Hi everyone.  I am doing so much better.  They put me on a pain pump yesterday that also has a continuous drip of pain medicine.  It is perfect.  The pain is still in my stomach and esophagus,  but with this pain medication going, I hardly even hurt at all.    I’m not really able to eat because I feel so bloated and I am having a lot of fluid in my legs and abdomen. My allergic rash is almost gone.  I still have the petechiae rash from low platelets.   The doctor says this is normal after chemo until your counts get better.  I think my blood counts are probably fixing to start coming back up.

Don and I have been walking around exploring the new floor.  He holds my hand real tight and pushes my IV pole.  I have to wear a mask if I leave my room.  I get a little short of breath but the views are amazing.

I will be getting my bone marrow biopsy tomorrow.  Mixed emotions about this one.  The last time it hurt so bad.  I will be heavily medicated this time!!  I won’t have results for a couple of days, but then we will know what the next step is…  Pray that the bone marrow is clean and cancer free!!!! Also that it doesn’t hurt!!!!

love karen

We just found out that the address at the new hospital is:

Karen Cornelius
Shands at University of Florida
BMTU #7144
1515 SW Archer Road
Gainesville, FL 32608

No flowers, please. They might call her down to the nurses station to get a quick look but then they are taken away. Flowers are not allowed for these patients.

Don: Since Karen finished up two years of nursing courses and then got a job at Bay Medical about two years ago, she and I have been around hospitals and their staff, Doctors and nurses quite a bit. I really like what I have seen and the people I have met. I for sure wouldn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings back home but I think Shand’s is great. They have quality everywhere you look. The absolute best thing they have going for them in the areas we have been at this hospital is their people. We are obviously here on very serious business and it is so comforting when you get the feeling that the doctors and nurses have no doubt in themselves and the procedures they perform on a daily basis. Not that they are cocky, just confident that they know what to do and how to do it. Then you top off each one of those knowledgable people with true caring for the patients situation as well as the family that always accompanies the patient. They treat eveyone through the door as a valued customer and you quickly get the feeling that you are more than a customer, you are a friend. May God bless the lives of each and every person at Shands for the love and care they have shown.

Don: The list of cool things about the new room is long. 26″ flat panel LCD TV is at the top. It is followed closely by the DVD player. The old rooms had a 21″ old style TV and a VHS player and lots of videos that had been donated to the hospital. I guess it is a guy thing that those two items had to be at the top of my list! Shands has wireless internet throughout the many hospital buildings. They had a visitor room in the BMTU (Bone Marrow Transplant Unit) that we were in at the old hospital which is where they stored the video tapes but also had a computer in there that patients and their families could use. Yesterday our TWO visitor rooms did not have a computer but today they do! They don’t have any DVDs though.

I am sure that I couldn’t possibly list all the things that make this new building so great. Most of them are probably invisible to me. From a family member of a patient viewpoint, I can tell you that it really is a little awe inspiring. There are even two large framed photos in every room and lining the hallways. These were all taken by people who work at the hospital and there is a little name plate telling who took the photo and usually the location. The air filteration system to just too fantastic when you compare it to the one in the old room. Both quiet and super efficient. I am not going to spend any more time on this topic except to say that the staff here has been told that this is the most technologically enhanced building in Florida at this time. Michelle G. said there was an article in the Sunday paper in Tallahassee. I am sure you could find info on it online if you are into that sort of thing.

Hi everyone, 

As far as the move went, of all the days to get sicker…ughhh! I started to get chills, spiked and mild temp, and my stomach bloated up like a toad frog.  I was hurting so bad (It all started getting worse in the night).  It feels like I have concrete from the tip of my esophagus all the way down my stomach.  So anyway, I moved via wheelchair, with chills, under a pile of blankets, praying my pain medicine would hold up long enough to get to the new room.  They put me on dilaudid every two hours for the pain.

Probably one of the worst days so far.   They did an abdominal CT (neg), started me back on flagyl and some new antibiotics.  I’m not sure why this pain is so persistent, but it probably just goes with the territory, you know, chemo and all.

So, back to the room… This room is amazing!  It has a glass window that goes down one complete side like a hotel.  I can actually see trees, and people, and buildings, and I even got to see the full moon!  It has a futon couch, sconces for lighting… I just love it.  This room will help to keep my spirits up.

love all, karen

So you all seem to like me bald ?  Thanks for all the compliments.  Believe me, I wouldn’t let Don take  any photos until I piled on some makeup!  I will say, it’s not as bad as I thought it would be,  but it was hard posting photos.  I love you all, and I appreciate all the support.  love, Karen

She likes it! I love it! She is just gorgeous!