THE NEW BEGINNING
Life was beginning to look good again. Finances were under control, the cytoxan therapy seemed to be working as well as expected and the stress level had decreased. We could look forward. I was taken off the cytoxan after 2 years. My doctor explained that 2 years was the preferred limit to avoid some of the more debilitating side effects. An unexpected result of the cytoxan therapy was the softening of my skin; I no longer had the “belts” around my arms, legs and torso. That, to me, was exciting! Not only was I no longer in such pain each day, but I didn’t have “Popeye” arms anymore. You know, the skinny arms to the elbow, then HUGE muscles – except mine wasn’t muscle, it just looked like it. However, I was relying on the supplemental oxygen more and more.
Our youngest son had been living with us for some time when one day in 2003, he announced he would be getting married in the very near future. This was another day I never thought I would live to see. His wedding brought our middle son to Oregon so he could attend. This was the first time I had seen him since he left home at age 18. Shaun and his bride continued to live in our home as they tried to get their lives settled and organized. Although our apartment was quite small, we managed without too much dissention.
In 2004, we decided we needed larger accommodations. As we investigated and inquired about different apartment complexes, we found the price of rent to be close to what a small home mortgage payment would be. AND if we quit smoking, the savings would help pay the extra costs. Since we are both disabled, we decided perhaps a condominium or small lot would be best. After a short time of looking, we found a home that was almost everything we wanted. In Sept 2004, we moved in along with Shaun and his wife who were more than willing to help out around the home. It seemed to be a good solution to a few smaller details regarding owning a home that gave us slight cause for concern. We had agreed upon moving into the new home we would NOT smoke inside, so as the months went by I cut back my smoking habit to less than ½ pack a day (only because I had other things to do besides sit outside smoking!).
The spring of 2005 was a rough one. There was some type of virus lurking around and we all seemed to get it. Each of us ended up in the ER at least once; Shaun, Angi and Al for respiratory problems (some type of bronchitis) and I suddenly developed an infection in my left eye and was admitted to the hospital for 36 hrs for observation and treatment. When I returned home I also began having some respiratory problems. Upon my return home from the hospital and catching the virus going around, I was sick in bed for another week. Too sick to go out! After that week, I decided I might as well just quit smoking completely since I was so close. Thanks to the support from Angi and Shaun, it was a fairly easy transition. It turned out to be the best decision of my life and at this time, I began using the supplemental oxygen full time at about 2 Liters per Minute.
To continue my journey with me click here. (New Doctors)