Family Update...

Cute bird that I caught in Hawaii.  I wanted to put in photos of my Cousin, but they just wouldn't upload....  :(








Hey Ya'll,

Well, Walt went to the Doctor to discuss his increasing Urinary frequency during the night, and his continual Heart Burn/Acid Reflux.  She immediately did a Urine Sample (which showed some Blood in the Urine), so she is trying Antibiotics for that.  She is hopeful that if the Infection is removed, the Urinary frequency would diminish.  As for the Acid Reflux, she setup an Upper GI for him.

He went in for the Upper GI last week, and it showed that he has a Hiatal Hernia and Acid Reflux (of course!).  So we are waiting for the test results to be sent to our Doctor, to see what she wants to do about it.  So far we have not heard back....she usually calls immediately after getting the results!

My Cousin that has Bone Cancer (she has already fought and won (we thought) Breast Cancer) is visiting her Sisters, Brother and Son right now.  I believe it could be her last visit with them.  She has had some bad days while there, where she was too sick to do anything.  Once her visit is over, she will return home to where she has been living with friends, who will be taking care of her in her final days....She has lost so much weight.  Weight wise, she actually looks good, but knowing the reason why she looks so much thinner, makes it not right.  She looks like she has lost at least 60 lbs.  But fighting (and losing to) Cancer is not the way you want to lose weight....

My Mom is really sick right now.  On top of having all her medical problems, a few of which are, Diabetes, Heart Disease, Spinal problems, Neuropathy, Liver problems, COPD, etc, etc, etc.  She appears to have the Flu right now too!!  We found out why she sleeps sitting up on the edge of the bed.  Apparently, when you have COPD and you lay down, it feels like your Lungs are being crushed, and it is very difficult and painful to breath....Then add the Flu and coughing to it, and can you say totally MISERABLE??

My Dad just keeps getting more bad news.  But like I said, I have felt for some time that he was ill.  I have felt for some time that the Moles on his Neck looked like Melanoma.  But he never went to the Doctor, unless he had to.  However, the last year his pain has increased significantly, so he has been going to the Doctor.  His Arm and Shoulder hurts him so bad that he can barely get any sleep at night.  So he ends up sleeping in his Recliner that we gave him.  It has been a life saver for him.

So he went in for a Bone Biopsy of the Hip, which showed that he has Bone Cancer.  The Doctor wanted my Dad to go in for some full body scans in the MRI and CT machines so that he could determine where the Cancer has spread to.  In the scanning, they found something in the Lung, so he went in for a Biopsy of the Lung last week.  He hasn't gotten the "official" results yet, but he told Walt that he believes he does have Lung Cancer too.  He also confided in Walt that he has been Dry Heaving.  He gets sick and feels like he needs to Vomit, but nothing comes out....So he has admitted to Walt that he has Bone Cancer and he believes he has Lung Cancer.  He has been losing weight, and is very weak.  He barely gets out of his chair anymore.

My Brother had his left Foot and lower Leg Amputation a couple of weeks ago.  He is feeling really good right now, and is trying to get used to not having the Foot.  He makes jokes, etc which is the kind of person that is always has been.  He has always been the one who knows just about every joke there is.  It is hard to be around him when he gets going and not laugh uncontrollably!!  Walt saw him while he was down in Sacramento over the weekend, and he said that he was doing really well.  He even showed Walt his Leg.

His Doctor said that he is doing so well, that he can start using a Prosthetic.  He has to wait for 2 months before he can go back to work though (as he is a Big Rig Truck Driver, and he needs his left Foot for the Clutch).  So he needs to wait until he can put full continuous pressure on his Limb.  He did say that he will probably buy an Automatic Truck when he can afford to though, just to make it easier.  And in about 18 months, he can transition to his permanent Prosthetic.  The Doctor said that he can't see any reason why my Brother can't go back to what he did before his accident, like playing semi-pro Mens Softball.  

So....this is what our family is dealing with right now!  My only prayer is that my Cousin, Mom and Dad doesn't continue to linger in pain long term.  When all they have is pain, their quality of life is gone....My Mom struggles just to get through every minute of every day.  My Dad is now in constant pain as well, and my Cousin is on major pain meds to help her through her Bone Cancer pain.

Aloha My Friends