A few weeks ago, I underwent major surgery for ovarian cancer biopsy. Beforehand, I just didn’t comprehend just how painful my recovery would be, so I was surprised when I awoke from surgery in excruciating pain from my rib cage down to the middle of my thighs.
On top of this, due to my adverse reaction to pain medications, I had an extended hospital stay until the pain was manageable. UG!
But the biggest surprise was when I received the cancer biopsy results…
Cancer is a word, not a sentence!
I lost my dad to cancer over 25 years ago. Much like my foster kids, I will never recover from that traumatic loss of a parent.
Cancer traumatized me as a young college student when my dad was suddenly in ICU, disoriented, and strapped to his bed. My dad had suffered a seizure and had become aggressive with the hospital staff. A cat scan showed that my dad had 3 tumors in his brain. All those years of smoking had led to lung cancer that had metastasized in his brain. The doctors gave him 6 months to live.
And just like that, with no warning, cancer, the silent killer, destroyed our lives!
I’ve shared about growing up in poverty, but what I found next still breaks my heart…
My hearing-impaired father, who had recently lost his job of 26 years, was just too proud to ask for help: My Daddy had been living in his home with no electricity, surviving on a diet of pecans he had gathered from a local park.
And now CANCER! With no health insurance, we had very little hope.
However, even in our darkest hours, God can still shower us with His blessings. We were blessed by many angels that helped us through this horrifying journey of brain cancer. My heart overflows for all those that helped our family during this difficult time.
I am extremely grateful for the American Cancer Society. The ACS provided us with a wheelchair and hospital bed once my dad became bedridden. Thank you again!
The American Cancer Society will turn 100 years old on May 22, 2013. Watch this moving video!
By not remaining silent, the work of the American Cancer Society has helped lead to a 50 percent drop in smoking since the 1960s, which has contributed to a drop in overall lung cancer death rates. ACS has played a role in nearly every cancer research breakthrough in recent history. And because of this research, I am now 9 years CANCER-FREE!!
Although this post is sponsored by American Cancer Society, it is my true story of cancer…This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of the American Cancer Society.
Gasping, in the middle of the night, our Stinkpot would suddenly awaken and sit up in bed. Could my child have sleep apnea? He’s always gone back to sleep easily, but it was always startling to me how he would just wake up.
And our child’s snoring rivaled that of my husband’s!
Our poor baby boy, born premature, to a smoker, has always had severe breathing issues. Numerous hospitalizations and bouts with pneumonia, allergies, asthma, and even TWO, nearly three, myringotomies (tubes in the ears).
While consulting for his second myingotomy, the ear, nose, & throat doctor (ENT), asked us about his breathing. He told us that Stinkpot had enlarged tonsils which could cause Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA). He said that our toddler’s tonsils should be removed to help with his breathing — but only after he is 4-years-old or old enough to follow doctor’s orders.
Knowing our strong-willed hyperactive toddler, we knew it would be a few years before he was ready, especially given his propensity for rages! However, maybe some of his rages could be caused by his sleep apnea???
Our Stinkpot had all of these symptoms, including waking up a sweaty mess every morning. Other signs of sleep apnea in children could include daytime cognitive and behavior problems, including problems paying attention, aggressive behavior and hyperactivity. (2) Hmmm!
Our Stinkpot was scheduled for his tonsillectomy after Christmas. We were extremely worried about fasting and if low blood sugar would cause him to go into a rage. However, a 6:15 a.m. check-in time might have helped, since he was still mostly asleep.
The surgery staff were fabulous! To prepare him for his surgery, they told him that they were going to put a special Super Hero mask on him, and he would have to smell some monkey perfume. “It doesn’t smell good since monkeys are stinky!” They told him that when he took a nap that they were going to put a straw in his arm!
The adenotonsillectomy (removal of both the tonsils and adenoids) lasted only 15 minutes. He awoke as most children do, but not crying as he did before. Surprisingly, he has done tremendously well!!!
At home, he was HUNGRY! And ate more than he has…ever! Probably due to no ADHD stimulant that morning. He ate yogurt, pudding, Oreo cookie pie, popsicles, French fries, ect.
And he was hyper! “Put the football down & rest, son!” He took a short nap that afternoon, but was climbing the walls otherwise. As if he hasn’t had surgery at all!
The second day, he slept – the entire day – all but three hours. However, since then — I am simply amazed!!! No sore throat, no other symptoms that he had had a tonsillectomy, except….
HE DOESN”T SNORE!!!
This week has been quite stressful on our family. Last Sunday, we had an emergency room scare with our 2-year-old, Lil Bit. Then Wednesday, FosterDad had surgery on his jaw. Not only has FosterDad been out of sorts, but Stinkpot has been more than his usual handful!
His play therapist noticed his elevated behavior Friday.
Then Sunday, the Children’s Minister took me aside to discuss Stinkpot’s disruptive behavior. I really didn’t know what to say.
And I really don’t know what more to do…
Please pray for Stinkpot and our family!
Big hugs to each of you!
“Spit that out!”
“Give me that!”
“Take that out of your mouth!”
Those are words I am constantly saying with our nearly 3-year-old, Lil Bit. I’ve taken a number of objects out of that kid’s mouth: coins, rocks, paper, small toys, etc. (One might think he would have learned his lesson after grabbing what he thought was a pickle off his dad’s enchilada plate.)
Our Lil Bit is constantly putting objects in his mouth. Here as I’m attempting to take a photo at the playground…
I’ve become quite vigilant about this behavior, especially after his emergency surgery last September. Lil Bit was in surgery prep with a little girl that had a quarter lodged in her esophagus.
But if you are a parent of a little one, you know how difficult it is to keep any and every object out of a child’s reach, especially if they can climb like our Lil Bit.
And our worst fear warranted a trip to the emergency room yesterday afternoon!
When I pulled off our Lil Bit’s Pull-Up after an accident, I was freaked out to see RED –
LOTS OF RED!
The number one cause for rectal bleeding in children is SWALLOWED OBJECTS!!!
We rushed him to the emergency room scared of what he could have swallowed that might be lodged in his intestines causing this bleeding.
Surprisingly, our wait in emergency room to see a doctor was relatively short, considering we arrived during a shift change on the weekend. When the doctor saw what we collected, he was concerned and quickly took a sample to be tested for blood.
I want to say a special thanks to my prayer warriors on Twitter (@sharrellleigh and @KF2Adopt)! Prayer works!
The results from the lab showed no signs of blood!
The doctor released Lil Bit, still perplexed at what caused the red stool. Lil Bit had drank Cherry Crystal Light, but so had the rest of us without this reaction.
We will just consider this a medical miracle that can only be performed by the one true God! Hallelujah!
His left eye was dilated. A strange bump protruded on his left arm. Whoa!
But when FosterDad said, “I feel really weird and the left side of my face feels numb.”
“Get dressed. We’re going to the hospital,” I quickly replied.
He hesitated and moaned.
“Get dressed. We’re going to the hospital,” I repeated, as I was putting shoes on Stinkpot.
He made excuses. “What if it’s nothing?”
“Get dressed. We’re going to the hospital,” I demanded.
He was being obstinate.
Even on the drive to the hospital, FosterDad asked: “Can’t we just stop by Walgreen’s and check my blood pressure first?”
“They will check your blood pressure at the hospital!” I growled.
He was admitted to the hospital and finally got into his room at 3:30 a.m. (I had taken the kids to the car to sleep.)
After 2 days in the hospital and numerous tests, the doctor finally gave his prognosis.
“No evidence of stroke or aneurysm.”
Thank you, sweet friends, for your thoughts and prayers. Your comments on Twitter and Facebook made us feel cared for during this scary ordeal!
My children never met their grandfather. I lost my dad to cancer nearly 25 years ago…
In Fall 1986, while a student at Texas A&M University, I received a call at 1 o’clock in the morning that no person wants to receive, much less a young college student. My divorced father was in ICU at the hospital back home. I packed a quick bag and raced to the hospital.
I found my dad in ICU, disoriented, and strapped to his bed. My dad had had a seizure and had become aggressive with the hospital staff. He knew nobody and when I walked into his hospital room, I was the first person he recognized.
A cat scan showed that my dad had 3 tumors in his brain — he was given 6 months to live.
Because my dad had recently lost his job of 26 years, he had no income, no health insurance, and not much hope.
I discovered that my unemployed father, too proud to ask for help, had been living in his home with no electricity, surviving on a diet of pecans he had gathered from a local park.
I made the difficult decision to leave college to take care of my dad. One of the easiest decisions I had to make.
Me with Daddy and my sisters in 1979. Which one am I?
We were blessed by many that helped us through this horrifying journey of brain cancer. My heart overflows for all those that helped our family during this difficult time.
I am extremely grateful for the assistance of the American Cancer Society. The ACS provided us with a wheelchair and hospital bed once my dad became bedridden. Thank you again!
I lost my dad to cancer in February1987. He was 53. He didn’t see his 54th birthday.
Please watch the video below of how the American Cancer Society is helping folks have more birthdays.
Who have you lost to cancer?
This post is sponsored by American Cancer Society.
A few weeks ago, our 2-year-old foster boy, Lil Bit, climbed onto a dining room chair while our backs were turned and broke his elbow…for a second time! Yes, the exact same elbow! After our 26-hour hospital ordeal, we knew what was coming next….
The following Wednesday evening at church, as we were enjoying a catered meal of smoked barbecue brisket, Cole slaw, potato salad, and Oreo cookie pie, FosterDad’s cell phone began chirping its techno song alerting him that he was receiving a call.
It was an investigator with Child Protection Services: he was at our home! FosterDad, always the quick-thinker never wanting to miss a church service, invited the investigator to our church to conduct the interview before our Bible study began. Lo and behold, it was the same investigator!
FosterDad sat in the sanctuary for his part of the interview while I was herding preschoolers. (With their affinity to climb onto the pulpit, one would believe they would have an early calling to minister. My personal belief is that it is an act of defiance!)
Finally, we were able to drop the kids off into their classrooms, it was my turn for the interrogation interview.
The interview process took longer than I anticipated so I was going to be late for class; however, to complete the investigation, the investigator had to visit our home. So much for “Staying in Love” this week.
I drove home, showed him the infamous dining room chair.
“Sir, notice that we have no coffee table in our living room, just a lone rug amongst the sofa suit. That is because our dear foster child is a climber.”
I even showed him how we have the coffee table lying on its side in a closed-off room. “We are doing our best to keep this child safe.”
By the end of the interview, the investigator says: “My daughter is the same age, and she is a climber, too. Just this weekend, I caught her by her shirt before she hit the floor.”
I feel much more calm about this investigation report….
For those of you that don’t follow Foster2Forever on Facebook or Twitter, our family had another traumatic event this weekend concerning our Lil Bit.
Our Lil Bit is 2 years old now, and he is a climber. We have removed the coffee table and end table from our living room for this reason. He is even using his potty chair–as a step stool. We are constantly getting on to him. However, we need to grow eyes on the backs of our heads…
On Saturday evening, while our backs were turned, Lil Bit climbed onto a dining room chair and fell onto the tile floor. Onto his previously fractured elbow. Snap!
The Saturday night at the hospital crowd caused us to have a L-O-N-G wait. It must have been “Bring Your Kid to the ER for a Runny Nose” Day at the hospital. (The doctor shared this with me.) The x-ray showed a much worse fracture than the first – one that would require surgery – that night! At another hospital.
At 11 p.m. on Saturday night, our Lil Bit had his first, hopefully last, ride in an ambulance as he was transferred to Scott and White in Temple.
Lil Bit had 5 orthopedic specialists working on fixing his little arm. The doctors were concerned about nerve damage that could affect his ability to grasp. After numerous x-rays and consultations, we finally got into a hospital room at 5 a.m. with surgery scheduled for 8 a.m.
Time for a quick power nap!
Did I mention that our other son, JD, was with us? Awake the entire night! However, he had slept 6 hours before we took him to Temple.
We awoke at 7 a.m. when Lil Bit was wheeled down to the operating room for the 8 a.m. surgery. The surgery lasted 45 minutes plus the surgeons were able to correct the fracture from last time.
Lil Bit slept most of Sunday so he wasn’t discharged from the hospital until last night. He slept well last night and is playing and laughing this morning.
We’ve reported the injury and now just waiting for the next investigation into our foster home….
