Wednesday, December 5, 2007

Timeline.

I keep trying to remember various things, and I've realized that I mark most of my life as either BT or AT...Before Tumor and After Tumor. TTK and I keep forgetting when we married, so I've decided to write a timeline of events. Not all of them, mind you, just AT...


1995
January: Insurance kicks in: Diagnosed with Ulcerative Colitis.
April 10: Diagnosed with Acoustic Neuroma (now called Unilateral Schwanoma)
April 2?: Surgery
May 20: My birthday, and back into the hospital for Steroid Psychosis
July: Record heat wave in Chicago--500 people die, and I almost joined them.
October: Moved to Santa Cruz with Evil E.

1996
January-ish; Broke up with E. Moved out.
July-ish: Moved into McMillan House.

(somewhere in here I met TTK online, then in person, and got interested in him...)
August: Flew to Chicago for a visit.
September 5: Declared celibacy.
September 12: TTK offered via /m a back massage. I postponed until the next day.
September 13: We start our relationship. Monogamous.
October: TTK moves into McMillan House.
December-ish: After months of proposing to him, he finally said yes! Heh.

1997

We plan for wedding in November. November cruises by.

1998
May: I announce, frustrated with trying to plan a wedding, that we were getting married in June, damn it.
June 27: We marry. Me, him, Sara Homan as our Officiant, my sister as my maid of honor and his best friend as his man of honor. Party of five, in the middle of a field. :-)

1999
Moved to Seattle (Burien). I hate it.

2000
October: Moved to Cotati.

2002
March 1: moved to Sebastopol (Hessel area.)

2004
December: Doctor took me off celexa, put me on Wellbutrin which sent me loony.

2005
January: Partial Hospitalization Program for insane me.
February: Flareup started (and is still going.)
May: Finally decide to see the UC specialist. Made it down for my nephew's 2nd birthday.
August: Got to witness the birth of my neice. Wow is all I can say.

2006
Somewhere in here TTK decided to contact his parents, so I got to meet my MIL and FIL (and SIL) for the first time (after 7 years of marriage.)
May: Said new in-laws gift us with some stock (none of your business how much). Woo hoo! And eeeee!
I head to L.A. for neph's b-day party, and I take frogs to show (party is frog themed!).
August: I start school.
September: Ginsu appeared on our doorstep.
December: Dr. M declares me "in remission" but says I have residual irritable bowel. (HA!!)
December 25th: We fly to Texas to meet TTK's grandmas. Weird but fun trip.

2007
January:
Cramping and blood get worse despite being "in remission." I decide to get a second opinion. Which meant another colonoscopy, whee.
March:
Almost completely homebound now. Had to drop all of my classes. Weight loss is getting noticeable. I get a blood test check and my iron levels are 34 (normal is 35). No biggie, right? Keep reading...
April:
I go on steroid enemas. These are evil and painful.
May:
I go on oral steroids (Budosenide). Evil stuff. I start having extreme dizziness when I stand, that I attribute to the steroids (but, oh, was I wrong!)
June:
1st: momma has a stroke. (okay, TIA, but it's still serious).
Dizzy and sort of breath all of the time now. Hands are shaky.
July:
More of the same. Down to 155 pounds. (was 190 at the start of the year.) Somewhere in here I decided to take up crochet hook again.
August:
8th: Needles died.
16: Woke this morning by TTK...he found Atlantis dead in the cage. Was expecting it, since he was so depressed about Fizzbinn, but it was still a shock.
16: Down to 151 pounds. Finally approved for Remicade! Decided to taper myself off of the evil steroids, since none of my doctors wanted to, and they were making me insane.
22: First Remicade transfusion. Whee.

September:
5th: Second infusion. Feeling better every day.
13 11 year anniversary today.
28 Tasha died. :-(

October
Finally off the steroids.
3: Infusion of Remicade. Up to 155 pounds. Still incredibly dizzy and shaky, though.

I make an app with my regular dr, and ask for a blood test (last one was in March!)
Hemo score is at 23, when normal is 35. Dr is freaked, puts me on megadoses (3X daily) of iron so we won't have to transfuse me. THIS explains the dizziness, weakness, short of breath-ness, and shakiness! ARRRRGH!

November 28: My 3rd infusion of Remicade. I've gained 10 pounds (now at 160), and dizziness is gone. I think we can safely say I am in remission for real.

I need another blood test, but it's kinda fallen back in my schedule of TO DO's, since there's so much other stuff I need to get caught up on.



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Okay, so the later years are not filled out much, but that's because it's always hard to separate the significant events when you're still close to them. I'm sure I'll be adding more.

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