Mood:
lazyNow Playing: Day 796-The Final Road To Survival
After spending lots of time resting my insides are now screaming so its time to walk, walk and walk! I sure hope gravity is on my side over the next few days in order to work this gosh awful treatment out of my system so I don't end up back at the hospital.
I can't believe its another holiday weekend. If feels like we just celebrated Mother's day last week and here we are with it being just a few days away from Father's day. YIKES! Luckily I got my gifts last week when I was feeling fairly well because this weekend it will be low-key for me. Where is the holiday made for us patients? One where others do good deeds in order to help us conserve some energy. Wouldn't that be nice? A day to be pampered and for others to endure our daily struggles for a change. Maybe then people would finally understand our condition. AMEN. Sadly I still firmly believe no one will ever understand Gastroparesis unless they either take a week walking in our shoes or stuff themselves during every meal as if it was Thanksgiving over and over and over and over again. 
Since this is the first Father's Day weekend with little Erik we decided to do something as a family. I have a fun activity planned but of course with Gastroparesis its best not to plan too far ahead because you never know one day from the next. Hopefully this weekend will bring me a few GP-free days.
Now that the rest of the yard work and landscaping is near completion it was time to bring out the porch chairs and table. The fur kids were so excited that it didn't take long for them to jump up and take a seat with Mom. I had the chairs out earlier this week but Oreo wasn't feeling good so he didn't last that long outside.
The weather is going to be in the mid 90's starting tomorrow so looks like we might have to hold off a bit before spending the evenings relaxing on the porch. Between my Idiopathic Gastroparesis/seizures and Eric's horrible allergies it appears we will likely be spending most of the summer months indoors. We sure do have a lot in common just like two peas in a pod. Hahahahaha!
down
Nothing quite like having Drano stuck and it making your electrolytes all out of whack then becoming severely dehydrated. How I drove myself up to the hospital was even a question the doctors and ER staff were wondering but let's just say as I told them, "It was one quick ride!" OK. Once again maybe a bad decision but when you are going downhill fast rhyme and reason is the last thing on your mind. The emergency room and getting there fast is the first and only thing on your mind. Calling someone to meet you up there isn't either but that of course comes into play later when you realize you can't drive yourself nor your own car home. Hahahaha!
So after a huge bag of IV fluids, blood work and waiting for my delayed kidneys to start working I was then finally released to go home and continue the Drano treatment waiting game. At least they got me fully re-hydrated and the tremors have calmed back down but I am still not thinking clearly due to all this fluid retention in my intestines.
The fur gang never likes seeing us leave but are always waiting for our arrival back home with tails wagging. They always put a smile on my face even on the worst GP days. Once I let my body rest it was around 1pm before I woke up to the sound of my cell phone ringing. I spoke to my doctor about what was happening with treatment only to be told once again, "Your intestines really need to come out. We can't keep having things like this happening because it is dangerous." Not that this is a no brainer but when you are on the receiving end with any surgery its not that easy. Let's just hope this new surgeon and her surgical team doesn't also scream like hell and run for the hills like the last group from two years ago. Hahahahaha! I am taking it one day at a time. Drano time that is...
don't ask
Drano and me just aren't working this time around. Treatment is now consisting of days playing the waiting game. Not like drinking tons of sodium and chlorine isn't bad enough but when it gets stuck in your stomach and intestines it takes things to an entirely different level. I feel for my fellow GP clean out friends who have to endure weekly treatments of mag-citrate only to sometimes also find out things don't always go as planned and it too gets stuck. Instead of laying around "thinking" about it I decided to once again play landscaping Supervisor as my Husband finished up the new flower beds so we could plant the rest of the wildflower and sunflower seeds. Hopefully the squirrel gang won't find this new flowerbed. Hahahaha! Wishful thinking! At least the weather was perfect. Not too hot and not too humid so if we are going to get all this last minute planting out of the way we better do it now before the nasty summer heat is here.
I will never be able to enjoy summertime anymore. Not with Gastroparesis and connected seizures. I am slowly getting my body to sleep and rotate with the change of season but even just a little bit of outdoor sun and heat tends to quickly zap my energy. This seems to be the typical norm with GP'ers who have been writing me saying they too would rather just skip summer all together because they can never enjoy the outdoor activities. 
CHEERS TO THAT! 
So....I finished up another Hell-In-A-Jug treatment by early this evening then decided to play landscaping Supervisor while my Hubby got the flowerbeds de-weeded and ready to plant more wildflower seeds. The sunflower seeds we planted last week became a quick snack for the squirrels so I decided to just plant some additional wildflower seeds that way I know at least they won't become an appetizer for the wildlife gang. Hahahaha! Wildflower seeds are great because you get such a wide variety of flowers that come in a rainbow of colors. They are also low maintenance and love the sun and summer heat. 
The tiger lillie's and roses are doing really good and so are the butterflies bushes however we have only seen a few butterflies so far this year. Hopefully once the first round of wildflowers start blooming that were planted last month we will start seeing more butterflies and hummingbirds since they attract both. 
After a long Drano day for me and a productive day outside for Eric we decided to get the lounge chairs out to relax. Seems Oreo and Littleblue had the same idea so we each shared part of our chairs. Looks like the next thing on our list to buy for this summer and fall will be a few more chairs!
hungry
Maybe my intestines need their own social security number because clearly they are starting to have their own identity. Everything lately has literally been evolving around my GI organs. NO LIE.
Between the every other day feeling of not being able to breath due to the intestinal inflammation pushing on my lower lungs and daily energy that quickly gets zapped its been a one thing GI event after another. For those who have asked, "Is that a new hair style in your wedding photo?" and other questions I have honest answers for you but for those who are fellow GP friends you already knew the answers.
I guess my point is, life is clearly what you make of it. Good or bad. While people might spend their time and money buying into vanity and what others believe they should look like I am too busy putting my time and money into saving vital organs in order to just survive. Kinda strange how being sick puts life into perspective isn't it? Wisdom isn't gained by age. Wisdom is gained by survival and learning life sustaining lessons along the way.
Now I know how Pumpkin kitty feels eating the same ole food day after day so its no wonder now I have to change it up a bit and mix a different variety with his normal food. It has also been keeping him from meowing all hours of the night due to being bored with his food. Yes! The fur gang are one word, "spoiled" but they are well behaved fur kids and worth it!!
At least Cuddles kitty is getting some use out of it today. Hahahaha! She looks too funny! Poor Oreo has been having one heck of a time with his hearing. Its scaring him so much that I am now literally tripping over him as he stays close near my feet. We have to take him back to the Veterinarian next week to see how much hearing he has left or if maybe one ear is better than the other. Its tough on poor Oreo but I am so glad someone is always home with him.
One of my dear fellow GP friends Darlene recently got the Gastroparesis Awareness Campaign motto I started eight years ago tattooed around her ankle. It looks so neat and its such an honor to have others sharing the saying, "KEEP ON! KEEPING ON!"
With Gastroparesis it is indeed a struggle with the wide range of symptoms we all suffer on a daily basis. Support is very important and such a critical key to our over all care! Its been truly amazing watching our GP family grow through out the years and no matter how hard the journey may become we will never walk alone because we will always have each other. AMEN!
"Just" when the honeysuckle trees and bushes were finally full and providing plenty of shade near the back patio area POOF! they disappeared!! Remember, we built a small sandbox on the patio last fall so this spring and summer once the honeysuckle trees and bushes grew back I could enjoy sitting out there since they provide lots of shade. What I didn't know was while I was sleeping the shade was slowly starting to disappear. Mind you, if I do any yard work that might go into either neighbors side of their yard I always made sure to ask them before cutting. I would assume everyone has some common courtesy to do the same but I was wrong. Instead now having a quiet shaded place to rest and put my feet in the cool sand after treatment days I might as well instead head down south to the ocean because its gone. Yes. That started my day waking up to realize my new neighbors butchered all the beautiful honeysuckle trees and bushes so they could plant grass seed?!! Say what? Another thing was I just planted grass seed for shaded areas where the bushes were and the grass was growing nice and thick. Now it just defeated the whole purpose. So did having somewhere in the backyard I could rest and enjoy after enduring Drano. I guess its that half-moon day or something because I would had thought like the prior neighbors who lived there they would had said, "Hey, since the bushes and trees are hanging over a bit I am going to just trim them back but we wanted you to see it first so we don't cut too much or everything back." Instead there is no shade anymore and if it ever grows back it will take years. Needless to say I was shocked once I walked outside to see the shade had disappeared.After the fact I was then told by one of the neighbors they decided to cut everything back this morning however shouldn't they had said something prior?. 
So I might be rambling on a bit but I don't expect anyone to understand the little things those who are sick with a terminal condition enjoy because they don't walk in our shoes. They only walk in their own. 
Thank goodness for a new day! AMEN.
chillin'
Oreo has been hanging in there and doing a bit better each day. We both got a really cute card this week from my dear Angel friend down south. Oreo is so smart he actually read the part to him. Hee,hee,hee,hee...See, you can teach an older fur kid new tricks! So far we haven't had to increase his dosage on both medications but we still need to continue keeping a close eye on him. He still has occasional tremors and gets scared a lot which is normal they said since he is also losing his hearing. Its hard seeing him not feel well but we have been doing our best to give him lots of kisses and hugs. He continues to enjoy bonding time by my side while I catch up on my taped television shows. When he is ready to call it a night he jumps down to sleep on his huge floor bed. Littleblue has been doing a great job playing fur nurse to Oreo and even takes a few naps laying next to him.
It seems both of us are now experiencing the other side of the mountain. We have both been through hell and back and hell again through out the years so its been wonderful sharing all the recent great news with each other! We always joke around that somehow they must had switched cribs at birth because we are just like siblings. I sure wish we lived closer but since he is the first to make it out west it won't be too much longer when we will be following right behind. Hubby is more than ready to make the big move and continue positive changes in our lives. I couldn't agree with him more but unfortunately right now I must ride out this next medical challenge to see what the future holds.
"Life comes with no guarantees, no time outs, no second chances. Don't be afraid to fall in love because every second wasted is a second of life you can never get back."
d'oh
This has been an exhausting week! So far the short list of things to do has now turned into a huge list. Thank goodness for both of us now tackling things together which hopefully means cutting the time in half! 
With the heat upon us starting this weekend its our goal to finish the big "To Do List" way ahead of time before my next treatment which is right around the corner. We haven't had much time to celebrate being newlyweds however there is plenty of time for that later on. Right now we are just enjoying some peace and quiet by tuning out the reactions of some individuals in the city who were never supportive to start with and instead surrounding ourselves with those who were always there for us and cared about my happiness and over all well being. Thank you my dear friends! Thanks to the never ending kindness and support of strangers our fairy tale wedding will continue later this summer at Indiana Downs horsetrack as we re-exchange our wedding vows in front of friends and GP family. 
celebratory
