Pace Maker Time

ASPEN ANN REVALLO having fun.
 

This has been a week of WIND.  It blows and blows and warms up,
the wind stops at it gets cold.  And so it goes.  Not pleasant
walking weather.  I've been glad of my membership at Frasier
Meadows Wellness Center.

On the medical front, I've been trying to get my blood thin
enough such that I can revert from Warfarin to another chemical
that requires less attention to the details of what I do/do not
eat. On Monday I went to get my INR tested and decided that I
should mention that I was having frequent and more and more
frequent dizzy spells; I don't actually pass out, but feel as if I
might.  My INR was good such that I could get off warfarin, but
it was determined I should wear a heart monitor for 48 hours to
see what was going on.  I picked one up while I was there at the
clinic.

On Tuesday we went to the VA to see what were the results from
the blood draw.  It turned out that he can't take more infusions,
at least for 4 weeks. Robert was disappointed, but I must admit
that I was relieved.  He has been so sick after each set of
infusions that I wasn't sure whether he was going to be able to
stand any more.  At the moment he feels good and his blood work
says he is out from most of/if not all of the cancer.  The
question is how long this will last, but there really haven't
been enough tests to determine that at this time.


Wednesday noon I turned in my heart monitor and Dr. Weksler
called shortly after that.  I was out, but Robert took the
message.  It seems that my heart stops from time to time for as
much as 4-5 seconds (the dizzy spells).  Of course the question
is, will it start up again.  So far it has, but.  In any case, I
went in to talk with the cardiologist and stayed to be admitted to
the hospital to have a pace maker inserted!

I came home yesterday.  I think I had taken too many percacet and
benydril pills.  I had a terrible lower back ache such that I
couldn't sleep nor sit still for very long either.  I paced, sat
and read, got up and paced, etc until about 2:30 AM.  At that
point I was so tired and sleepy, I tried sleeping on the sofa and
did manage to sleep until 4:00 AM, at which time I went back to
bed and slept until 7:30 this morning.  I feel fine this morning.
I really have no idea of what was going on last night.

I think, as soon as the incision heals up and the pacemaker
settles down, I shall feel fine!

A Busy Week

On Monday, I saw my primary physician to get lab results.
I was happy with the results; kidney function had improved and
cholesterol was good!  In the afternoon Robert had an appointment
with his ENT.  His nose is doing better, but still drips more
than is comfortable.  At 3:30 I met with my personal trainer,
Hannah and she put me through 1/2 hour of work to improve my
balance and upper body strength.  Finally, at 5 PM, Rosa arrived
and brought the essay she had written, after interviewing me.  
It was interesting to read; she drew things out of me that I had
forgotten.

Tuesday we went to the Denver VA for Robert to have a blood draw
and see Dr. Braun preliminary to having infusions Wednesday,
through Friday.  However, his blood work was such that Dr. Braun
postponed the infusions until next week.  That was a
disappointment.  This was to have been his 4th round, leaving
only 2 more. But, it was not to be, at least this week.

I went to the gym and walked on the treadmill for 20 minutes,
until I suddenly felt really dizzy.  I stepped off and sat down
for a few minutes until the dizziness passed and then finished
off the hour working on some of the machines.

Jo came over Thursday afternoon and we blocked the scarf she had
been knitting off and on for several years.  We used my blocking
boards.  That is we measured and pinned the scarf to the boards
and then used the steam iron to set the block.  While we waited
for it to dry we had a cup of tea and chatted.

Jeanne, Ryan and Rochelle arrived at DIA early in the morning on
Friday and arrived at our house about 11:00.  Lorena arrived
at 11:20 just as Connie and Greg showed up, too. I had
reservations for all of us at Efrain's in Lafayette. This was so
that we could let Lorena clean.

We had a lovely lunch and Efrain's turned out to be very
inexpensive Mexican, but very good.  It was fun and we tucked
away in a corner such that the noise was minimal and we could
actually talk and hear.

We all came back to the house for more conversation except that
Ryan and Robert disappeared to work on the Solar system.  Connie
and Greg left about 3.  By dinner time Robert announced the solar
was up and running.  He was so appreciative of Ryan's help.  Our
brains don't work as well as they used to and he'd been having a
hard time figuring out how to get the system running.  Ryan was
able to help him with that.

Jeanne helped me with my new smart phone.  I can now answer calls
as well as make calls.  I can also play scrabble, probably one of
my least favorite games. It is easier playing it on my phone
because I can take days, if necessary to come up with another
word.  In any case, Jeanne is beating me and Ryan is, too.

Saturday, we three ladies spent the day, with my smart phone and
talking.  Rochelle has a new job such that she is not tied down
from Jan-Apr which is why she was able to be with us. She is
really happy with her new job.

Sunday, Carl, Martha and Gabby came for brunch.  Jeanne arrived
from their house with fruit for salad and home-made quiches; one
crab and the other cheese and broccoli.  I ate some of the crab
quiche and it was delicious.  We had a lovely brunch and
conversation.

Carl, et al had spent the day, Saturday in Evergreen where Gabby
was competing with her Color Guard Team; Sunday evening they had
tickets to the Dinner Theater.  They do keep busy.  We were lucky
they had time to come to the brunch.