Archive for the ‘News’ Category
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They took my Ducky diaper pin! I laid on that narrow table under the fluoroscope as they were getting ready to prep me for the coming procedure when they removed my drain bag and took my ducky safety pin along with it. I didn't notice the loss until later when I couldn't fasten my new drain bag when it was time to leave. What a time to lose my diaper pin. I needed that pin to hold my drain bag so I didn't rip out my drain tube.
Perhaps I should start over from the beginning. (more...)
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As regular readers of this blog know I'm disabled and am effectively able to only use my right side. This makes it all but impossible to use a hand held camera especially the latest compact digital cameras. The new cameras are so small I don't see how anyone effectively uses them. I wanted a camera I could use one handed with fingers that are numb but no one actually makes such a system so I was forced to come up with my own jury-rigged design.
Here is the system I came up with. As you can see from the photos it is essentially a “point and shoot” camera system. It has a handle so I can hold and point the camera and a “trigger” so I can take the picture. If you would like to build such a system here are the instructions along with a parts list on how to build one. The system cost me about $200. in total of which the major expense was for the camera.
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My recent sojourn into the realms of radiation therapy has produced some unfortunate side effects. Chiefly a condition that resembles diarrhea. Grandma Oddball suggested that I start using the B.R.A.T. Diet as a method of controlling the condition.
“GREAT” I thought! Who wouldn't want a diet of
- Bacon
- Ribs
- Alcohol
- Teriyaki
Sprinkled with peppers and seasoning (I'm not allowed much salt) it sounded great but when I blurted it out to Grandma I received the now famous LOOK. She wasn't impressed.
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Once again I'm thrown into the realm the unknown. After several false starts it was decided last week to do a version of radiation therapy to try and kill the offending pancreas cells. In short I get to be guinea pig again as no one has tried this procedure on “healthy” (i.e., non-cancerous) tissue before. Well, someone has to be the first I suppose and if it works (75-80% chance of success is the guesstimate) then at least one of my medical problems will be mitigated. Here is a personal and sometimes humorous account of what's happened so far.
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Sigh...We can't be that old, can we? I guess apparently we are! I didn't think so. In fact I still consider us a young couple but several recent incidents seem to belie that perception.
Grandma Oddball received an urgent call from our youngest grandson (age 6) the other day who wanted to know if we had seen that “new joke” “Who's on first?” by Abbott and Costello.
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Sudden and unpredictable death from a deadly bleedout of my portal vein. That's the unexpected prospect that I now apparently face. I've tried to keep my medical reports upbeat. In fact attached is the start of an initial draft of this medical update but I guess I have to be a little more serious this time around. Here's the current situation:
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A belated Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everybody (I was out of commission for a few days recovering from an allergic reaction to the contrast dye used in Cat scans). Hopes, promises, and dreams dance inside me to celebrate the promise of another new year and I wish the same to you all. As those of you who read my medical updates know this past year has been filled with some of life's highs and lows before finally ending on a relative high. The family's healthy and I only spent one day in the hospital last week (consider this my latest medical update).
I'd wish you more good fortune but Grandma Oddball has had enough of me for awhile and I have to cut this greeting short ........ I'm alone now as Grandma has decided to run away; at least until dinner time. Just because I wouldn't tell her the outcome of the TV program we were watching before she left shopping she got annoyed and started choking me. Some people. Just can't take a little teasing! I guess it's just the mental trials of a care giver!
Oh well, as I started to write earlier, Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and best wishes. Hopefully with your encouragement I'll continue on the road to recovery and be able to continue this blog.
With love and humor and high hopes for 2010
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[caption id="attachment_1196" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="At the 2004 MS walk"]
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Unlike many MS sufferers I don't mind revealing my medical condition but then my experience is somewhat atypical. I know that some people with MS have experiences similar to mine but in my experience (with support groups and others) we are a minority. In fact for many there are excellent reasons for them to hide their condition for as long as they can. Luckily I don't have that problem.
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I often receive comments telling me how "courageous" I am fighting my medical problems. I even had one doctor tell me I was "a tough old bird" (doubtless a turkey). I never know how to respond to these comments. I don't feel particularly courageous or special.
Let's face the truth, (more...)
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Staples!? I guess they ran out of duct tape and bailing wire. Couldn't tell if they used spit to put me back together but I wouldn't be surprised. I lost my balance and fell the other day cracking the back of my head open. In the emergency room they stapled me back together. Ironically all this happened just after I'd posted an article describing had well I was progressing on my recovery. Well it was good news at the time but I spoke too soon. Clearly it doesn't do to get too cocky.
What happened? You ask.
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Sometimes good news creeps upon you almost unnoticed but finally I got some good medical news after a stressful summer. Last week was somewhat eventful and actually started out with what appeared to be some more apparent medical problems. Fortunately the situation rapidly improved.
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I had a CAT scan yesterday of my head and they found nothing. I could have saved them the time and money! Grandma Oddball could have told them that much. She's been saying for years that my head is empty except for perhaps a few holes from my multiple sclerosis (MS). I guess all the important bits have leaked out.
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Yes, I was back in the hospital again. When I started this blog I never expected to provide so many medical updates but I continue to have problems and, well, you asked for them so here goes.
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The carnage from my last hospital visit continues. And it is a bit unsettling but I have no choice but to work through it. Grandma Oddball as laid down the law; I'm not allowed to die! An order that I take seriously. After all, getting the look while I'm alive is bad enough. I shutter to think of the consequences if I die. Besides her force of will has already retrieved me from death on more than one occasion. Who has the courage to buck that strength?
What happened? Well, a lot. (more...)
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"It's just a routine visit. Nothing to get excited or worried about, after all I'd been through this procedure countless times before." Serene in that thought I innocently prepared for the hospital visit. Stupid me!!!! I should have remembered that nothing is routine about my medical conditions. Sadder but hardly wiser and more than a thousand dollars poorer I'm finally home (once again) from the hospital and still fighting to recover from the latest setback.
It all started ... »
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Ask and ye shall observe. This article has no particular purpose other than showing off Grandma Oddball and, well, you all wanted to see her and here she is! This picture is over forty years old and Grandma Oddball looks just as exciting and beautiful today as she did then. you want to see more! »
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I went to the hospital again last week because my stitches pulled out. As these things go, this visit wasn't too bad. After the CAT scan they just repositioned my drain tubes, sewed me back together and sent me home. Aside from my normal allergic reactions to the contrast dye things went pretty smoothly. In many ways the worst part of this procedure is the IV needles. I've become so thin only one arm has enough meat for the IVs. As a result my poor arm has become badly abused. After every hospital visit my arm is bruised for weeks.
learn more about Grandpa Oddball's medical status
