New Diagnosis - my Mom **She's passed!!!

Tera · Senior User Joined: 31 Dec 2007 Posts: 187

There you go, Liz! Glad to hear the news. Keep us posted.

partlysunny · Regular Joined: 06 Aug 2008 Posts: 17 Location: US

What great news, Liz! Will say an extra special prayer tonight that your Mom's strength returns quickly. (((Liz)))
_________________
Cindy

My beautiful Mom
Diagnosed July 8, 2008 Stage IV NSCLC
Died peacefully September 2, 2008

brainman · Last edited by brainman on Tue Aug 12, 2008 8:08 am; edited 1 time in total

Liz, I was so sorry to read about your mother's weakness but happy to hear that it is not caused by a tumor growth but by the swelling.

You and your mother continue to be in my thoughts and prayers.
_________________
Jim
Site Administrator and long-term cancer survivor
1992 Astrocytoma grade 2, left motor strip
2005 Recurrence this time said to be an Oligodendoglioma grade 3, same location.
My Story Part 1: http://cancerforums.net/viewtopic.php?p=7350
My Story Part 2: http://cancerforums.net/viewtopic.php?t=8029
Blog http://jimhawkinsport.blogspot.com/

koikkeril · Super Moderator Joined: 29 Jul 2007 Posts: 334

Hi Liz
That's great news...Let us all pray your mom does get that 30-50% strength and not need the gathering!
Thinking about you and keeping you in my prayers
God Bless...Koik
_________________
Husband diagnosed with stage 1V NSCLC Febuary 2007.....Lost his battle August 27th 2008 but lives on in my heart.

LizNDale

Thank you everyone,

Mom is getting better and better...she can move her left leg, arm and hand, use her left hand for simple things like hitting the Talk button her phone, though her aim is off and it takes a while.

She did move into the Gathering yesterday even with the improvement. She feels safer and we like having nurse onhand 24 hours a day.

This place is something else. Go to boutwells.org to see this wonderful place my mom has lived at for the last 4 years. In fact if you click on the "virtual tour", "Panoramas" and scroll right to "Brownstone Apt", that's her actual apartment (on which, sadly, we are quitting her lease this month) and if you click on "Photos" in this virtual tour, find a picture (it's on the left side, 15 pics down) called "artist in residence", and that's my mom in her sunroom (she calls it her PlayRoom) showing off one of her baskets!

We have had a lot of joy these last 2 days, you should have seen her at physcial therapy yesterday, she was weeping, she was so glad she could lift her arm! She get's distracted and tired easily, and is still rather out of it. She'd lose track of what was happening, and just kind of smile at the therapist when she'd ask her to bring her arm down. But she is so much better! She can take some of her own weight making transfers much safer and easier. She can sit up much straighter now, her voice is stronger and her mind seems some clearer.

She's been talking about taking a break from Chemo, we have an appnt today with her oncologist, we'll see what decisions we make for going forward.

God Bless, in Hope,

Liz
_________________
My Mother - Stage IV NSCLC - Adenocarcinoma
Mets to Adrenal Glands and Brain
Diagnosed Thursday June 12th 2008
Died Sunday September 7th 2008

Her Story:
http://cancerforums.net/about9639.html
Her Statement of Faith Memorial:
http://cancerforums.net/viewtopic.php?t=10528

zinger

Oh Liz!! Your Mom looks so happy in her sunroom doing the things she loves best! And what lovely surroundings! How sad that you have to give up the lease. It's difficult to move our loved ones out of the environments that they have lived in and thrived in for so many years. Hopefully your Mom will adjust to her new surroundings nicely and can continue to improve with physical therapy and lots of family love.

Thanks for allowing us to see a picture of your Mom and for the little snippet of her community. I know we all are going through similar circumstances but it's much more profound when we can associate a face with a name. So many of us are dealing with (or have dealt with) issues with our Moms and this dreaded disease. Every story hits home! I miss my Mom immensely, she was my best friend.

^i^ Here's an Angel to watch over you, your Mom, and your family.

Sending prayers and hugs for continued improvement,

Cathy
_________________
Dad ~ lung cancer diagnosed Dec 18, 2003, passed Mar 3, 2004.
Mom ~ lung cancer diagnosed May 27, 2008, passed June 1, 2008
They're waltzing once again...

LizNDale

Thank you Cathy, I'm so glad you found her pic!

I looked all the web site, and can't find anything on "The Gathering", not sure why!

My heart aches for you in the loss of your mom, your best friend. It increases my drive to make every minute with my mom the best it can be.

Thank you so much for the Angel, your prayers and your hugs.

Right back at'cha!

Liz
_________________
My Mother - Stage IV NSCLC - Adenocarcinoma
Mets to Adrenal Glands and Brain
Diagnosed Thursday June 12th 2008
Died Sunday September 7th 2008

Her Story:
http://cancerforums.net/about9639.html
Her Statement of Faith Memorial:
http://cancerforums.net/viewtopic.php?t=10528

Tera · Senior User Joined: 31 Dec 2007 Posts: 187

Ditto what Cathy said. Thanks for sharing that! Wink

LizNDale

Thanks Tera!

Good news everyone, her fight is back on! She'll have her third chemo on friday and she is thrilled, so very happy.

And she LOVES the Gathering! The nurses are angels and take such wonderful care of her, and their 3 other charges (wards? clients?) Her room is small, but she has her own bathroom, there's a beautiful living room and kitchen.

She feels very safe there and it feels wonderful to leave her knowing that she is indeed safe and that someone is there around the clock.

She's stronger today, and in fact I was able to take her to the bathroom by myself while at Oncologists today. She held onto the rail, stood up pretty much on her own, was able to hold her weight while I pulled done her pants, etc. She sat down, didn't plop, and easily reversed the process.

We spoke with both offices today, the radiology oncologist and chemo oncologist, and voiced our concern that they didn't seem to be communicating with each other very well, with one weaning her off the decadron (which we know we want to do) and the other putting her back on a week later, and yet both looked at the same MRI. We asked how we can be better advocates for her, because this last week of daily downhill would not have happened if both offices had been on the same page. They both acknowledged this but neither could really pin down the breakdown. Frustrating! Especially since we had been calling the oncologist almost daily. Guess we should have been calling the radiology oncologist. Lessons learned!

Liz
_________________
My Mother - Stage IV NSCLC - Adenocarcinoma
Mets to Adrenal Glands and Brain
Diagnosed Thursday June 12th 2008
Died Sunday September 7th 2008

Her Story:
http://cancerforums.net/about9639.html
Her Statement of Faith Memorial:
http://cancerforums.net/viewtopic.php?t=10528

koikkeril · Super Moderator Joined: 29 Jul 2007 Posts: 334

Ditto Cathy....Thanks for sharing
I am thinking of you!

Big Hugs.......God Bless......Koik
_________________
Husband diagnosed with stage 1V NSCLC Febuary 2007.....Lost his battle August 27th 2008 but lives on in my heart.

LizNDale

Thanks Koik,

And boy, am I ever thinking about you!

Hi everyone,

My mom is having her third chemo as I type, her closest friend is with her, so my brother and I could both go to work today.

She says she is doing well, and dozing almost constantly.

And this we have noticed this week, she is getting stronger every day - can walk now with a walker and an aid to assist - but is sleeping more than she is awake. Even with 16 mg of decadron a day.

Her blood is good, they did her labs of course before starting the chemo today.

She falls asleep even while talking.

Everytime she wakes up she thinks it's a new day. She lives a week every day! I didn't see her on Wednesday, and yesterday when I asked her if she missed me then, she said "yes I did, and the day before that, and the day before that, and the day before that". When I told her I had been with her all those days she was surprised and confused.

I think it's because of the time trouble she has when she wakes up from these naps. She sleeps hard!

Any clues?

Added: Day before yesterday the nurse called me, mom was agitated at the # of visitors she was getting (they all happened to show up at once) and at her request have put up a sign asking for short visits due to easy fatigue. I made some calls and explained what's going on and everyone was super understanding.

Hugs to all,

Liz
_________________
My Mother - Stage IV NSCLC - Adenocarcinoma
Mets to Adrenal Glands and Brain
Diagnosed Thursday June 12th 2008
Died Sunday September 7th 2008

Her Story:
http://cancerforums.net/about9639.html
Her Statement of Faith Memorial:
http://cancerforums.net/viewtopic.php?t=10528

LizNDale

Mom's left side is so much better, she sailed through ehr third chemo (slept through more than 2/3s of it), but I am worried about her state of mind for the first time.

Amazing when you think about it, but for the first time she is showing outward signs of depression and sadness. It doesn't seem far fetched for this to be happening, but I wish I knew if this is just normal reaction, treatment related or side effect of the decadron (Still on 16 mg/day).

She sleeps ALOT. Everyday she gets out of bed for shorter and shorter periods of time. This morning she was in tears, says she doesn't want Physcial therapy, wants to just lay in bed and cry. Keeps apologizing for being a baby.

Can decadron do this, (nt that she needs an excuse - but this is so unlike her)

Thanks,

Liz
_________________
My Mother - Stage IV NSCLC - Adenocarcinoma
Mets to Adrenal Glands and Brain
Diagnosed Thursday June 12th 2008
Died Sunday September 7th 2008

Her Story:
http://cancerforums.net/about9639.html
Her Statement of Faith Memorial:
http://cancerforums.net/viewtopic.php?t=10528

dano

Hi Liz;
Seems like her body needs the rest, I've had many a day I didn't want to move and when I did I was slow and was quickly ready to get back in a resting position. How is her appetite? The chemo treatments at first took away my appetite and I think that made me more shaky and tired. With the way I feel now, hoping to be back a work soon, I feel that my ability to eat is a big reason. So many things once I would get sick just smelling it. But at first I found the desire for McDonald's fries and a shake sounded good and it tasted good, the more things I could think of that gave me a positive feeling when I thought of it, the better it would taste and the more I ate, the more I ate the better things tasted. A lot of this is in the head, and if she doesn't think it will taste good, it wont. Now me, I have always loved food, well until I started chemo treatments, but I'm bouncing back on the positives. I remember that nothing was salty enough, so I salted more and when eating out, Iced tea was the norm to drink. Now I learn that the kidney stones I had just recently broken up, were largely made up of those two components. Guess I'll watch my salt intake a little more, I'll wait and see if I give up my Iced Tea! Passing all that kidney stone gravel wasn't all that bad this time....lol.
I really like your Mom and her attitude over all is great, you are blessed to have her.
God Bless
Dan
_________________
54 year old male in Hawaii
Diagnosed Nov. 9,2007 with NSCLC IV
with Mets to the lymphs and brain
Had full brain radiation treatment in Jan 08
Currently on chemo treatments every 3 weeks
with Alimta
and taking Lovenox for blood clots
Now back to work full time
http://cancerforums.net/viewtopic.php?t=9993

LizNDale

Hi Dan,

Thanks for your response!

Her appetite is not too bad, sometimes smells really bother her. She'll generally eat but not a lot. After Chemo she asked me to stop at McD for cheese burger and fries, she ate the CB but not the fries. Yesterday we mentioned McD and she made a face.

I really like your idea of finding foods that give you a positive feeling when you think of them. I'll share that with her.

She LOVES tapica pudding, especially Trader Joes, and she'll eat that anytime, her eyes light up when you mention it. She is so funny, a couple weeks ago she said "It's so bland, and mild, and tasty"...the word "tasty" broke us up, because the sentence sounded like it was going in a completely different direction. It's become a family joke now, someone will say "it's so Bland, and Mild and Tasty" and she'll laugh and laugh.

Thank you for the lovely comments, I'm so glad you like her. I do too! I am blessed to have her, all 3 of us kids are, and doubly blessed in that we've always known it, it didn't take this for us to see it. (Though it has bumped it up quite a notch, and she amazes us with her spirit, strength and faith.)

Yesterday when I saw her I leaned down to give her a hug (she was laying in bed) and she gave me a bunch of quick kisses on my cheek, something she hasn't done in quite awhile. It felt so good, I decided I needed to stock up on them for later mental playback, so I said "oh give me more!" and she did, about a dozen! They're a little treasure and I've got them in a treasure chest now for whenever I need them for the rest of my life.

God Bless you Dan, you are a inspiration to me and others on this board. If a sense of humor adds to a person's life, then you've got more than a headstart on your treatments!
_________________
My Mother - Stage IV NSCLC - Adenocarcinoma
Mets to Adrenal Glands and Brain
Diagnosed Thursday June 12th 2008
Died Sunday September 7th 2008

Her Story:
http://cancerforums.net/about9639.html
Her Statement of Faith Memorial:
http://cancerforums.net/viewtopic.php?t=10528

dano

Hi Liz;
You did something amazing with your Mom, you took little kisses and turned them into gold and more, it was a special moment for you but so much more for your Mom. Saying nice things about a loved one is nice and they like it, but accepting their intentions the way they meant them to be is priceless, that touched her heart like nothing else could, and many a time coming she will think of that moment like sunshine in an early morning and bring her to joyous tears, and thinking of it over and over.
This touches me deeply.
God Bless
_________________
54 year old male in Hawaii
Diagnosed Nov. 9,2007 with NSCLC IV
with Mets to the lymphs and brain
Had full brain radiation treatment in Jan 08
Currently on chemo treatments every 3 weeks
with Alimta
and taking Lovenox for blood clots
Now back to work full time
http://cancerforums.net/viewtopic.php?t=9993

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