Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Good morning.

Apparently Germany is where Christmas trees and advent calendars originated.  They have a tradition that I have never heard of:  the Christmas Pickle!  A glass pickle ornament is tucked deep in the boughs of the tree the night before Christmas; the first child to find it in the morning (it’s hard because it blends in with the tree) is allowed to open his or her presents first!

It just reminded me of an unusual Christmas in my life.  One year, it was my idea to spend Christmas at our cottage in Point Clark, thinking of white fluffy snow,  sunshine, able to go walking  by the frozen lake, sounding beautiful.  So off we went in two cars, fully loaded with presents and lots of food for the week-end, Christmas Eve and dinner the next day.  All went well until we hit Listowel where we ran into a major snow storm.  So of course, since we are Canadians, we did not listen to the advice of the OPP and followed a snow plow along Hwy. 86 until we got above Wingham………………… the snow plow entered the ditch and following close behind, so did we!

We ended up welcomed by a lovely couple, spending Christmas Eve in their one bedroom farm house, sleeping on the living room floor.  They called their neighbours, brought food and a ‘little’ booze via snow mobiles, and had the most amazing meal, fun, laughter and a bad night’s sleep.  Just showed us the kindness and compassion of country folk!

The next day, sun shining, neighbours dug us out, snow plow pulled out, road cleared and we continued  to the cottage to celebrate Christmas.  The turkey was still frozen solid as was the lettuce, veggies, potatoes and all other trimmings for the Christmas dinner.  We ended up eating a pot of frozen chili from the freezer for our dinner.   We went to the bush, cut and trimmed a ratty little tree, made popcorn and strung it on the tree and had one of the BEST Christmas' ever!  We were together and that’s all that mattered.  Good memories!

Second day of liquids over so today is the first day of semi-solid and solid foods.  Munching Myrtle is dancing around here like a fool – doing back flips, front flips and going around in circles!  She thinks she’s getting something, anything.  Her hips and lips are moving like crazy, just waiting.

Nicole, the Dietitian/Nutritionist, standing in front of me looking slim, healthy and perky says she eats between 6-7 meals a day.  Obviously they are very healthy and small – maybe Myrtle is smarter than I think!

So Myrtle and I are going to have a good day – trust you will too!

Monday, December 17, 2012

J E L L O

There are not too many foods in this world that I almost hate and refuse to eat.  They are mincemeat pie, raisin pie, and bloodsausage.  There are also things that would not be my first choice at a buffet table and they are Jello to eat and apple juice to drink.   But today, a food tray was brought to my room with the approval of my Doctor.   It was the first bit of clear fluids/soft foods offered since Tuesday am, I just thought it was the most wonderful in the world!  I must have mentioned at least 5 times, how much I was enjoying the Jello while eating it!   It’s so interesting how much you can change your mind about things in a short time!

My mind was almost changed about nurses last night too (well not really).  I had a very humiliating experience with the help of a nurse called A.  So in order to deal with it, I made sure that I pushed the call button many times during the night, asking her to do things for me that I ALWAYS do for myself in order to save them time.  I sweetly thanked her each time and killed her with kindness.  The last request was requesting an extra blanket and she even offered a ‘warm’ blanket for me.  She sheepishly slung out of the room.  I’m not sure is slung is a word but that’s what she looked like……..

When the door to my room opened this morning and a sweet smiling regular nurse named Shannon walked in I knew my life was going to get better.  I asked her if A was a ‘real’ nurse and she wondered why I would question that.  So I told her a ‘real’ nurse has a heart and A should be in another profession.  Her response was “Well, Dianne, I’m going to make sure that you have a great day, starting now”.  I already knew that was going to happen as soon as I saw her lovely face peek in the door.

I found out later that A is not very respected but was in a rotating position because they were extremely short staffed on the floor, hopefully never to come near me again.  She really is a hazard to patients.  So tonight I have a very caring ‘real’ nurse named Csilla, typical of the wonderful care of this hospital and of all nurses.

I had my sister, niece, nephew and families drop in today on their way to the Meyer Christmas Party - lots of extra love floating around in my room for about 15 minutes, then magic hugs from two little grandchildren and their parents.  Wonderful day!

I was able to hook up with the server used by the Grand River Hospital so I will be able to settle my problems with the internet and know my emails will be received in real time instead of 4-5 days after my sending them.  I got a little giggle when I found out the cost of it - $9.95/day or $19.95 for a week!  What a small price to pay for my sanity while here and the ability to stay in touch with friends and family.

My friendly Doctor has put a stop to visitors – wants me to concentrate on getting better and focus my energy on that. 

Life is good – Jello is good and hopefully things are perking along on the upswing.  I’m feeling stronger and look forward to being home for Christmas.

Have an awesome day.

Sunday, December 16, 2012

Good morning.  My strength and energy levels are not so good to-day so this is going to be a short one.

I got good news last night when I found a scale here at the hospital- - my weight is the same as it was at home this past Tuesday.  I was very pleased as my body has not had any food or water since then - obviously Miss IVey has been providing me with enough nutrients to keep me going.  The only problem is that my body is starting to look like a 90 year old - flabby and hanging so I devised a solution - DON'T LOOK AT IT!!!!!  Problem solved!

My Mom always used to tell me that a little "speck"  (fat) was good because if and when you ever got sick, it was there to hold you for awhile.  Smart Mother.

A 12" artificial Christmas Tree was delivered to my room yesterday - it is just too cute and has brightened the room.  I love it.

At our beautiful home near Mount Forest, we usually have 2 or 3 hummingbirds flying around and with the Christmas Tree, a card was enclosed about hummingbirds.  It reads:

"Legends say that hummingbirds float free of time, carrying our hopes for love, joy and celebration.  The hummingbird's delicate grace reminds us that life is rich, beauty is everywhere, every personal connection has meaning and that laughter is life's sweetest creation."

Ain't that the truth!

Have a great day.

Saturday, December 15, 2012

"These Boots Were Made For Walking"...............no, Nancy Sinatra was not here to sing it but Bob and I were mumbling it as we were able to walk the halls yesterday.  It was nice to be able to get around, get some exercise even though we had to take the IV pole with us.  We have to find a name for her...............  I'm still in isolation (standard procedure because I came from Mount Forest hospital) and hope I'm able to stay in my own room for awhile instead of being moved to a 4 ward room.  They do let me out to walk.

It is amazing how the attitude of nurses affects patients.  They have all been so caring and easy to work with, dedicated and kind.  I admire their ability to work 12 hour shifts and display the same warmth at the end of their shift as they have at the beginning.  We have lots of discussions and make decisions together. 

Yesterday, a gal came from the other end of the floor to relieve my nurse during a lunch break  - she was very abrupt, gave orders when she knew nothing about me and had the 'personality of a wart'.  I try not to judge people who are nasty because they could be fighting their own personal battles but  I do  think they should try to keep them away from their jobs  especially working in the health care field.  They spoil it for all the excellent nurses who dedicate their lives.  Okay, that's my rant for the day!

After getting 2 hour, 3 hour stints of sleep at a time during the past  few weeks, last night I got a straight 8 hours of sleep!!  I was so pleased when I awoke this morning - sleep helps heal the body and the soul - so yippee for that little bit of help!!

I am driving Munching Myrtle crazy - she's still hanging  around hoping for something, anything.  She hasn't had any food or water since Tuesday  morning and is running around in circles going crazy, hoping for some of that great Christmas baking sitting at home, brought in by nice friends and family.   She's probably afraid Bob will have eaten it all by the time we get home.  She doesn't realize she's getting lots of nutrition via drip, but she wants the REAL thing. 

The Nutritionist/Dietician was in yesterday and was very pleased to hear that I had been trying to detox my body with food to get it to an alkaline state during the past 6 months.  When I'm able to introduce soft, then solid foods, she can hit the ground running rather than start from scratch.  So eating kale and bok choy, etc. and lots of lemon in my diet  has paid off - wasn't so sure at the time.

Anyway, onwards and upwards today.  It sounds as if the week-end will be spent being monitored, with calmness and serenity, which is a good thing.  Oh, I forgot to say that Bob and I played a game of Skip-Bo last night.................and I won!

So, Nancy Sinatra, Bob and I will hopefully be strolling the halls today, trying to get my strength back until they figure out what to do with me.

Have an awesome day!

I just spent the last hour looking for this, thinking I had lost it - thought I would have to put my 'big  girl panties' on and start over.  Thank goodness - now I can focus my energy on other things.

Friday, December 14, 2012

"What A Difference A Day Makes - 24 Little Hours"!  I'm not sure who sang that song, but I was mumbling it last night before going to bed in my isolated room at Grand River Hospital.

Early yesterday morning, Bob and I visited the Emergency Department at Louise Marshall Hospital in Mount Forest because of severe weakness and other problems.  They probably thought, "Here she comes again.......now what!"

Anyway, as usual, they  took matters in hand and again a Doctor, unknown to me, filling in at the Hospital,  ordered the proper tests, made the right decision and shipped me off to Grand River for consultation.  It seems everything went right - they were able to accommodate me, a specialist that I trusted just happened to be on call (and a friend of his), a private room (though in isolation) was available, the EMS was available, the ride to KW was smooth, the entry into the hospital was slick and smooth - straight to the room. 

Here again, after a CT scan and lots of theories, Dr. Kilmurray came up with a plan - observation without food and water for 2-3 days (poor Munching Myrtle is thinking of doing herself in........) then introducing food but still monitoring me while in hospital. I'm okay with this - they know what they're doing and I'm going along for the ride.

When anyone complains about our Health Care System, I'm sure it does cause problems for some people BUT if you REALLY need it or it's an emergency, IT WORKS and it  works well!!

So my day didn't pan out as I had expected or wanted it to work out, but positive action is being taken - that's a good thing.

With all the goodies coming through my IV, I feel stronger this morning and wonder if maybe I'll be able to run a marathon by Sunday - who knows..........

Just think - 10 days until Christmas and I'll be home with my sweetheart - a lot to look forward to!

Have an awesome day everyone.  I will have a positive day, asking lots of questions and hopefully getting many good answers.

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Good morning - feeling okay today - apparently sleep helps heal the body and I seemed to get a lot of that yesterday, off and on during the day.

Another thing that helps heal the body is positive thinking. 

While living in Heidelberg, I always admired the Stemmler Family, who operate Stemmler Meats in the tiny village and Farmers Market, hard working, loyal to their customers, a company you can always depend on.

When I heard the Dad, Gerry Stemmler was going through some major health problems, it was sad to hear that after all the years of working so hard, he had to endure this instead of slowly retiring, relaxing  and passing the business to his sons.  Anyone who knows Gerry would giggle at the 'relaxing' part of that sentence.......he seemed to love to work.

His original diagnosis was bladder cancer and then colon cancer - his prognosis was 6 months to live - go home and get your affairs in order, he was told.  Well, he was given that advice11 years ago, again 2 years ago and then again 1 year ago.  He was at his Oncologist's office yesterday and everyone is amazed - they cannot find any cancer!

He still goes into work 2 hours in the afternoon - good for the business and good for Gerry to keep busy.  He  admits that he does not do this alone - he has an amazing wife Marianne (we all know that), a very supportive family, a great surrounding community of St. Clements and Heidelberg, good friends and a LOT of prayers coming his way.

What amazes me about Gerry is whenever or wherever you meet him, he ALWAYS has a smile, a great positive attitude and is thankful that he is alive and appreciates and tries to live life to the fullest.  He knows life is not fair, accepts whatever happens and lives with it.
He apparently talks with a few cancer patients who are going through radiation and chemo for bladder and colon cancer with concerns and fears.  He is able to calm them, I'm sure.

The point of this story is ........I was looking for some inspiration when this new battle came into our home and I knew what I wanted.  I want a photo of Gerry Stemmler hanging on my bulletin board and if I ever get down, I want to look at it and say to myself "If Gerry Stemmler can do it, so can I!"   So the photo apparently is on its way and up it will go!  Thanks Gerry.

Have a great day everyone - I hope and intend to.


 

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

I just realized I have something sitting at the top of my screen  (I think it's called a toolbar - told you I was computer illiterate)  that says "music" - clicked on it and now have lovely classical music softly coming out of my laptop!  So nice at 5 am while I'm sitting here meditating.

Got up at 2 am after 5-1/2 hours sleep, feeling pretty good and found a sweet handsome man sitting at the dining room table working on a jig-saw puzzle so spent a few hours with him chatting and working on it until he got tired and went to bed.  As I've said before, we have an interesting night time ritual around here!

While continuing to purge and reduce clutter yesterday (and keeping my mind busy), I came across an article that said "15 Things You Should Give Up To Be Happy".  I thought "give up?" - sounds odd, but read it and it makes a lot of sense.

1.  Give up your need to always be right 
2.  Give up your need for control
3.  Give up on blame
4.  Give up your self-defeating self-talk
5.  Give up your limiting beliefs
6.  Give up complaining
7.  Give up the luxury of criticism
8.  Give up your need to impress others
9.  Give up your resistance to change
10.  Give up labels
11.  Give up on your fears
12.  Give up your excuses
13.  Give up the past
14.  Give up attachment
15.  Give up living your life to other people's expectations

Number 15 continues on to say - Way too many people are living a life that is not theirs to live.  They live their lives according to what other think is best for them, to what their friends, their enemies, their government and the media think is best for them.  They ignore their inner voice, that inner calling.  They are so busy with pleasing everybody, with living up to other people's expectations, that they lose control over their lives.  They forget what makes them happy, what they want, what they need...and eventually they forget about themselves.  You have one life - this one right now - you must live it, own it, and especially don't let other people's opinions distract you from your path.

I probably picked this article up when working at Regional Addiction & Family Counselling Center in KW way back when.  It was an interesting read and food for thought.  I always think it would be nice to learn these things at an early age rather then when we get old..........

Anyway, how do you tell a Christmas Cactus plant that it's time to bloom - how does it know that Christmas is almost here and it should be starting to show some shoots?  It looks the same as it has looked all year......................

Anyway, have a good day everyone - I intend to.

Tuesday, December 11, 2010

It's 5:00 am and I'm feeling rested after 4 hours of sleep, no pain just low stamina and weakness which we are trying to 'fix' by raising my low protein levels.  We are on a mission!  So look out!  Bob and I need projects and we tend to attack them with a vengeance.  Thank goodness he knows how to keep me grounded (most of the time anyway).

My goal is to make sure I eat enough protein in a day for my elevated needs right now but most importantly to make sure I don't overdo it which could probably have ill effects too.  After all, I don't want to end up looking like a body builder (lol).  So with the direction and advice from lovely Miss Sarah, Nutritionist at the Clinic here in Mount Forest, web sites were checked,  recipes were printed, Health Food Stores in Listowel were visited and then we started.  We were able to determine the amount of grams required each day.

Wonderful Bob left to go to his man-cave and I picked up another partner - Munching Myrtle.  Instead of grazing for food, I put her to work by reading labels and listing grams of protein in the things I eat on a daily basis.  I devised a chart to leave on the kitchen counter to refer to, then a chart where I am able to record my intake to make sure I am fitting into the proper total needed.  So it was a very productive day - let's hope it works.

Thanks to all the ladies who have helped to figure out how to leave comments.  Apparently the bottom line is:  write a comment, click on Anonymous and click on publish.  It seems to be working by doing it that way.  I think Google just wanted people to develop a GMail account  with them (I don't like that method) but by doing it this way, you don't have to.  By using Anonymous, I can't tell who sent it, so the gals have been adding their name at the end of their message. 

Anyway, have a great day - I intend to.

Monday, December 10th, 2012

Good morning. Feeling good, no pain - still looking for stamina and energy to overcome this low protein level theory. I learned a valuable lesson yesterday. We started out at 9 am fully intending to go to see my newfound friend Father Murray who has mass at the Ayton Church.

By the time we had a healthy breakfast (which takes time to prepare), had a shower and tried to find clothes to dress me with, I realized it was 11:05 and Mass starts at 11:00 am. It was like trying to get a 90 year old woman ready. Soooooo next Sunday we will try again but this time more planning will be involved - shower the night before, different breakfast and clothes chosen ahead of time that fit!

We then attended a nice buffet at the Golf Steak House with my siblings and their spouses. Loved it! Regarding my family, I have a story I would like to tell.

In 1989, I was at our winter home in California with my former husband Carl. He was in the late stage of his illness and we realized he did not have a long time to live and had to get back to Canada. There we were sitting with a little doxie called Lassie and a car ready to head back to Canada. Carl was going to be in the back seat and Lassie and I were supposed to drive 2,500 miles, through some major cities, etc. home! At that time, there was no such thing as a GPS and Lassie was going to be my navigator with Carl's help, of course(lol).

I called my Mother and told her my dilemena - I was scared out of my mind but would do it if I had to. A half hour passed and the phone rang - Carl said "that's your Mom calling back". It was, with the announcement that my sister Dorothy, brother-in-law George and my brother Ray were flying down to bring us home. We were stunned!!The men took navigator Lassie with them and started the trek home. I'm not sure if they had much experience driving across the United States, especially through some complicated areas to get home but off them went.

When booking direct flight tickets for Carl, Dorothy and me, American Airlines strongly suggested to pack overnight bags because if they saw one drop of blood or ANY problem, they would land the plane at the nearest airport, we would have to get off and we were on our own. We would then have to get to the nearest hospital, etc. (I don't remember if we would be charged for the landing - I don't want to even think about that!).

We did land safely in Toronto, thank God - so happy and relieved that we almost kissed the ground! Standing there was Jan with a beautiful warm and caring smile, but relieved, to greet her Dad. Days later, the men and little Lassie arrived in Canada safely.

The point of this story is FAMILY! What an awesome family I have............how many people would have offered and followed through on something like that? My heart grows every time I remember that selfless act. To me, that's what FAMILY is all about.

On the way home yesterday afternoon, we picked up some magic hugs in Waterloo from a 10 and 8 year old, dropped some photos to favourite cousins in St. Clements and drove home, listening to John Berry's beautiful Christmas music. What a delightful day..................

Sunday, December 9, 2012

Had a pretty good night - fell into bed at 10 pm which is very early for me.  I was beat, after having a nice productive day.  Woke up and found Bob in the chair watching TV with his eyes closed (aka sleeping).  So he eventually goes to bed, then I go to sleep in the chair in the office - it's like a rotating sleep-a-thon around here!

I've been searching for recipes for protein shakes - the fruit type is easy to make and delicious but I was looking for recipes using veggies - think I might have trouble getting used to using veggies in them.  It seems all the web sites want to sell their products - they do share recipes, but am trying to figure out what they mean by one 'scope'.  I assume it's just a very large tablespoon or two?!??!

I've been thinking of people who are ill, need kidney transplants, get on the top of the list, receive a kidney from a sibling, then go back to their old lifestyle and mess up the organ and their life when another person could have used it to live a better life.  Or someone who self-destructs with drugs, goes through an over-dose, spends thousands of health-care dollars, then goes back on them again blaming everyone else for his or her problems.  Or the person who has come through horrendous odds, is declared cancer free but wants to die because she has nothing to live for - even though she was given a wonderful second chance at life!  What is that all about?

I'm trying not to feel and sound bitter about incidents like this and wondering what we can learn from it - why anyone who is given a second and third chance at life goes and throws it away. 

Two years ago when I was dignosed with B-Cell Lymphoma, I just assumed I would go through chemo treatments and be cured!  I was (I thought) and appreciated, so thankful  and enjoyed every day after.  Then last winter when I ended up with Cold Agglutinin Disease (where I had to stay in 85 degree temperatures at all times) and then became transfusion dependent for 3 months and all that went into remission after massive doses of chemo, I was as happy and thankful as a pig in dirt!

So thankful that I spent from June until November trying to cleanse my body of toxins to get into an alkaline state to starve cancer cells but the little devils decided to come back again anyway.  Maybe I should have eaten more than one tiny square, one pork chop in 6 months and more than one cup of coffe a week, etc. etc., pigged out and 'enjoyed life'.  I did enjoy life, loved it in fact and did feel a lot better.  Losing the 12 pounds helped too - liked that part a lot!  I'm probably repeating myself here but when I found out it was not going to be an easy cure with just chemo, etc. I sat down and ate a great big fat chocolate bar and enjoyed every single bite!  Munching Myrtle was born!

So my rant this morning is that I AM PISSED by people who throw their life away, especially after given a second chance.  We all take life for granted on a daily basis but it seems when we get a kick in the pants, get through a situation on the plus side and THEN take life for granted again, IT IS WRONG not to appreciate it and be thankful.  Maybe it's about time I'm getting angry about all this!

There - that's my story and I'm sticking to it!

Hope everyone has a good day - no snow here in the Mount Forest area - we just have houses blow up, according to the news.

Saturday, December 8, 2012

I'm having a good morning after 5 straight hours of sleep, enjoying my new found recipe for a Protein Drink. 

I got my hair cut yesterday and lovely Adelle sent me home, looking wonderful, fit to go to a party!  I felt like a queen.......what a treat.

I always feel so blessed to be my age when I hear stories and look around to see the young women fighting their battles with cancer.  Some are single mothers supporting children, working one full time or two part-time jobs and trying to get through life without adding this horror to it.  At the Cancer Center, there seems to be many ladies in their late 30s and early 40s in the Chemo 'barn' - the probability of them having a young family at home is pretty good.  I can't imagine what they go through, running for treatments, Doctors visits and juggling their lives to try and stay on top, I'm sure hanging on by their fingernails.  It takes me a long time just to keep track and record the happenings and changes on a daily basis.  I just hope they have a good support system around them - they would need it!

The nice part about being old and retired and having a wonderful supportive husband is that I don't HAVE to get up at a certain time, I don't HAVE to go to work, I don't HAVE to do much of anything to get through the day, other than look after myself and be able to deal with any new problems that come up.  So what if I get 2 hours sleep, then get up - I can always go back to bed at any time of the day and night!  My heart goes out to these brave women and I admire them greatly.

Because I've been snacking less and eating better, smaller (but substantial) meals, I've been able to keep Munching Myrtle at bay!  That little witch still hides around the corner and a radar beam keeps coming out of the treat box saying COME GET ME - I'M GOOOOOOOOOOOD, but I'm really trying to limit myself to a treat AFTER a small meal. 

Hope everyone has a good day - I intend to.  Looking forward to having grandson Matt and his lovely fiance Agnes come for a small visit.  I'll be able to hear about their upcoming wedding plans!

PS  I'm still working on this silly problem with 'comments'.

Friday, December 7, 2012

Good morning. 

Had a good 4 hours of sleep, wide awake so decided to get up and get on with my day.  I realized we have a wealth of information right here in Mount Forest at the local clinic.  During the summer, I attended a program for 3 months called Healthy U and the moderator (Nutritionist) is excellent.  I'm sure she will be able to help with a Protein Chart to get me on the path to choose the foods with the highest protein levels and give me tips to get me stronger.

Just heard another frustrating story the other day about a family whose mother died. The daughters were at the funeral home not knowing the wishes of the deceased.  She had been ill for awhile but didn't share her thoughts with the children. Do your family a favour, people, write things down or talk about it.  It's going to be tough enough at the time without giving them more stress! In fact, people are now making preparations with their Funeral Director ahead of time, which sounds like a good idea.  You don't have to pay for it up front, just indicate your intentions.

We all think we will live forever of course.  You should definitely have a will and update it every five years which makes sense.  If not changed, it  should be reviewed.   Honest, I'm not getting a commission from any Funeral homes (lol).

I'm noticing people our age are starting to downsize and thinking  about making  life more simple and enjoying life.  Guests are surprised that our closets and drawers are relatively neat and clutter free - we've been cleaning and sorting for a few years now - the Thrift Shop in MF and a spot in Palmerston have been the recipients of most of it.  Clutter-free is a good thing!  Our 'clutter' is sitting out where we can enjoy it - all the beautiful southwest pieces - beauty to us but I'm sure 'clutter that needs dusting'  to others.

I'm babbling on so will end this.  By the way, thanks folks for the kind comments - hope it's working.

I'm on my way to get my hair cut this afternoon - YIPPEE!!!!! 

Settings for Comments

Since I'm definitely technically challenged, I decided to try and change MY settings here on the blog and went to Posts & Comments, and when asked 'who can comment', I clicked off ANYONE (including Annonymous Users).  So hopefully this will work and people like killer Jeffrey Dahmer won't be able to leave silly messages. 

Would someone like to try to leave a message to see if this works?  Thanks.

Cousin Stephanie spent a lot of time trying to help me, but I reminded her that most of my friends are just as challenged (and old) as me and our minds aren't quite as sharp.  I guess I should keep that to myself (lol).

Thursday, December 6, 2012

Good morning.  I feel like I'm sitting here in my comfy chair and just having a little chat with you all.

I had a very interesting day yesterday. 

For the past 6 months, I've been on a mission to 'cleanse' my body of all toxins received from my many scans and input of nuclear medicine pumped into it and wanted to end up with an alkaline body where cancer does not like to live.  So with the help of a Nutritionist,  I was on a plan with no pork, very little beef, a lot of different foods that I normally would not even try, limited to one coffee a week, one glass of wine a week, (that was a tough one), one bottle of beer a week, no creams, no sweets or sugar because cancer LOVES sugar.  I changed my way of cooking - switched to using a LOT of lemon juice instead of creamy dressings, etc.  I have to admit that I stuck to it really well, lost 12 pounds but FELT GOOD!  I missed a lot of my normal foods but felt I wanted to do this for myself.

Well, then all hell broke loose.  I sat down and ate two entire chocolate bars in one day! Anyway, for the past couple of weeks, I've been getting increasingly weaker, to the point where I am having trouble getting up a single step.  So being one to try and figure out what is happening, I was afraid if this kept up, I would be in a wheelchair within a week, thinking my newfound steroid intake was interferring with my other drugs I use to control my Myasthenia Gravis (muscle disease). 

So off I went yesterday, making calls and between all the professionals, it was decided it definitely was not interaction between the two drugs.  I was sent to the local hospital to see if perhaps it could be a tumour or something else causing this and to report back to the Clinic the level of weakness.  

They were NOT happy to see me because they didn't know what they were supposed to do for me.  After many tests (including blood cultures) were done, one of the covering Doctors who had never seen me before,  looked at all the test results and asked if I was a vegetarian.  He said my protein and sodium levels were dangerously  low and my muscles were unable to function properly, especially with the addition of recent major steroids to my body!  Who the heck would ever have thought that  (or tested for it).  That is putting it is a nutshell and I'm probably not explaining it correctly but when we told him I am wakened by severe muscle cramps each morning and other symptoms, he definitely confirmed that this is the problem - not enough protein!  I LOVE this local hospital and staff!  I also love eating meat and have been missing it for a long time.  I'm  hoping his theory is correct - I enjoy having control of my body.......

Anyway, I am going to try introducing it into my daily diet - maybe I can get better control of Munching Myrtle and just enjoy both the Christmas baking in moderation (share more with Bob......), continue to eat sensibly without a lot of creamy soups and dressings, but introduce more 'good' things like lean pork and beef into my daily diet.  I will still enjoy chicken and fish, chicken and fish, chicken and fish............and the odd shrimp!

I'm feeling much more positive today, mainly because we've been pro-active again and it's going to pay off, hopefully.

Life is good - have a great day everyone.  xo

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Good morning.  I've always been a night person so this getting up at 5:30 am is new to me.  It does give me time to sit and reflect.

Every night before sleep, I make sure I thank God for the beautiful day and for giving me all I have in my life, wonderful husband, friends and family and for keeping me alive.  I realized that I am on many prayer groups - Mormon, Jevohah Witness, Lutheran, United, all non-Catholic denominations and on many Catholic lists and personal prayers.  I then became aware that the only person who wasn't praying for me WAS ME!!!

So I made an appointment with the local priest in Mount Forest, Father Murray and we had a chat.  I went full of questions and he answered them all for me and this is my interpretation.  He said everyone prays differently and just because I don't say the rosary, novenas, rote prayers, go to church every Sunday or more often, receive the sacrements on a regular basis, I DO pray, but do it in my own way by 'talking' to him directly.  If someone shows up at church for an hour a week and doesn't live like a Christian the rest of the week, that doesn't necessarily make him a good Christian - it's how you live your life that God sees and appreciates.

After attending the one room school house in Hawkesville with kind and good-living Mennonites and then transferring to the St. Clements school, I was always led to believe that they were never going to heaven because they weren't baptised in the Catholic Church.  Father Murray said God accepts ALL people into Heaven, if they are good people and live a good life.  So for almost 50 years, I've been misinformed (lol)!!!

He thinks I'm okay and on the right path, so that made me feel a little better too.  He covers an old church in Ayton, close to our house, and I want to stop in there this Sunday to see what that is all about.  He certainly opened the door for me to come talk with him whenever I want more discussion.  His family is originally from St. Clements so we had lots of stories to share and many laughs together.  We think his Dad and my Mom worked at Ratz Lumber together many, many years ago.  I love Father Murray.  He gave me peace of mind where I needed it.

I'm wondering if they are looking for another Solo or Euchre player in Heaven, but I'm not ready yet so they are going to have to do without for awhile until I get more time here on this beautiful earth with all the fabulous people in my life!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

So that's my story and I'm sticking to it!

I'm getting some emails telling me they would like to comment on the blog (which I would love) but after they write it, they get kicked out.  Other people tell me they see comments but I can't seem to access or see them - any help here?  I'm relatively new to this.

The McAllister's Postiive Saga - December 3, 2012

It's taken me over two weeks to get this blog going, getting frustrated but thanks to a sweet lady in Mount Forest called Alicia Frey who has a heart the size of a house, has consented to help me. She and her husband Ken own Frey Communications and just opened a shop on the main street, has a busy life with her young family but managed to find time to help me. Is it any wonder I love living in this area - the people are lovely............

Now that I'm on the site and finally figured out how to post on the blog, I'm hoping I will be able to get back in the next time I try it! I KNOW I'm technically challenged, but for an old gal, I manage!!!!!

I get a lot of inquiries about my health and I don't want to hurt anyone's feelings by leaving anyone out and don't want to 'push' my updates on anyone so thought this would be a good way to do it. I can update when I have the energy, even it it's 3 am.

Well, here we go again - but this time it's a little more serious and we have to work a bit harder to get over this hump.  My Lymphoma has reappeared (against all odds) but has decided to attack the Central Nervous System so it is affecting different areas of the body.

After some frustrating and confusing weeks, I was hospitalized and observed where they were able to finally figure out the diagnosis. While in hospital, I was transported to a main street in India, a Hippy House smoking pot, transported all over the world but finally ended up here - the brain does some pretty amazing things when it wants to. I'm glad they were able to finally stablize me - I like living in Canada! Some of the stories are pretty funny - now (but pretty scary at that time).

The wonderful team at the Cancer Center and the Respiratory Team at St. Marys are working together nicely to try to keep things stable and manageable. Hopefully they can do that for a long time.

I'm on a lot of steroids which keeps me fairly stable but I'm sure drives everyone around here crazy. Thank God Bob is so patient. They have some silly side effects like making me hyper (Bob says I have talked more in the past week than I have in 15 years of marriage), bloating and they brought out a gal we call Munching Myrtle who comes around day and night. She and I are in an ongoing battle and I don't think I'm going to win - she's a devil.  But while grazing in the kitchen, I'm trying to steer her toward healthier snacks!!!! One night last week I was so desperate to control her that I took my bottom dentures out at 9pm - I fixed her!!!!!!!

We are trying to keep a fairly normal life, calm with very little chaos, no stress and just enjoying what we have. We hope this 'maintenance' continues for a long time.  Please keep us in your prayers - we need all the help we can get!

Please forgive me for spelling mistakes, grammar errors and repeating myself.  I had better quickly post this before I lose it AGAIN - second time to type this.....

I am so blessed to have such amazing and supportive friends and family and appreciate each and everyone of you.

Talk soon.

xox