First thing: he's okay! Not feeling great, but he's okay. His resilience continues to amaze me.
So, yeah, we had to take Biff to Emergency today (Saturday, May 20th). We took him to Urgent Care first - not a life-threatening situation - but they insisted we needed to go to the ER instead. I believe his age and the chemo were just beyond their usual scope. (Pretty sure everyone we saw in the waiting room at Urgent Care was under 30.)
Biff's lips were very swollen and his mouth and throat were seriously dry and burning. The pain was bad, and he couldn't keep the gargles or other fluids from drooling out of his mouth. And swallowing food just hurt too much. Along with a nasty fungal rash in a very uncomfortable place...
With the new chemo treatment, which is a tougher regimen than the chemo he had before with radiation, and the pain making it all but impossible for him to eat or drink, we decided to get him checked out.
Brought him back home with more medications to combat the pain/issues. It's not unusual for this chemo to bother his mouth and it makes him extra suseptiple to fungal rashes.
He's much more comfortable now, and the doctors expect both issues will get much better within a few days. I was joking with him: last week he had the pump thing hanging off him, so this extra thing he had to wear all week - and now he's basically gonna hang out in a t-shirt, going mostly commando, to let things air out as much as possible this week...🫣😂
Never a dull moment! And, I gotta say, being at the VA on a Saturday for the first time felt so strange. We spend so much time there on weekdays - the weekend was very different.
We were lucky. There were no patients in the waiting room for the ER when we got there, but it was the first time my purse, backpack, and tote were searched, and they "wanded" Biff - something that never happens when we go in on weekdays. They were able to take care of him very quickly relative to my experience in other ERs. They let me stay with him the whole time. The doctors were really nice, and the student doctor spent a lot of time with us. The VA is a teaching hospital. We generally enjoy meeting the students, although they are less prevalent in the oncology departments.
Then, while Biff rested in the ER waiting room after he was released, I was sent into the main part of the building and down to the basement level to pick up the meds. We've been down there many, many, many times for various appointments, and I had never before noticed the window for the "Inpatient Pharmacy" the ER uses on the weekends, which was the only thing open down there today. Very short wait there, too. The usual outpatient pharmacy always takes awhile, with many people waiting to pick up their 'scripts, but it was closed for the weekend.
On my way back to collect Biff, I passed one person in the main hallway. One!!! Those halls are usually full of people!!?! I joked to the guy I passed about how weird it was, and he said, "It feels like a movie." I said, "It does! Feels Zombies are going to show up!" He said something more about having to look for an open door to hide, we laughed, and wished each other a good weekend, before I scurried past him.
Anyway, the day got long, and I've realized we need to work out a new schedule for all the daily potions and pills again, get him back on track with the preventive stuff (which we just picked up yesterday - I guess they wanted to wait to see how things went this first week back in treatment before getting all that going again...!?!?🤷).
He is feeling better, hopefully sleeping as I write this post. And I'll make sure he's all dosed and rinsed (upstairs and downstairs, if you know what I mean) and medicated tomorrow and beyond. And as comfortable as possible. So glad we've been able to stop with the blood pressure meds (although we are monitoring his BP daily now, along with everything else - BP and temperature were good all day).
We have been planning to watch some of my old favorite movies tomorrow (Sunday, May 21) that we haven't seen in years - couldn't find them to stream or rent online, so we have gone old school and purchased DVDs: Coming Home and The Lion in Winter. May try to watch some lighter fare to break it up a little, too - but I'm pretty sure there will also be some basketball to see at some point (although the Lakers lost again today 🤬 🙄😚)... We'll keep it easy and relaxing. Hmmm: maybe a little Doordash for a special dinner, if he's up for it.
One last thing before I end this post, since we also found out today that a dear friend's life partner was severely beaten up when he confronted a couple guys stealing the catalytic converter from his car, and another very close friend just had a bout with COVID after avoiding it until now (luckily he's doing well), I hope you won't begrudge me wishing that you all stay safe and well. Please be careful out there.
And, if you would care to donate and/or promote the GoFundMe for our friend's partner (he is finally back home four weeks to the day since he was attacked and still recovering - he's a chef), here's that link:
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