Home on the range (again!)

Hi guys,

So I went in to hospital last Friday 18th April with a raised temperature, another infection. It is such a horrible sinking feeling when you know you feel a little bit 'not right' and you don't want to do your temperature because you KNOW what it is going to say. It wasn't too bad in hospital. I was in the room next door to the one I was in last time. I felt rough for a couple of days until they started giving me Paracetamol (a real wonder drug) and my temperature went down and I started feeling much better. By that point the antibiotics had kicked in again.

The infection was in the Hickman line again which meant that it had to come out. That happened on Thursday. It wasn't too bad. There's no pain as such just some tugging and a lot of lying there not doing anything.

I'm home now having been discharged on Friday (thank you Dr Sawicka for discharging me a day earlier than expected!). The staff on the Chartwell ward were fantastic YET AGAIN. Especially my nurse Ricardo who tried so hard to stick a cannula in my hand and just managed to bruise me - it looks as though I haven't washed my hand for a while!

Ashley and I had a celebratory curry Friday night and watched DVDs (Flight of the Conchords - LOVE IT!). Saturday we went to the allotment and I think I caught the sun on my head. We've planted loads of things now but not a lot is coming up except spring onions which are just poking through. The weather is starting to improve now so hopefully we'll start to see some more changes.

My brother came over Saturday night to finish our mammoth Star Wars watching session. We had planned to watch episodes I, II and III and the Clone Wars cartoons but every time we watched a film I was ill! We finally watched Revenge of the Sith last night and it was brilliant apart from the very cheesy 'Noooooooooooooo' from a clunky newly born Darth Vader. Hmmmm.

I feel pretty good now although I'm going to be careful not to do too much. There's lots of financial things to sort out so I'm going to the Citizens Advice Bureau on Monday to see if they can give me some advice. I've sort of got a break now from treatment as I am on antibiotics for another week then a week off with nothing to make sure I'm OK then the Hickman line will go back in (well a new one anyway!) and then chemo will recommence.

Particular thanks in this blog to my sister Helen and to Lloyd who both sent me gifts that arrived on the same day (awesome day!) and to Katie for the book - it reminds me of our Uni days!

Will keep you all updated as and when anything happens

I'm off to see my grandparents and aunts and uncles that I haven't seen for ages in Hastings

Lots of love to everyone

Liz
xxx