SATURDAY, MAY 20, 2006 07:54 PM, CDT
Hello everyone!
It has been a few days since I have provided an update, so here it is...
Today I really don't have too much to report medically, other than that we will be leaving tomorrow for Dallas to visit the Simmons Cancer center at UT Southwestern. As I type this letter, my Dad is on his way here (to San Angelo) and should be here about 8:30pm to drive with us tomorrow. We will eat a late, but wonderful, dinner that my fantastic friends from the Junior League of San Angelo brought over just a little while ago. Jared, my Mom, my Dad, and I will leave about noon tomorrow to head to Dallas. Mom and Jared stayed up late last night hunting for a room and found a great deal on a 2-bedroom suite for us to stay in.
At Southwestern, I have the first appointment of the day at 8am. From what I understand this visit will just be a consultation, so hopefully I will not be poked or prodded just yet! After the appointment in Dallas, we will go on to Houston and my brother, Jason, will meet us there. I have not yet been able to get an appointment with MD Anderson, but I am confident that I will have one by Monday morning. I already have a woman who is assigned to my case and she has told me that she will be able to get me an appointment sometime next week. The catch is that they will not see me until they have my pathology slides, so we are scrambling around trying to find them and get them there. I ran into my local doctor last night and he has been working on tracking them down for me today. They are now either at the Mayo clinic or are en route to somewhere. I am confident that we will be able to get them where they need to be. I am not sure if I will get to come back home anytime soon or if I might be in Dallas or Houston for a while. This makes packing a tricky task! I generally will pack everything but the kitchen sink for just a night or two, so I am hoping I can pare down a bit!
At present, we all feel like MD Anderson is definitely the best place for me to be. However, we know that getting a couple opinions would also be best. We might just be blown away in Dallas and choose to stay there, but we will certainly choose the place where we feel most comfortable and most confident.
I am feeling and getting around much better. Just a few days ago a trip to the mailbox was a struggle and now I am able to run a few errands with Jared and Mom. I even went to a baseball game last night (for just a couple of innings, at least)! I will be glad to have the next surgery behind me and know that I won't be cut open again, at least for a while.
I can't tell you how much I have appreciated your flowers, cards, letters, emails, phone calls, visits, etc. They truly do lift my spirits. Most importantly, I am grateful for the wonderful prayer chains that are ongoing. God might get sick of hearing my name, but I truly believe in the power of prayer and I know that I will get through this with God's grace and guidance. Just today, I received a post card from a church in Burnet, Texas notifying me that I was on their prayer list--I will have to get out the map for that one as I'm not quite sure where that is!
I have ordered a laptop that should come in soon so I can stop stealing Jared's from him. I will continue to check and send out email as long as I am able. I imagine I will be out of commission for several days after my next surgery, but Jared or my Mom & Dad will keep you posted on my status.
As always, I covet your prayers for myself and especially for my family. This has taken a toll on all of us, but it has been so overwhelmingly comforting to feel the incredible outpouring of love and concern from so many people. We have had friends and neighbors offer to feed our dogs & mow our lawn and complete strangers offer us lodging in their homes. I feel so blessed to have such a wonderful support system and I want to tell you all, THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart.
Love always,
~Heather~