23/7/19 Some great news at last.
I've been diagnosed with cancer at the base of the tongue in my throat. Not a good thing, but every medico I've spoken to has been extremely positive and told me it is totally curable with treatment.
I'm not shopping for sympathy, but I'm not much of a talker about private stuff (much to Suzanne's dismay) so I'm writing this the keep family and friends up to date, and save you all a bunch of phone calls and emails. Maybe this will also help out someone who might go through the same thing somewhere down the track. It's always good to get the story from the horse's mouth, even if his tongue is a bit munted. 😃
For the same story from a different point of view, Suzanne has a blog as well: https://vanessaisagemini.blogspot.com/
It was getting bloody tough there for a while, and the Black Dog was biting me pretty hard. I wasn't sleeping, and as soon as I got out of bed in the morning I would lie the lounge and watch TV til I fell asleep again. Then back to bed at night. I'd lost a bit over 20 Kg, had no energy, and was dizzy when ever I stood up. I couldn't do much as the machine that feeds me restricts my movement a lot, so I'd lie there in front of the TV all day...still living of an nasal gastric food bag and not eating any solids. I just wanted to hide from the world.
What do you do when you stare at the box all day? You watch stuff you're interested in. Between the net, You Tube, Stan, Netflix, and the web I found more that enough stuff to keep me occupied. I was watching motorcycle travel videos, camping videos, enduro racing videos, and all the other stuff I love to do. I was also buying motorcycle camping gear off the net, mainly stuff I didn't need, but updating what I already had. Then it hit me. I was digging myself into a pit of depression watching stuff that I was starting to think I'd never be able to do again. Real mid life crisis stuff.
Then came the turning point.
Last Friday I went to the GP to get some meds for my bloody chronic cough. Prednisolone is my wonder drug, and sorts my cough out in a few days, but it has side effects. Also, we decided to go to Wonthaggi to visit a Vintage Motocross Club race on Sunday, just to get out of the house.
I popped my first Prednisolone tablets Friday and Saturday. No big deal. Saturday afternoon Suzanne fulfilled her wifely duties as usual and said "Just try a mouthful of this pasta salad". I'm supposed to be eating to supplement my bagged food, but with no taste it's nearly impossible for me, but I try. I slid a portion of pasta salad into my mouth, and YAHOO! I could taste it, and it tasted gooooood.
Sunday was a perfect day. Sunny and seventeen degrees, and I drove to Wonthaggi. It's the first time I've driven for six months. It was great. At the motocross I had some chips, only about seven or eight, but I could taste them. 😋 Suzanne said they were pretty horrible chips, but the still tasted better than anything I'd had for months.
More pasta salad for dinner that night, and then last night...PIZZA! OK, it was a vegetable pizza, I only had one slice, and I didn't eat most of the crust, but it was heaven.
Then it dawned on me. My taste has gone from I reckon around five percent to about eighty percent almost overnight. Why? I reckon it's the Prednisolone. A bit of web research turned up some positive results showing the use of this drug treat cancer patients and the restoration of their sense of taste. I wish someone had told me months ago. If you're reading this and going through a similar thing, have a talk to your Doctor about this drug as a treatment. It might get you back on track and save you a lot of anguish.
It's such a small thing, but this little bit of food has turned everything around, I can now actually see the light at the end of the tunnel, and I'm feeling motivated again.
I'm about seventy seven Kg now, and reckon if I can put about five Kg on in the next week or so, they might start reducing the bagged food, and then get rid of it altogether in about a month, That would be real freedom.
Now where are the Weetbix, full fat milk, and Sustagen? I need a feed.
FLASHBACK:
One funny thing I heard when I was stuck in the Alfred for a stint was about a little old lady asking for directions. She must have been told to head to the end of the building, then turn right through the double doors, and follow the passage to the end. She did just that, in her car! I heard the Hospital P.A, going off calling for security and a lot of kerfuffle and I didn't give it much thought, but when Suzanne came back fro the cafe she filled me in in all the goings on. Never a dull moment.
I've been diagnosed with cancer at the base of the tongue in my throat. Not a good thing, but every medico I've spoken to has been extremely positive and told me it is totally curable with treatment.
I'm not shopping for sympathy, but I'm not much of a talker about private stuff (much to Suzanne's dismay) so I'm writing this the keep family and friends up to date, and save you all a bunch of phone calls and emails. Maybe this will also help out someone who might go through the same thing somewhere down the track. It's always good to get the story from the horse's mouth, even if his tongue is a bit munted. 😃
For the same story from a different point of view, Suzanne has a blog as well: https://vanessaisagemini.blogspot.com/
It was getting bloody tough there for a while, and the Black Dog was biting me pretty hard. I wasn't sleeping, and as soon as I got out of bed in the morning I would lie the lounge and watch TV til I fell asleep again. Then back to bed at night. I'd lost a bit over 20 Kg, had no energy, and was dizzy when ever I stood up. I couldn't do much as the machine that feeds me restricts my movement a lot, so I'd lie there in front of the TV all day...still living of an nasal gastric food bag and not eating any solids. I just wanted to hide from the world.
What do you do when you stare at the box all day? You watch stuff you're interested in. Between the net, You Tube, Stan, Netflix, and the web I found more that enough stuff to keep me occupied. I was watching motorcycle travel videos, camping videos, enduro racing videos, and all the other stuff I love to do. I was also buying motorcycle camping gear off the net, mainly stuff I didn't need, but updating what I already had. Then it hit me. I was digging myself into a pit of depression watching stuff that I was starting to think I'd never be able to do again. Real mid life crisis stuff.
Then came the turning point.
Last Friday I went to the GP to get some meds for my bloody chronic cough. Prednisolone is my wonder drug, and sorts my cough out in a few days, but it has side effects. Also, we decided to go to Wonthaggi to visit a Vintage Motocross Club race on Sunday, just to get out of the house.
I popped my first Prednisolone tablets Friday and Saturday. No big deal. Saturday afternoon Suzanne fulfilled her wifely duties as usual and said "Just try a mouthful of this pasta salad". I'm supposed to be eating to supplement my bagged food, but with no taste it's nearly impossible for me, but I try. I slid a portion of pasta salad into my mouth, and YAHOO! I could taste it, and it tasted gooooood.
Sunday was a perfect day. Sunny and seventeen degrees, and I drove to Wonthaggi. It's the first time I've driven for six months. It was great. At the motocross I had some chips, only about seven or eight, but I could taste them. 😋 Suzanne said they were pretty horrible chips, but the still tasted better than anything I'd had for months.
Some toys from the Viper Vintage MX at Wonthaggi.
I think I need another bike.
More pasta salad for dinner that night, and then last night...PIZZA! OK, it was a vegetable pizza, I only had one slice, and I didn't eat most of the crust, but it was heaven.
Then it dawned on me. My taste has gone from I reckon around five percent to about eighty percent almost overnight. Why? I reckon it's the Prednisolone. A bit of web research turned up some positive results showing the use of this drug treat cancer patients and the restoration of their sense of taste. I wish someone had told me months ago. If you're reading this and going through a similar thing, have a talk to your Doctor about this drug as a treatment. It might get you back on track and save you a lot of anguish.
It's such a small thing, but this little bit of food has turned everything around, I can now actually see the light at the end of the tunnel, and I'm feeling motivated again.
I'm about seventy seven Kg now, and reckon if I can put about five Kg on in the next week or so, they might start reducing the bagged food, and then get rid of it altogether in about a month, That would be real freedom.
Now where are the Weetbix, full fat milk, and Sustagen? I need a feed.
FLASHBACK:
One funny thing I heard when I was stuck in the Alfred for a stint was about a little old lady asking for directions. She must have been told to head to the end of the building, then turn right through the double doors, and follow the passage to the end. She did just that, in her car! I heard the Hospital P.A, going off calling for security and a lot of kerfuffle and I didn't give it much thought, but when Suzanne came back fro the cafe she filled me in in all the goings on. Never a dull moment.
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