. Well, Preston headed back to Oregon last Wednesday thinking he’d be able to easily come back down in a few weeks. The doctors have advised against that for his safety and for mine. Today, they wouldn’t allow Elyse into the chemo infusion room with me. They took my temperature before they even let me into the infusion center! Things are changing rapidly. I understand and am grateful for the precautions being taken, but I’m very glad they kids were able to be with me while I was learning the ropes.

A positive change has been the traffic. If you’re familiar with Los Angeles, you know that the journey from Simi Valley down to UCLA in Westwood can be long. It’s roughly 30ish miles, but we’d leave at 6:30AM for an 8:00AM appointment and still barely make it on time! If we had a long or late day, and we had to leave UCLA anytime after 2 or 3, it could easily take another hour and a half to get home. Well, the coronavirus has changed that. We left the house at 7AM this morning and got to UCLA by 7:40! That is UNHEARD of in SoCal. Elyse was able to take me to my infusion, go back to Simi Valley, and come back to get me at 1:00 without any problems. Gotta look at the bright side of life!

Some of my check- ins with doctors will become phone appointments, and no one is supposed to be with me in the radiation waiting room or chemo infusion room, but so far, those are the only major changes to my treatment.

I’m wrapping up week 4 of treatment tomorrow. Next week is the 5th and final week of this first round. I have an MRI scheduled for Monday to prepare for my brachytherapy. I’d appreciate all the prayers and positivity going into that scan! We’re hoping the tumors are running scared and the scan will show us what progress has been made, as well as prepare the radiaologist for what she’s dealing with while I’m in the hospital. I’ll keep you posted!

Stay safe out there!

Love to you all,

Vicki