THANKSGIVING AND BEYOND

It's been 12 days since I last posted and Thanksgiving has come and gone.  It was a big week, as Dave saw Dr. S. on Monday, Dale married Gina in Jamaica on Tuesday, we had Thanksgiving dinner with Molly, Chad, Chase and Coleman in Savannah, then on Friday we went to Molly's beach house on the Isle of Palms with Molly and the boys.  Chad had to work so stayed in Savannah.  Friday evening, Mom, Libbie, Jon and David came out to the beach and we were able to have dinner together.  Saturday, Jon and David left to go home to Houston, and Libbie left for her home in Hoschton.  We stayed until Sunday.

Coleman and Dave

Dave and David - Cheers!

Dave has been injecting himself with heparin twice a day, and his Intron every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.  The good news is that he seems to have overcome the chills and fever he was getting after the first few shots.  His routine is to take his shot at 8 pm, turn on his heating pad, and get into bed not long afterward.  He's been sleeping about 10 hours a night.

The not-so-good news is that his white blood cell count is down again.  It was on its way down when Dave saw Dr. S. last Monday, and it was down farther today.  We saw Rosemary this morning and she told Dave to skip his Intron shot this evening and come back for more blood work tomorrow.  We were hoping Dave's WBC wouldn't dive so quickly.  Now Dr. S. has to decide whether to reduce the amount of Intron Dave is taking, or stop it.

Dave is actually feeling pretty well.  He generally has overall muscle aches the day after his Intron shot, and he is very weak and fatigued, but he does not feel sick.  Not a lot of food appeals to him and he has dropped a few more pounds (he is down 12).  The only thing that seems consistently good to him is the homemade peanut butter a dear friend makes for him.   He has no taste for his beloved Scotch or even red wine, but a glass of white wine will do.  So unusual for him!

I was hoping to get our Christmas tree today, but with Dave's appointment with the nurse practitioner, then having to pick up and deliver meds and contacts to Sandy, it was all he could handle.  We had taken two cars, so I scooted off to get a couple of fresh garlands and a table wreath for my advent candles.  Maybe tomorrow?  Dave will have had 4 days 'off' from the Intron and I'm hoping he will start feeling better and of course that his WBC count improves.