HOME FROM HOSPITAL

Hi Everyone,
I just wanted to let everybody know that I finally got to come home from the hospital today!

I had began to get some extreme abdominal pain last thursday night. It became progressively worse throughout the night until I was on my hand and knees bawling in the living room floor. I called my Dad to come take me to the Emergency Room around 1:30am (Mark was at work). After many hours in pain the doctors finally figured out my small intestines had kinked or twisted causing a blockage, they believe it was caused from adhesions (scar tissue) from my last surgery in May. Here's a diagram & link from a great website I found that talks about adhesions and the related pain & trouble they cause. I hope maybe this information can help someone else out there who might be dealing with this same problem. It's funny, all the surgeries I have had, I don't remember any of the doctors telling me about the risk of adhesions, yet according to this website, they are very common and can obviously cause major health problems. Here's the link if your interested: http://www.clearpassage.com/pain/adhesions.php?OVRAW=abdominal%20adhesions&OVKEY=abdominal%20adhesion&OVMTC=standard



My lower intestines had completely shut down & I was in unbelievable pain from the pressure and swelling.
I was then given lots of pain medicine and a tube was inserted through my nose to my stomach to pump it out and relieve the pressure. After 5 days of pain, puking & pumping my intestines finally straightened out on their own without surgery, Thank God!
I was told this may happen again and I've been put on a special low-fiber diet to try to prevent it. My next chemo was also pushed back a week.

I want to thank everyone for their prayers, cards and flowers! I was so glad to come home tonight and see my little boys. I also want to thank my my mother-in-law Linda, Dad, Stacey & my sister-in-law Sandra, for taking care of Wade & Cody for me. I am so grateful!
Wade's 6th birthday is tomorrow! So I am very grateful to home just in time for that! :) I am still very sore and tired but just glad to be home.

Touching email from my friend & my husbands reply

Hey Mallory,
I woke up thinking about you and hope your feeling good today. Just keep thinking about how far along you are with your treatments and how much of this is behind you everyday. Cindy and I are looking forward to The Race for the Cure Walk tomorrow at Eastland Mall. We'll probably get there around 7:30 am for the Service of Hope. The Survivor Recognition Program at 8:30am really means alot to me. I remember walking the 2 mile walk just months after my treatments were over and even though I felt pretty bad I was determined to cross that finish line even if I had to crawl or be dragged over it. The wonderful support for this event overwhelms me to no end. I have a MRI and Cat Scan this comming Tuesday and I will see Dr. Waits on Thursday for my results. If things look good again he is suppose to move my check ups out to every 6 months!!! The only bad thing about that is not getting to see my Hero Dr. Waits as often. In my book he is the Real Deal and I owe my life to him and his treatments!!! He tells me every visit that maybe 40% of my outcome is related to my attitude at fighting this nasty thing off. Trust me my Good Friend that there were many hard days that really just about got me down but I was bound and determined to move on from them. Mallory you are an inspiration to me and several others in this same fight. You are reaching out to so many through your journal and thats part of what being in the Cancer Family is all about. I guess I'll always wonder just why this thing attacked me, but one thing is for certain and that is that it tried to take on the wrong guy!!!! Keep up your fight and thanks for being an inspiration to me. Hope to see you tomorrow if your feeling up to it.
My Deepest Hope and Inspiration
Bobby Schneider


REPLY EMAIL TO BOBBY FROM MY HUSBAND, MARK...

Thanks Robert for the inspirational email this morning, this is Mark, Mallory's husband. Although, I've never met you in person, I feel like your an old friend. I read your notes all the time , I am particulary touched by the one this morning. Mal is still sleeping, she is so exhausted, her blood count is as low now as it has ever been. So tiring just to get up and go to the bathroom. I know, you could be setting on the porch swing, drinking coffee, watching the sunrise or eating breakfast with your family , yet you , someone we have never met, is reaching out...... You know she is tired now, you know she is shaking a little bit as she grabs for more medication, you know she is getting a little more afraid each day as the enemy is attacking, wondering how much more can she take......

Thanks Robert, for the caring, thanks for reloading the guns, the extra push up the hill and the armor.......I am very grateful.

Your friend Mark

Thank God for the good days!

Like most people going through chemo, I have my good days and my bad days. Luckily, it seems that God arranged it so that Labor Day weekend would be some of my good days. I am so glad that he did too! We had a wonderful weekend doing my absolute favorite thing....spending time with family!
First we had a big family birthday party for Mark at his sister, Sandra's house. All his family were there, even his older sister and nephew came down from Corydon. We had a great time fishing, eating, talking & playing washers. Then on Sunday I got to see my cousin Tony, he came up to visit from Texas. We had a nice get together at Stacey's house with Shirley, Steffi, Sterling, Don & little Christopher.
Finally, Monday, I was still feeling well enough to take the kids to the zoo with Sandra, Dee, Eric & their kids. We all had a beautiful day and then met Mark for lunch. This was an awesome weekend and I thank God that he let me feel good enough to enjoy it. I believe he delayed my pain this time just so I could enjoy the weekend. I've been down & out pretty bad these last couple days, but it was worth it to have a nice weekend with the family!