Wednesday, April 2, 2014

Acupuncture, Formatting, a Broken Nose, and Another Milestone

Acupuncture

It's been a while since I have written, so I have taken the time to write this post about things that have been going on lately in our lives. First up- acupuncture! So, as most of you know I have been struggling with headaches since October. I never have before, and let me say for all you headache sufferers- I AM SO SORRY! Wow, can it be debilitating. Well, my sweet mom offered to take me to an acupuncturist who we had heard amazing things about through a really good friend. It was crazy, and it kind of hurt. I was there for over 2 hours, and they tried so many things on me, but I still left with a headache! HOWEVER, the last 2 weeks, my headaches have been minimal, so maybe it helped???? My mom and I had a fun trip nonetheless.




Formatting and more formatting

Formatting, formatting, and more formatting! I only THOUGHT I was done with my dissertation. It now has to be formatted perfectly for publishing, binding, ULM code, etc... It has been quite the undertaking, but I should be done with everything by April 11th, or I better be done by then, as that is the final deadline! In the mean time, I have been ordering graduation paraphernalia and finishing up things at my internship. I thought March/April were going to be less busy- not quite!

Role reversal

On another note, Josh broke his nose! Last Thursday he broke his nose at a rec basketball game. Let me just say, being the patient is way easier than the spouse/caregiver! I have hated seeing him in pain and feeling helpless! His poor nose is crooked, and he is just now feeling better. But, tomorrow morning he is having surgery to re-set his nose, which should put him back in a lot of pain. Please pray for everything to go perfectly and as minimal pain as possible. Also for me! I always thought I would be the mom that would be totally okay when my child got hurt in a game and let them muddle through the pain themselves, but after this, I just don't know. I felt like such a goob. When I saw his nose bleeding Thursday night, I was literally holding back tears! Wow- how hard it is to see someone you love so much hurt! I know that is just a glimpse of what he and my family felt with all of my stuff. He will have packing in his nose as well as a cast. The doctor was intent on him taking a whole week off of work, but I doubt that will happen, as he is super busy with work. So I will try to keep him resting!

At his first appointment


Getting his pre-op stuff done



So, we have had a lot of doctor's appointments lately! I have had a lymph node in my throat remain swollen ever since I got really sick in December, so we have been monitoring that and have had a scan and appointments surrounding that. I had a rough day last Thursday when worry and fear began to creep up, but Josh's nose-break quickly got the attention off of me! Which I desperately needed. Thanks for the broken nose, babe! My doctor is completely not concerned with this lymph node which gives me much more peace…just what I had been praying for, but it has been difficult to have that hanging out there. BUT, God is once again faithful and trustworthy. Broken nose and all.

Ouch!



2 Years No Mo' Chemo

On Sunday, it was 2 years from my last chemotherapy treatment. I could literally write a book on all the emotions that come back to me as I think about that day. Here is the blog post I wrote after my last chemo treatment. All I can say is "Wow, God." Another milestone, and we are about to hit lots! At the end of this month is my mastectomy anniversary,  2 years from cancer free status, then we have a radiation milestone coming up after that. March through October are some really exciting months for the Taylors as they hold many milestones for me. I am so privileged to be able to watch God fulfill his promises in me. I was reading in Hebrews where so many of our ancestors died not having God's promises fulfilled, and I know we might not see his promises fulfilled in ours, but to be able to see some is incredible. How blessed I am!

"Understand, therefore, that the LORD your God is indeed God. He is the faithful God who keeps his covenant for a thousand generations and lavishes his unfailing love on those who love him and obey his commands." Deut. 7:9

Also, I have had a few speaking opportunities that have been really great lately. I was able to speak at ULM a few weeks ago at a pharmacy sorority dinner honoring breast cancer survivors. Josh and I were  also able to share a little bit of our story with an OCS psychology class yesterday…I love sharing my story! I am an overcomer!


This is a little glimpse into the life of the Taylor's lately. Please keep Josh in your prayers for his surgery tomorrow. Pray for wisdom for his doctor. Pray that it looks back to normal, and most importantly that it is aligned perfectly for his sinuses and breathing. I will try to document it all. I really hate seeing my man hurt…it is terrible. During my last surgery, he asked me some pretty crazy questions and videoed it while I was under anesthesia…can we say PAYBACK??? hehehe. He won't even see this update until a few days and probably many hydrocodones later…I'm gonna enjoy the role reversal as much as I can…



Love you guys,


Aly

1 comment:

Unknown said...

I love how you handled those medical appointments hand in hand. You’ve been giving us a glimpse on how strong your relationship is, and how you stood for each other in times of need. Anyway, I’ve read your update about Josh’s surgery. I’m glad everything went well, and I hope he’s fully recovered by now. Wish you all the best!

Glenn Lowe @ Knight and Sanders