A trooper!

So let me see as of today, my sister has gone through 3 ultrasounds, several blood tests, an ECG, a chest Xray, and CBC (Complete Blood Count).

As the tests results come out in printed form (which can be checked online, thankfully), there are certain improvements in one area while other issues are still either infected or need more days to heal.  She has stopped all antibiotics as the doctors deem it would be too much to go beyond the prescribed 2 weeks of dosage.

Every time we go to the clinic or the hospital for these tests, my parents (who are in their late 70s, mind you!) and I ALWAYS tag along. Even though I keep telling them they should not bother as they might get tired going out in this extremely hot weather.  They refuse to take NO for an answer and insist they are doing fine and can bear the severe climate.  

I am sure they are worried sick as no parent wants to see their children in pain or sick with an illness.  But they are strong individuals and I know they are putting up a brave face amid such trials.  I worry about my sister's health but more so I also worry about my elderly parents well being every single day since they are in their twilight years.

But this family has always been a strong force of 4 members and we have this very close bond that has sustained us since I was born.   Plus we have an extra member now (my hubby) and his mere presence lifts my downtrodden spirits.   By him, being patient and very understanding of my need to be at my sister's side, even though he himself had a health scare (which he had to handle by his lonesome self) is more than enough for me to know that I can push through any challenge that comes my way.

The 'last' hurdle to tackle is a biopsy on Monday, June 2.   This ultimately will determine our next course of action although her doctors have made it perfectly clear that a hysterectomy is the ONLY solution to her incessant uterine bleeding.

But she would need to take a longer leave of absence from her work and AS OF THIS MOMENT, this isn't viable just yet.  In fact, she needs to go back ASAP and attend an important trade fair next month.  So despite being saddled with medical tests and bleeding, my sister WORKS from home. She has a whole June issue of her magazine to publish as well as two trade directories to print.  All this despite my vehement request for her to rest and concentrate on getting well and on her recovery.  She insists.  If she didn't do her job, she won't have money to pay for her medical fees, her lab tests and her hospitalization.  So I guess she does have a valid point. 

I know I am just rambling at this point as this post is all over the place but I just wanted to document it so I can one day look back and recall these tough days.

To be continued ...

6 years

This merry month marks two special occasions for our family. My mom's birthday on the 30th.

And our wedding anniversary today, the 15th.

6 years now.

We have this agreement that whenever my sister is in town, I would stay with her at the condo. It would save us from daily commutes to and from our apartment in QC.

This sort of understanding is one of the reasons I attribute for our strong marriage.

He truly comprehends that I need to be by my sister's side when she visits. More so now that her health is in jeopardy.

My trust, respect and love for my husband grows a thousand fold not only today but every single day even though we might not always be physically together!

Sugar, iron and wood are the symbols for the 6th wedding anniversary. 

As we enter our 6th year of wedded bliss, may we continue to be "sweet" to each other by putting the "wooden" Cross in the center of our marriage. With the aim that the love, respect and trust we share will be as strong as  "iron". 

Happy Anniversay Hon!

Confined spaces

Today my sister was scheduled to fly back to her workplace after 10 days of R & R.

But.

Drastic change of plans.

Because you see she was hospitalised for 5 days at St. Luke's Hospital, in their QC branch.

Flashback - She arrived early morning of Labor Day, May 1, 2014. But by that time frame, she had been battling a severe case of gastroenteritis for five days already. Painful abdominal spasms, vomiting, unable to keep her food down, and she also had nightly high grade fevers.

When she arrived at the airport, she was so pale and exhausted from the flight but was so happy to be home with us, her family.

During the weekend, she got worse with her fever reaching 40 degrees, she had chills and was in so much unbearable pain.

So on May 5, Monday morning we rushed her to the hospital. Her doctor deemed it necessary to confine her and keep her under close monitoring. 

She spent a total of 4 nights and 5 days with several antibiotics fed to her intravenously. Her fever was on and off and I spent every waking hour of those days attending to her every need as she was too weak to fend for herself.

One night, I got the scare of my life as the nurse came in to take her temperature. Her body temperature had dropped to 35 degrees!!! She experienced hypothermia and was literally freezing!

I wrapped her under two blankets, lowered the aircon unit and kept rubbing her all over as she began shivering violently. All this time, I kept talking to her and told her to stay awake!  I was fearful that she might fall asleep, lose consciousness and not wake up. I really panicked but managed to stay calm and focused on getting her body temp back to normal.

Thankfully it did ... after an hour!

Well after her confinement, the doctors found out that aside from the abdominal flu, she has several cysts in her uterus and also a few myomas had developed again despite the fact that she had them removed in 2011 in Singapore. 

She might need another major operation to address this issue which is now causing her to bleed beyond the normal days of the monthly period.

She is resting now, still very weak and has to return to the hospital on May 19 and 20 for further tests and consultations.

Although she is having all these health issues I am glad she was able to make it home and is recuperating here so we can take care of her.

I am also grateful that her boss is considerate enough to extend her leave and is giving her all the time she needs to make a full recovery here or until the time the doctors deem it is ok for her to travel.

The road for her full recovery is still a long way to go and it worries me that there is a possibility that the cysts might be malignant.

But I want to stay on the positive path and keep praying with all my might for some good news to emerge from this latest health crisis my poor sister has to endure.