Friday Afternoon

Mom ended up not seeing the neurologist on Tuesday. I saw Dr. Schuster at 9:00AM and was finished before 10. Mom's appointment was scheduled for 2:45. Instead of trying to "kill 4 hours," she decided that she'd rather see a neurologist at Mt. Sinai that she'd already met with my sister and with whom she's already discussed her case. He's also already seen her films of the CT and the MRI that were done at South Nassau. After seeing the tests, he said that he'd like her to have another MRI because the quality of the first one was very poor. Also, he'd like to compare the two. She called him and got a prescription for the new MRI and she went with Illana yesterday morning and had it done. She has an appointment scheduled with him on Wednesday.

As far as we know, it appears that what she had was Transient Global Amnesia, a form of TIA (Transient Ischemic Accident). If that is indeed the case -- if, in fact there was NO BLEED, as they initially thought -- then she can go back to her usual aspirin/day and drive again and get back to her usual routine. As of now, she's still staying here at my house and really hasn't been driving (I think she did once).
Hopefully, whatever it was is over and gone and will never recur. Thank God she's been feeling well and looks as beautiful as ever.

My visit with the Dr. went well, too. My numbers were good, Thank God.

Thank you for following and for caring and for your prayers and good thoughts. Have a wonderful weekend. Keep believing in miracles!!

Thursday Update

B"H Mom came home from the hospital on Tuesday afternoon and is staying here with me. She's feeling well and looking well, Thank God. Her EEG was unremarkable and we will be taking all of the test results with us when we see the neurologist at New York Hospital on Tuesday. She played Mah Jong yesterday and is having her hair done, "as we speak." Please keep her in your prayers -- Yehudis Chana bas Sara Rivka.

Thanks for checking in. Believe in Miracles!

Monday News

Ok,there are actually things to report. First and foremost, Mom is in the hospital. Saturday morning she had an "episode" which we and the doctors thought was a mild stroke. Normally, on Saturday mornings, she would be waking up in either my or Illana & Keith's house. This past weekend, however we all had dinner at Illana's and because Illana's air conditioning wasn't working, she walked home after dinner and was planning on coming back to Illana's for lunch on Saturday.

Saturday morning my telephone rang and it was Mom's Caller ID. David answered the phone and it was Mom and she was very, very confused. She didn't realize it was Saturday and she didn't remember eating at Illana's and didn't remember going home. It was very frightening. David and I rushed over there and called the ambulance. She was walking and talking normally and had no outward appearance of any problem whatsoever. She just kept asking the same questions over and over and didn't know the year or who the president was.

They took her by ambulance to the ER where she had a CT scan. They said that she had a very small bleed and by Saturday night she had her memory back. The only thing she didn't (and still doesn't) remember was the actual episode on Saturday morning.

Since then, she has had another CT scan, and MRI and an MRA. Today, the doctor said that it appears that there was no bleed at all. What they saw on the CT and initially thought was a bleed is actually a CAVERNOUS ANGIOMA. They said it's something she may have had her whole life and that it was not responsible for her symptoms. Now they're saying that she may have had a seizure. They've ordered an EEG and we're waiting for that now.

Thank God she's feeling well. She looks great. She's out of bed. She said that she feels fine. Still, there's no explanation for what happened and we hope that we'll be able to get some answers soon.

I have an appointment at NY Hospital tomorrow morning and I'm going to ask Dr. Schuster to recommend a Neurologist.

I saw Dr. Schuster last week and thank God my numbers were really good -- WBC 6.8, HGB 11.2, PLT 135. They gave me my Benadryl but about halfway through the Pentamidine I fainted again. Dr. Schuster said "No more Pentamidine." I'm sure we'll discuss it further tomorrow.

I'm still taking the Prednisone. In fact, he increased my dose back up to 20mg/day on Friday because I was feeling nauseous and headachy again. Actually, I'm still feeling a little nauseous and headachy, but it's on and off...just not constant. My eyes are pretty much the same as they've been.

I think that's it for now (it's enough!). Thanks for checking in. We all appreciate your thoughts and prayers. Mom's name is Yehudis Chana bas Sara Rivka. Believe in Miracles!

Thursday

I went back to the hospital on Tuesday for a visit with Dr. Schuster. Because of the previous week's "fiasco" he wanted to see me in one week, instead of the usual two. Thank God, all went well. My counts were better -- WBC 3.6, HGB 10.4, PLT 129. There was none of that silly fainting nonsense.

I have my regular appointment scheduled for next Tuesday when I will get my Benadryl/Pentamidine. Dr. Schuster reduced the dosage on the Prednisone from 20mg. to 15mg. daily. I'm still feeling tired, even though my HGB is in double digits. He said it's from the GvH.

My eyes are still driving me a little crazy and I have an appointment with the eye doctor this afternoon.

Thankfully, there's not much more to report. I can't believe I've passed the 8-month mark! I feel truly blessed and I know that I'm well on my way to a full recovery and to feeling well again. Thank you for sticking with me through it all and for your good wishes, thoughts and prayers. Believe in Miracles!!