Getting better everyday

I am so very happy to be recovering at home. How could I not get better with so many loving, caring people here to care for me. It's like having my very own nursing team. Ian is here every morning to make my breakfast, lunch, go for a walk or drive, watch TV or just to sit quietly with me. Keryn, my sweet, sweet girl who is just here for me completely. Julie comes over in the afternoon to make a lovely dinner while Suze is busy tidying up, Grams comes down to sit with me and when  Keryn and Ryan get home we all have dinner together. Certainly a change from our hectic lives, I know it will all change but spending this time together with my family has been one of the best things to come out of all this.
I am now 12 days post surgery and I feel a little better each day. I am finding it difficult to gauge how much to do as far as physical activity on each day. On Sat. I felt great; pain under control, some energy (finally I felt like getting up) beautiful sunshine filled day. Off Ian & I went walking the apt. halls and down 5 flights of stairs, then it was into the car and off to the store then a drive to the ravine and a 20 min walk. At the time I felt fabulous....BUT the next day WHEW!! Somehow I had pulled my calf muscle and I don't know which was worse, the pain in my leg or in my side. I really had overdone it and did not move out of bed again until Monday at noon.
I was off to see my family doctor on Monday afternoon to get the staples removed (not as painful as I had anticipated). Another step completed on the road to recovery. Today I have an appointment with a massage therapist to see if that will help my leg. I am still having some trouble sleeping at night and now have some pills to try this evening. (I would love a full nights sleep; hell I would love anything more that 4 hours).
A special thanks to my cousins, Debbie and Frank who flew in from the UK for the weekend to visit. What a wonderful surprise! I wished I could have joined you all for dinner.
Many thanks to all my friends and family who have been so supportive, visiting and sending me so many positive messages each and every day. Words can not express how blessed and loved that I feel.

Love
Nancy

Sunday Dinner

On Sunday afternoon one of Keryn's co-workers arrived with a fully prepared 3 course sunday dinner for 10 people. I was so very touched my Emily's generous offer as she herself is a a cancer survivor. I have attached Emily's email to this post along with a picture of Emily, myself and Keryn.  We now plan to pay this forward to help someone else out in the future.

Thank you Emily, the food was amazing!!

Hey Keryn
I wanted to thank you for the link to your blog.  I have been checking it
every day and it is wonderful to see your sweet Mum doing so well.  I hope
she is feeling better and better every day and that you are getting enough
sleep.  
I am not sure where your mum lives or if she will be home yet, but I would
love to drop by dinner sometime this weekend to give all you starving
supporters a feed.  If I remember correctly, you are not a chefy chef type
and having a home cooked meal is great after you have been living in the
hospital.  The food there really is ass and after a while the last thing you
want to see is take out.  Please let me know if this would work for you.  I
don't need a visit or a chat, I will just provide some chow.  With pleasure.
I am healing nicely from my surgery.  
Please let me know about dinner.  I really would love to drop something off
Sat or Sun.

Emily  

Home Sweet Home

We are home now!  Discharged from the hospital today at noon.  YAY!!!


Ian took this photo today of us at the hospital just before we left.  As you can see from our smiling faces...we are happy to be going home.  

The nurse was getting on mum's nerves a little bit last night.  She was just doing her job but tried to fool her about the last time she took her pain meds, she tried to withhold them for longer periods in between.  My mum might have been on morphine but she's no idiot.
Below is the text mum sent me at midnight:


"Ok trying to fool me again, nurse bought in tylenol at 11:30 so I said I wanted 2 morphine @12 but she said no you have to wait until 12:30 because u had pills @ 10:30. They r hoping I will fall asleep but pain is just starting & I know it will be too much by the time I wake up. So determined stay awake til 12:30. Good thing I remembered u ordered pills @ 9:05 & they came @ 9:25"


So I called her and we talked together until 12:30 AM when then the nurse finally gave her the meds, which allowed her to sleep through the entire night.


We are now at home.  Mum loves her dream bedroom and will be perfect for her to recover in over the next few weeks.  We just finished dinner with Suze, Jules, Grams, Ryan and I.  We are now relaxing, overall it's been a very good day!


Over the past few days the most amazing people have sent messages and notes to us and I just want to take a moment to thank you all for your support through this.  
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!


XOXO
Happily recovering!
Keryn and family

Note from Nance....

A note from Mum, written in the hospital (yes we get internet in the room)

This photo was taken by Ian on Monday, October 24, 2011 at 11 AM.  I am hoping to be going home on Wednesday or Thursday of this week.

Recovery has been difficult but steady.  Although I feel crappy, the doctor said I look pretty good with lots of colour in my face.  I'm taking that as a good sign.

On a good note, my hair looks fantastic!!!!

Looking forward to getting home and relaxing in my newly decorated bedroom, courtesy of my sweet sister suzie and my darling cousin Julie.  And everyone in my family who helped get everything ready.

Here's hoping to a good night ahead with lots of sleep, because usually it evades me here.

Love Nance (and Keryn)

Wearing my big sister pants....

Below is a little email that my Aunt Suz sent to her sister over the weekend.  My mum thought it was a great email to receive and wanted to post it on the blog.  Here it is...enjoy:

Good Morning Lovely;

Today will be a better day Nance but you have to listen to your body and please don't over due it. I  am wearing my big sister pants today so I can tell you I want to rest,do your breathing exercises and take little walks not marathons. I have gently asked people to give you some time to rest and not visit you for a couple of days or better yet until you come home .I hope that is okay with you my little cupcake. You have to concentrate on getting better and stronger so you can come home to your dream bedroom. Remember Nance baby steps and moderation. This is the one time in our lives when less is better. Please listen to your temporary big sister today.You are my hona babe. 

I carry your heart

Love Suz

Recovery Day 3

So here we are 72 hours after surgery and although the surgery was a success, the recovery process is a bit up and down.  Mum still has an epidural in the top part of her body and when it works - it works really well.  However it hasn't been working all the time, so when the pain gets to unbearable for her the pain management team needs to come and top up the dose.  She also has a morphine pump which makes her groggy but helps keep the pain under control.  The epidural also makes her feel nauseous so she hasn't really had much food other than a bit of mushroom soup on Saturday.  The incision site is quite large (approx. 12 cm across her side, like where you would wear a belt).  I think because it was such a large tumour and because they had to remove the tumour on the lymph node as well it is more painful than a typical nephrectomy (which is when they just remove the tumour and kidney).  I made an error though in my blog and said that they took out her adrenal gland but they did not so she still has two of those, which is a good thing.  The adrenal glands help to keep your energy levels up so it's better that they didn't have to remove that (even though you have two).


Our main motivation is to help Mum get her pain under control and hopefully over the next few days we can have the epidural removed and be able to start managing her pain with other forms of medications.  We will hope to have my mum home later on this week.


Thank you for all your well wishes.  I just wish I could take all the pain away from my mum and deal with it myself but of course that isn't possible.  So we will all just do our best to make sure she is in good spirits and as comfortable as possible.


Love to all,
Keryn (and mummy)

Good News From Toronto General!

Dr. Finelli came out to see us at 5:15 PM tonight to inform us that the surgery went really well.  They were able to successfully remove the tumour, the right kidney as well as the tumour on the adrenal gland.  Mum is in recovery now and they are monitoring her until approx. 7 PM.  We will be able to see her at 7:30-8PM and can't we all can't wait.  Feeling very relieved!