Wishes for Rassie

Fundraiser - Light the Night

2011-10-03T18:15:00.000-07:00

Hey there Friends and Family. Help support those fighting Leukemia and other blood Cancers. Rassie and I are participating in the Light the Night Walk. (To learn More, go to www.lightthenight.org) We have created our only little family team and we need your support! Our personal team goal is to reach $200 by October 20th before the walk starts on October 22nd. We have an swesome friend who is willing to help. She has opened up a Scentsy Party online. 20% of the total sales (before tax and shipping) will be donated directly to our team fundraising page. ( Team Rassie's Fundraising Page or you can donate yourself on the fundraising page).

The link provided below takes you directly to the Scentsy Party that was created for our Light the Night Fundraiser.

Light The Night Scentsy Fundraiser <- Click here
Thanks for any and all continued support. Whether it be through donations or prayers.

Light the Night

2011-10-03T15:54:00.000-07:00

I am excited to announce that Rassie and I will be participating in the Light the Night walk this year. And hopefully many more to come.
This is a great way for us to celebrate in Rassie's remission and to honor those who are still fighting against blood cancers.

You too can help.
Help to honor those lives already lost.
Help to give strength and encouragement to those still fighting.

Our local walk is October 22nd, 2011 in Austin, Texas.
There are two ways you can help in supporting our cause.
1) By Joining Team Rassie and walking with us.
2) By making a Donation on our Team page.

Thanks for your continued support in our Journey.

God Bless,
Amber & Rassie

All is Well

2011-08-08T17:17:00.000-07:00

All is well with the "Rassie Family". I have been just awful in keeping up with the blog lately. I hope to be making entries more often.

In the meantime, Rassie is doing well. He had an early visit with this fellow. It will be his last. She is moving out of state and he will be under the care of a new fellow. Of course a staff doctor oversees his CML and that won't change. But all doctors have to start somewhere and his fellow has been just great through this entire ordeal.

We had a little scare this past month. It was a financial scare and not a health scare. Rassie lost his insurance. His employer finally decided the worker's comp case had been going on too long and they had to let him go. (mmhmm). So I immediately added him and the kids onto my insurance. Not thinking, I forgot to upgrade my coverage in the process. So when it came time to renew his Gleevec RX it was $500+ copay! Talk about a whopper! We immediately went to work getting assistance. There is no way we can afford an extra $500 a month. The hospital social worker has helped us take care of everything and through November we will have assistance with the copay. Come November I am upgrading our health insurance coverage and our copay will go back to the $50 a month. What a relief, right?

Onto the dreaded worker's comp. They really tick me off. They won't approve more therapy. They barely approved a new knee brace. And in the meantime, the one Rassie had keeps falling apart and has had to be sewn up several times. They're useless people who really get my blood boiling. His benefits are up in November and even though they're supposed to continue with medical coverage I doubt they will. We're already having so many problems.

For now, Rassie is a stay at home dad. He does such a great job taking care of the kids. And me, well I'm working at S&W in the cariology deptartment and I'm loving it so far.

Oh, stay tuned for the announcement of the Light the Night walk. Rassie and I are really wanting to participate this year and hoping to get a team together soon.

God Bless

Happy Father's Day

2011-06-20T18:49:00.000-07:00

Happy Father's Day to my wonderful husband. I true Hero and life long fighter. We Love you Daddy!

Update Update Update

2011-06-18T10:46:00.000-07:00

I realize it has been way too long since I have blogged. Everyone that I have not talked to is probably wondering what is going on. There's lots of good and a little not so good.

Let's start with the good. First, Rassie is still considered to be in remission. His counts look great. He is a little low on the sodium and potassium side. But nothing that can't be easily taken care of. He is hanging in there and still fighting strong. He has finally encountered a side effect of the Gleevec. Rassie is retaining water. That was a simple fix and they have him on a water pill. It seems to be doing the trick. Even though Rassie does not care for the frequent bathroom visits. I guess it could be worse so we don't really complain.

Another good update. Rassie Ida making vast improvement with his legs. His right leg is the one that was still paralyzed from the knee down. He has been having lots of tingling sensations in it and delayed feeling. Some days can feel it slot and there is some pain. Other day he doesn't feel it near as much. Any feeling at all we consider "WOW" since there was no feeling before.

Ok, onto the bad. Rassie went back to the designated doctor for workers compensation. Although he is showing improvement at every single appointment this doctor labeled him at Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI) and also labeled him 10% permanently disabled. They are also refusing anymore physical therapy for him. It's almost as if they do not want him to get better. I remember the day that the workers comp nurse case manager said he would never get out of a wheel chair. Well guess what, HE DID! I do not understand why people have to be such Debbie Downers and have no faith. In the meantime, he continue to be on workers comp for the next several months.

More bad news. Although Rassie is still on workers comp his employer has terminated him. They did it over the phone. They said he has been out too long and they can no longer hold his position. I really do understand that it has been a while since this whole thing started. But Rassie continues to show improvement and is still on workers comp. So how they can fire him beats the heck out of me.

We are meeting with a lawyer this coming week to see where we need to go from here. Hopefully he will get us headed in the right direction without breaking the bank.

In the middle of all this, Rassie has been a wonderful stay at home dad. He really loves being able to spend so much time with the kids. Not so much the cleaning part though. I am happy to say that I finally got off the midnight shift at 911. So no more 911 calls, no more dispatching and no more sleeping days. I really do love my sunshine. Instead I am working at Scott & White Memorial Hospital in the Cardiology Department. I have been training and testing for the last 3 weeks. I have my first day in Cardiology on Monday. Wish me luck.

Sorry it took so long for me to update on everything. Just know that we are all doing well. Thanks for your continued support and prayers.

God Bless

Amber, Rassie and the 2 Baby Munckins

Verdict of Benefits Review

2011-03-14T00:19:00.000-07:00

I know I'm a little late, but.... Rassie won the Benefits Review. The findings from the designated doctor that the worker's comp insurance tricked Rassie into seeing were thrown out. In the mean time he is getting full benefits again and they have to back pay him.

The insurance should be setting up for Rassie to see the original designated doctor soon.

Everything seems to be going smooth.

Just Thinking...

2011-02-15T21:44:00.000-08:00

Tonight as I sit here I think back to when this whole CML thing began. I just can not believe how fast time goes by. My sweet Lane was a few days short of being 2 months old when Rassie was first diagnosed. He is now a bouncy, sweet, loveable 18 month old! And little Miss Independent Scarlett, she is now 3!!! We have all grown together in someway and are truly Blessed. I am so Blessed that Rassie has responded well to the Gleevec. I am Blessed that he has lived as normal a life as possible without chemo or radiation. (aside from his injury/paralysis). God is Good without a doubt. I am just in awe of how far we have come and how strong my family truly is.

Lane

September 2009

Lane

February 2011

Scarlett

September 2009

Scarlett

January 2011

Ombudsman

2011-02-12T20:09:00.000-08:00

Rassie and I met with the Ombudsman this past Thursday. We talked about the benefits review hearing. I am praying things go in our favor.

Our main concern is that the insurance company made false claims stating that Rassie had surgery pertaining to his accident. When in reality he had his tonsils out and that had nothing to do with the accident. The ombudsman said we will ask that the findings from the new designated doctor about Maximum Medical Improvement (MMI) and his % of disability be thrown out. Then we will ask that Rassie see the original designated doctor. Based on what the original doctor says, will determine what benifits Rassie will be eligble for.
The insurance company has also been denying physical therpay treatment based on what was said. Their claim is that if he is permanently disabled he no longer neads treatment!

Next Thursday, February 17th, we have the benefits review hearing. I will update everyone then.

Benefits Hearing

2011-01-26T09:16:00.000-08:00

So, Rassie has a benefits hearing Scheduled for the morning of February 17, 2011. Just trying to get everything settled with worker's comp.

The 3rd party doctor says Rassie has met MMI (maximum medical improvement) and labeled him 10% disabled. Worker's comp has decreased his weekly checks and will only pay him for a remaining 30 weeks.

Dr. F at Scott & White, disagrees. He has documented improvement at each appointment. And says that if Rassie works hard he will still fully recover.

Rassie is extremely determined to fully recover and go back to work in the oil field. He continues to do therapy on his own here at home. Worker's comp has not approved any more physical therapy at the hospital and I dont think they will in the future unless we win the benefits hearing.

I am praying that the benefits hearing goes in our favor. Worker's comp played a sneaky game by switching out the 3rd party doctor Rassie had been seeing just so they could get the answer they wanted. They don't want to have to pay anymore. But, they've been playing this game since day 1 when they tried to blame his paralysis on his CML. It was like they were trying to say getting hit in the back twice with a cable would not cause paralysis but luekemia would.

I am just ready for this all to be over with!

On another note, I'm adding a few pics. They're not the newest and most up to date but they'll do :)
The 1st is Rassie mowing the grass back in October! Practicing that physical therapy at home. And the 2nd is Rassie and the babies on Christmas Morning.

January

2011-01-06T11:57:00.000-08:00

So, things seem to be going well around here. Rassie is still improving day after day since his accident. We've had a few bumps in the road with worker's comp but we are definitely work on it.

Zurich, the worker's comp insurance decided to pull a fast one on us. Rassie had to see a 3rd party doctor again for his 2nd opinion. The difference this time, they claimed the 3rd party doctor he had been seeing was not certified to see him because he had surgery. BIG LIE. Well, Rassie did have surgery, he had his tonsils out. But, it had NOTHING to do with the accident and therefore, worker's comp had no right to change doctors. Want to know why they changed doctors for their 2nd opinion? It's because they didn't agree with the original doctor. They were wanting a doctor who would say Rassie was permanently disabled so they could quit paying. We're in the middle of disputing this claim. The Dr. F and the physical therapist have both written letters disputing the 3rd party doctor's claim. Everytime Rassie goes in for an appointment he shows improvement. So there is no way he has met Maximum Medical Improvement (mmi) when he is still in the process of making improvements! Worker's comp is such a pain in my butt!

On another note, Rassie had an oncology appointment on January 4th. His numbers are still good. There was a slight increase though. The last time he had labs done his Abr was at .0007 and this time he was at .03. They said this was normal. That sometimes the levels vary and just to make sure he is taking his Gleevec at the same time everyday. (which he does) Other than that, there weren't really any concerns. Rassie goes back for the next follow up in 3 months. Same with the labs.

Everything else is going good. Rassie has been a great help being my Stay at Home Dad! I know he'd rather be out there in the world working but I also know he's enjoying the time spent with our 2 growing babies! Scarlett is pushing 3 at the end of this month and Lane will be 18 months. I cannot believe how time flies! Lane was only 2 months when Rassie was diagnosed with leukemia. We have come a LONG way!

And just so you all know, Rassie is the most wonderful husband. Today is my birthday and he has spoiled me with letting me sleep in, cake, lunch and dinner! Not to mention he's on diaper duty!!! HAHA I Love my Honey!

God Bless Everyone!

November

2010-11-20T19:32:00.000-08:00

Things are going good for us. Rassie is doing well. We had an 'oops' with the worker's comp insurance and Rassie getting his checks but that worked itself out. It did take several phone calls butwe're good now!

Rassie started physical therapy back up this past Wedneaday. He said his therapist worked his butt off. Good for her. He hung in there just fine though. He's been doing his own therapy here at home with the treadmill, bike and his big rubber band thingy's.

This coming Tuesday Rassie has an appointment with the 3rd party Texas Worker's Comp doctor. For some reason they have picked a new doctor for him to see this time. This time they are supposed to be checking for maximum medical improvement and they want to label him as a certain % disabled. According to Dr. F at S&W Rassie should fully recover so I am hoping he does not gwt labelled as disabled. That is what the Zurich workers comp ins is wanting so they do not have to continue paying 100% and can push him off on disability.

Alright, time to get off here.

Good night & God Bless

Things Are Good

2010-10-21T04:20:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I've posted. Things are good. No updates on Rassie's CML. If you don't remember from the last post. Rassie is in remission. He's doing great and I am very proud of him.

October 11, 2010, was the 1 year anniversary of Rassie's accident. He has come a long way. He has proven time and time again that it is possible to get better. You just have to put your trust in God and give it your all.

Rassie went for a driving evalutation in Austing back in early Oct. I think around the 3rd. I would have to pull out my calendar to be sure. But, the point is, he passed!!! He did a great job. The guy doing the evalutations was very impressed. Rassie has no restrictions and is within normal reaction range along with all us other drivers out there. I know that driving evaluation made Rassie's day. He was so nervous!! But there was absolutely nothing to be worried about. He did awesome.

He saw Dr. F not too long ago as well. Rassie is still making improvement. And with every little bit of improvement there is greater hope for a full recovery. Rassie finished up his last physical therapy appointment last week. Worker's comp doesn't want to approve more until Rassie see's Dr. F again. That's not set up until December so we're working on what we need to do there. Or just what Dr. F thinks in general. Rassie's been working on his physical therapy here at home. He's got the stationary bike, the treadmill, and those big rubbery band things they sent home with him. Plus he's been mowing the lawn. (which was approved by Dr. F and the Physical Therapist). He pushes on something similar to a lawn mower in physical therapy so it's like he's getting the same type of workout. I am so glad we are able to improvise at home! Plus, we're going to start going for walks and he's going to push the big double stroller! It will be good for him and make the kids happy :)

Rassie is supposed to see the 3rd party worker's comp doctor again in November. I am guessing it has not been set up yet because we haven't received any form of notification on when it's going to be. Guess we'll just wait it out and see.

The family is doing great. Lane's our little daredevil. Daddy has his hands full during the day while Mommy sleeps. Lane is up and walking/running around and he's a climber! Not to mention a full time flirt. Scarlett is our little prissy pants. She likes to walk around strutting her stuff. Daddy has his hand full with her too with her big personality *cough* attitude. Scarlett is 2 and half going on 16. I'm loving every minute of it though!!

Rassie has been a great help with me going back to work too. He's been my rock. It's hard being away at night. I miss sleeping next to my husband and cuddling with my babies when they wake up crying for mommy. I do manage to get my 8 hours of sleep during the day but boy do I wish I spent those 8 hrs of daylight awake! But, God has a plan and right now it seems to keep me working nights.

Alright, back to bed for me! It's my night off and instead of sleeping I'm wide awake.. Go figure :)
Night ..... or morning to those of you getting up soon

God Bless.

The Big ONE

2010-09-25T14:38:00.000-07:00

One year ago today, Rassie and I received some of the worst news of our lives. Rassie was diagnosed with Leukemia. We were very scared. We had so many questions. We had no idea what lie on the road ahead and what obstables we would face.

Well, Rassie's done great! His body has responded well to the Gleevec they are treating him with. His bcr-abl is now at 0.04% Which come to find out, puts him in remission!!! How exciting is that? And by the way, he has been at 0.04% since May!!! I didn't realize that put him in remission but I am extremely happy to hear that it does!!! He will remain on the Gleevec as a precaution but other than that he's in about as "perfect health as you can get" according to his oncology doctor. Rassie's doctors are so proud of him for dealing with so much and coming so far. This includes having to deal with the accident as well as the CML. He has really pushed through. They called him a miracle patient.

In one year, Rassie has gone from a bcr-abl of 96% (confirmed at his appt this past week) to a bcr-abl of 0.04%. He has also gone through an accident that put him in a wheel chair, unable to do much, to walking with an athletic knee brace and cane. Rassie is living life again and enjoying it. And it really shows!

I am so very proud of Rassie and the obstacles he has overcome this past year. It really does not seem like it's been a year already since he was diagnosed. And I absolutely do not miss him being in the hospital, but I would do it all over again if that meant having him home and healthy.

Rassie and I just want to thank everyone for all their continued support and prayers. I know we say this alot but it realy does mean the world to us that everyont is sending thoughts our way.

God Bless

What a Beautiful Day

2010-09-16T22:36:00.000-07:00

Hello,

Sorry it's been so long. Life has been busy. But as they say, 'No news is good news'. And that's the case here.

Rassie had his tonsils out about 2 weeks ago. Nothing that I would consider major. They were just bothersome so he opted to have them out. His throat still seems to be a little sore from it. Mostly when he yawns and so on and so forth because it stretches. He had his follow up 2 days ago and they said everything looked nice.

Rassie has a leukemia appointment this month, next week to be more precise. His blood work hasn't showed anything worrisome so things are moving right along in that department. Rassie does labs Monday I believe and then his oncology appointment is Tuesday. I will be able to update more on that topic after his appointment.

Rassie is also doing well in the way of recovering from his accident. He has upgraded knee braces.. or maybe I should say down graded. Rassie went from wearing the 'plastic' prosthetic knee brace to wearing a black one that to me looks like an athletes knee brace. This is so he can bend his knee. Rassie's right knee still tends to give out but he's doing great with the new brace. The physical medicine doctor also had a driving evaluation set up to see where Rassie is at driving wise. I think, and don't hold me to this, but I think it's set up for sometime in October. We have to go to Austin. The reason for this, is so if he needs anything special to drive they can look over the vehicle and see where we need to go from there. Fingers crossed Rassie passes the driving evaluation and our car doesn't need any type of renovations. Oh, Rassie is also starting another round of physical therapy. From what we keep hearing, he will be doing home therapy soon. I guess that's still up in the air because it has yet to happen. Rassie will also be seeing the third party doctor again coming up in November. Guess that will help to decide what our next steps will be.

On another note. Rassie's 1 year anniversary of being diagnosed with CML is coming up on September 25th. And his 1 years anniversary from the accident is coming up on October 11. I can't believe it has almost been a year for both of these things. Life gets so busy and flies right on by. Rassie has been such a trooper, pushing on through.

Sorry it's been a while since I last updated. I have an update on myself as well. I did get the job as a 911 operator. I have been working the night shift. So, I come home and sleep during the day and spend late afternoon and evening with Rassie and our beautiful babies. It's been an adjustment going back to work but I enjoy it. And Rassie is doing an awesome job and taking caring of the little ones during the day while I sleep. He now knows how much a job stay at home parenting is but I know he's enjoying every minute of it.

Thanks for listening to my rant. Thanks for continuing to keep Rassie and our family in your prayers.

God Bless & Good Night

Drum Roll Please

2010-08-08T18:40:00.000-07:00

Things seem to be moving in the right direction around here. Rassie's CML is in great condition and continues to be under control. He's also moving more. Rassie has been practice walking using his walker and the parallel bars. This doesn't seem new does it? Well....it is!!!! Rassie has been walking without his leg brace. Granted he doesn't make it very far because it is very hard work for him, but nonetheless, he's doing it!

Rassie had an appointment with Dr. F in physical medicine last week. Dr. F is very much in awe with the progress Rassie is making. He continues to gain more and more strength in both his legs regardless of feeling in the right. His right light is still numb but he does get a tingling and even a burning sensation every once in a while. He's able to bend his right ankle up and down and the strength in his knee just keeps growing. I am very proud of Rassie.

Here's one more bit of information to get things flowing in the upside direction! Rassie's physical therapist has been requesting for a few weeks now that Dr. F write a prescription for Rassie to have a driving evaluation to see if he's ready to get back on the road!!!!! How awesome is that? The prescription is in the works right now and everything is supposed to be getting set up. We are both very excited about this.

Overall, Rassie seems to be doing great! Oh, and if I didn't mention before (which I know I didn't), starting tomorrow morning, Rassie will take on the role of Mr. Mom and I will officially becoming a working mom! I am soooo excited and nervous all at once. I am going into the career field of communications as a 911 operator / dispatcher! I am anxious to get back out there as a working woman but so nervous to leave my babies!!! I know that this is all God's plan though.

Thanks for all y'all do for us, we couldn't have asked for a better support system.

God Bless!!!!

Prayer Requests

2010-07-26T20:32:00.000-07:00

Rassie's doing great! I think his strained muscle is healing up nicely. He's up and moving and back to his old self. He has physical therapy tomorrow. We'll see how it goes! Rassie has next physical med and rehabilitaion appointment August 4th.

With this blog I have a few prayer requests.

First, a long time friend from highschool lost her father this week in a car accident. Any loss is a tradgedy. Please keep her and her family in your prayers this week as they cope with the loss of a loved one.

Second prayer request is for an old highschool friend who also lost his father this past week to a heart attack. Please lift him and his family up in your prayers also. It seems everyone is dealing with alot of hardship right now.

Third, our sweet Lane had an infected bug bite that had to be lanced on Friday and he was put on antibiotics. It seems to be healing up nicely, he's feeling SOOO much better and he has a follow up appointment tomorrow. Oh, and he'll be ONE on Saturday. Rassie and I are so proud of our precious baby boy!

Lastly, I had 1 of 2 interviews today for the 911 dispatch job I applied for. Tomorrow I have interview number 2 and find out if I get the job or not. I am so excited and nervous at the same time. Please pray that God leads our family in the right direction. I am really hoping for this job!

Thanks to everyone who continues to lift Rassie and our family up in their prayers.

God Bless

MORE Updates!

2010-07-22T09:22:00.000-07:00

Seems like I'm always updating!

Rassie had his oncology appointment on July 13th. Everything checked out well. His numbers are low!!! Close to remission in my personal opinion. At this point, there is no need for a bone marrow biopsy. Hooray!!! I did not want Rassie to have to go through that pain. The only downside to everything, Rassie will most likely be on Gleevec for the rest of his life. That I can live with! Although Gleevec can send you into remission, once you stop taking it, it become highly likely that the leukemia will come back. So, what we were told thus far is that once Rassie is in remission he will continue on the same dosage of Gleevec for ??? months to follow and then they will eventually lower the dosage to what they feel is a comfortable level. They will also continue to follow up on his treatment and watch for any changes.

On another note, Rassie had another 8 rounds of physical therapy approved. Thank you God, you are awesome! He starts those next Tuesday 27th. Rassie had a little set back about a week ago, Thursday night. We spent that night in the ER wondering what the heck was going on! Turns out it was nothing too major. Rassie bent over to pick something up and apparently severely strained his muscle. His physical therapists said she had a feeling there was only a matter of time before something like this happened. If you don't know, you're supposed to squat to pick things up, not bend from the back! But with Rassie's right leg being locked in a brace he can't exactly squat, therefore, putting more strain on the back. Rassie was in alot of pain. He was having difficulty breathing because of it and so we were really worried. The pain caused him to have some passing out episodes. So we thought an ER trip was in order. They ran two EKG's, and did a CT scan from head to toe pretty much. They also ran labs. Everything came back A-OK! That's when the emergency room doctors gave him a higher dose of pain meds, prescribed him some muscle relaxers and sent him home with a diagnoses of sever muscle strain and told him to follow up in 2-3 days. Rassie's doctor is out of town for the week but the physical therapist saw him Tuesday. She felt all long his back and sides and confirmed his muscle was strained and all out of whack! Rassie seems to be doing a lot better today, up and moving and walking! The first few days he couldn't hardly get out of bed to go to the bathroom. He goes back to see Dr. F on August 4th and they put off therapy until next Tuesday so that he can rest up and give that muscle time to heal. Lots of ice and heat!

That's about it for now. Hope everyone is enjoying their summer. I have a job interview this coming Monday and Tuesday so add me to your prayer list!

God Bless!!!

2010-07-08T19:18:00.000-07:00

Hello! Hope everyone is doing well and enjoying their summer. We're making the best of ours and with Rassie's improvement its been pretty great.

I continue to watch Rassie get better in leaps and bounds and I am so excited! Yesterday, Rassie saw the 3rd party doctor for worker's comp. (issued by the State of Texas). Once again, this doctor agreed with what Rassie's PM&R doctor has been saying all along. He was extremely impressed with the improvement Rassie has made since last seeing him. After all, Rassie has come a long way! He agrees that we should keep pushing for more and more therapy until the job is done! Dr. G says he believes that the next time he sees Rassie (in about 4 months) that he will come waltzing in the front door without a brace on. Or any support at all for that matter. How exciting is that?!

Rassie is about finished with another round of therapy. Two appointments left. So the staff is getting the ball rolling for the next round of approval. Dr. F had said he didn't think we would get anymore out patient therapy out of the worker's comp. insurance (PT at the hospital). If that's the case they will push for home therapy (PT at home). Either way, we will be happy to accept any and all therapy!

Oh yeah, Rassie was supposed to have an oncology appointment this week. It was postponed. The staff doctor could not be there for some reason and the resident could not see him on her own....soooo...postponement was in order. The bad news? We did not find out until the day of the appointment that it had been changed. There would have been a lot less rush if we had known in advance but it's done and although it was a bit annoying we're way past that. New appointment date: July 13. Bad news: I may not be there. Good news: I will be taking a test for a job with hopes of passing and getting an interview!!!

Thank you for all your prayers and support. I ask that you continue to pray! Pray for Rassie's full recovery from his back injury. Pray for Rassie's leukemia to be sent into remission. Pray that our family holds strong through all of this. And last but not least, Pray for me and the job I am going for. It's a little hard to be getting back into the job world after being home with the babies for the past 2.5 years but I know that God will be with me all the way. Thanks again for your continued support.

God Bless!

Upcoming Appointments

2010-06-30T18:15:00.000-07:00

No real updates to give. I guess that's good news though :)

Rassie has some up and coming appointments. On July 6th, he sees his oncologist again. Not much to say about that until we go to the appointment. I'm making Rassie write out a list of questions early so we don't forget to ask anything this time. Of course, I'm adding all of my own questions too! Feel free to give your input, I just might not know the answer to your questions and I can ask the doctor!

On July 7th, Rassie sees the 3rd party doctor on the worker's comp case. This is the same doctor he saw back in February. This doctor was assigned by the state to give a second opinion. And at that time he agreed with Dr. F that Rassie needed therapy and would improve and get better! He was right!!!! I am so thankful for that second opinion or else worker's comp may not have pulled through for us and Rassie may have never gotten approved for physical therapy.

I am so thankful to be sharing my life with such a wonderful man! We've had our ups and downs but I must say, Rassie has stayed strong and pulled through all of this fairly well! Keep the prayers coming! You never know just how strong the power of prayer is until you're in a fragile situation. I am so thankful for all of you who continue to pray and support Rassie and our family.

Good Night & God Bless

Time for an Update

2010-06-23T09:39:00.000-07:00

First off, Rassie has 8 more sessions of therapy approved! So four more weeks. He's going twice a week now instead of 3 times. AND after these 8 sessions he may be moved back to home therapy. Which shouldn't be a problem. We have a treadmill and a bike at home plus he has all that stretchy rubber stuff to do his exercises and should be able to do everything he was doing at physical therapy here at home with the therapist.

Rassie saw Dr. F this past week. Everything is looking good. We saw lots of improvement in Rassie's right leg. I love being there and watching to doctor go through all the movements. You are really able to see the strength building up in Rassie's legs. He's able to lift his leg. Kick it out some at the knee. He was able to bend his ankle up and down some. It's just AWESOME to see this considering he couldn't do any of these things a few months ago. He still has no feeling in his right leg from the knee down but he is able to get some movement out of it now!

I feel like I'm forgetting something... I just can't remember! So I guess I'll remind everyone that Rassie has an oncology appointment coming up on July 6th. Thanks for the continued prayers and support!

God Bless

No News...

2010-06-15T07:03:00.000-07:00

Now news is not always good news. Still waiting to hear back on that physical therapy. My guess is that Rassie is now up and walking pretty well so they (the worker's comp ins.) figures they don't need to approve anymore physical therapy. Guess we will just continue to work on that at home. Rassie knows all his workouts and can do just about everything but the pool here at home. Including the bike! With that being said, he shouldn't fall behind.

Rassie has two appointments coming up this week. First, he is seeing an ENT. He's been having some funky drainage in his tonsils. They swell up and then this green gunky stuff comes out of them. They treated him for strep once but the tests never came back positive and this has been going on for a while! The first time he noticed the "mystery gunk" was back in September when he was first diagnosed with CML. That appointment is tomorrow, Wednesday, and I am hoping they can figure out what is going on. Shouldn't be anything too serious is my prediction.

Rassie's second appointment is with PM&R again. He sees Dr. F. The same doctor he has been seeing since his arrival at S&W for the accident. I am really curious as to what Dr. F will have to say. Rassie has been having some burning/tingling going on in his right leg and foot. It's few and far between but it is something. Not to mention, he woke up in pain the other night because, for a moment, he could FEEL the bottom of his right foot. To me, this means that the hematoma is starting to go down some more. I can't wait for that thing to just go away completely so Rassie can feel everything again! Guess we'll find out Dr. F's thoughts on Thursday!

Rassie's next oncology appointment at the Glenda Tanner Vasicek Cancer Treatment Center is on July 6th. For some reason I wrote on the calendar July 7th, so if I told you the wrong date before you now have the correct information.

Oh! I almost forgot. I haven't updated about Rassie's blackout spells in a while. He is doing great. I guess the stress is slowly melting off. He hasn't had an episode in at least two weeks. Probably more. And by episode I mean no going into a daze or passing out. He's doing great. With that said, I'm considering going back to work. I'm handing out a few resumes today so keep your prayers with me! Rassie will be able to watch the kids on days he doesn't have therapy or appointments and family will be able to help out on the days he does. Plus, I'm hoping to put our oldest into daycare/preschool at least part time so he won't have to worry about her so much.

I think thats about it for now and that I've covered everything. If I've forgoten I'm sure I'll be back on to blog about it. Make it a great day.

God Bless

PICTURE POST !!!!!!

2010-06-10T20:47:00.000-07:00

OUR LUBBOCK TRIP TO SEE RASSIE'S PARENTS

Daddy & Scarlett feeding the ducks

Daddy, Lane & Scarlett Feeding the ducks

OUR TRIP TO THE PARK

I thought I would throw this one in to show how happy Lane was that Daddy was pushing him on the swings!

Daddy pushing the kiddos at the park

Daddy Pushing the Kiddos at the park

THE ZOO

Daddy and the Doodlebugs at the Zoo Entrance

Daddy and Doodlebug looking at the Lion (that you can't see from here :)

Daddy & Doodlebug posing by the Giraffes

Daddy & Doodlebug at the Elephants

HOPE YOU ENJOYED SHARING RASSIE'S GREATESTS ACCOMPLISMENTS!

1) Doodlebug #1

2) Doodlebug #2

3) WALKING

Sorry for the Silence

2010-06-10T20:31:00.000-07:00

It's been a little bit since I updated and I truely apologize!!!!

First off, Rassie is doing well.

Rassie had an onoclogy appointment on June 2nd. Apparently his doctor couldn't see him that day so another doctor stepped in. Overall, Rassie seems to be in good health He's slightly anemic but he has been since this all began. For some reason I can't remember the name of this but something to do with translocation. Rassie's numbers have gone from 98% to 0.04%. I feel silly not being able to remember at the moment. I'm going to have to pull out my notebooks tomorrow and refresh my brain! All in all it was a good but very short appointment. Rassie goes back to see his regular oncologist July 6th. We're going to go through more questions and answers and details of whats going on, what will go on, etc. One topic that came up was Rassie's bone marrow biopsy. It was over looked due to the back injury and although not needed to make a diagnosis they still want to do one. The answer of when is still up in the air. I have a feeling the time is getting closer.

On another note, Rassie is WALKING! He's doing great. He does alot of walking without his cane when we're home. It's when we're out an about that he uses it because you never know how the ground is going to look! Rassie is still wearing a brace on his right leg. Still no feeling. One night he did have a tingly burning feeling on the bottom of his right foot one night. This was a big sign. He hasn't had ANY feeling and then this! We were excited but it went away. Still praying that hematoma goes away. Soon than later if possible. Rassie just finished up another round of physical therapy appointments. We're now playing another round of 'wait and see' to find out if more therapy will be approved. We're not very hopeful at the moment after a call from the nurse case manager stating she doesn't believe more therapy will be approved.

We have also learned why the worker's comp insurance wants the doctor to state that "this is as good as Rassie's going to get". Once this is stated there is a cap on the amount they pay out towards medical bills weekly. If the doctor doesn't say this the worker's comp ins. has to pay 100% of the medical bills for up to 2 years. We're still learning so much and expecting a phone call on even more information tomorrow!

Oh! Thanks again for our mystery gift giver! Rassie has been using his recumbent bike daily. He uses it for about 10 minutes at time. He wants to start going longer intervals and I have faith that he will do just fine.

I wanted to share a few pictures of our outings lately to show just how proud I am of the progress Rassie has made. Watch for a seperate post full of photos to be coming soon!!!! Also, a better blog update

GOD BLESS & Good Night

THE BIKE

2010-05-24T20:04:00.000-07:00

Rassie finally picked a bike. He did lots of research. He did lots of in store test runs and finally came out with one he liked. It was sturdy, he like the way it 'felt', and it had good ratings.

My brother, Michael, took him to pick it up. As soon as he got home he assembled it along with the help of the kids! He's been working on it everyday and has started setting goals for himself.

Below are a a few of the pictures I snapped while he was putting the bike together. Sorry for the quality, they were snapped from my cell phone.

Being good and reading the directions!

Opening up some boxes while the kids help. They're so curious.

Lane, happy to pose for the shot while Daddy is hard at work.

And yes, that is Mickey Mouse on the TV!

Sweet Scarlett helping out while Daddy puts the seat on.

Almost Done!

Putting the finishing touches on, tightening everything up.

Excuse the mess in the background!

Testing out the finished product!

Thank you Again to the person who helped make this possible.

A BIG Thank You

2010-05-13T18:53:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure who you are. I do not know your situation. I have no idea what motivates your generousity.

I do, from the bottom of my heart, sincerely THANK YOU!

A few weeks ago I had blogged an update about Rassie. In that blog I mentioned how Rassie and I were considering getting a stationary bike to help with the mobility of Rassie's right leg. (click here to read that blog). Something about that blog reached out to one of our follower's and in return they reached out to us.

It probably took a week for me to realize someone was hunting me down! The kids had been sick. Rassie had phsycial therapy and his appointments. I just hadn't been online much other than through my phone. I use that mostly for facebook and pictures. I believe it was late Friday night when I was checking all my messages. Rassie and I both had one on facebook. It was from a nice lady who works for a non-profit organization called Giving Anonymously. She explained to me who she was, what GA was, and that she had sent several emails. I also found a message from her on the comments here :) . So I went through my email. Read them all. And went to work researching Giving Anonymously. Let's face it, this is the internet and we never know who we can trust. I was very skeptical about what I was reading.

It didn't take long to convince me that GA was a legit company. I found several articles that helped me to feel more comfortable with who they are and what they do. And I read over their own personal site. http://www.givinganon.org/ . Here are a few articles I found about them. Local charity Giving Anonymously nominated for MSN award and Making a Difference from the NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams in which they were nominated for an MSN Butterfly Award.

Rassie and I decided to accept the gift and verify our mailing address.

We were both blown away by the generousity of a 'stranger'. We have no idea who this person is but any person willing to give such a gift will always have a place in our hearts. Words cannot describe how thankful we are to have such a great support system out there.

Today we recieved the check from Giving Anonymously in the mail. I did call the number and leave my name, the amount of the check and a short thank you. Honestly, that thank you didn't do you justice. We are much more appreciative than it sounded. I just couldn't find the words to express how greatful we are to you. May God Bless you for what you have made possible for us.

For those of you wondering, let me get to it. The person used Giving Anonymously to give us a cash gift that will go towards the purchase of a stationary bike for Rassie. We're are now one step closer! And in the future, when possible we plan on Paying it Forwad to another individual, whoever that might be.

Thank you all again for the support that you show to my husband, myself and my family. We could not get through this without all of you and your support and prayers for us.

God Bless & Good Night

2010-05-12T06:11:00.000-07:00

I guess I'm a little behind on all my updates. Rassie had an appointment with Dr. F last Wednesday. It was at the physical medicine and rehabilitatin department of Scott & White. Dr. F watched Rassie walk this time. But he didn't poke and prod and all the normal stuff he does. I guess that's because he had seen Rassie 2 weeks prior to that and checked out all his accomplishments then! He wrote a prescription for Rassie to get an ankle brace for his right ankle. Sometimes he doesn't realize he rolls it or starts to walk on the side of it because he can't feel it still. Rassie has done really good about watching his feet though to make sure he's standing on them properly. Mainly just the right one. He has great range of motion with the left. Another follow up to come in 2-4 weeks.

I am proud to say that Rassie has been wheel chair free for about the last 3 weeks. Prior to that he was only using the wheel chair as needed. Rassie has also been walking with a cane for the last 3 weeks also. He as graduated from a quad cane to a straight cane (just a regular cane). And the insurance has paid for him to go and get his own. He did have one on loan from the physical therapy dept.

We are all so proud of the progress he has made and is making. Last October was a very hard time for all of us. I still remember standing at the foot of his bed while the doctors asked him to move his toes and feet and he couldn't. I remember walking into his ER room with my brother and telling him we were in the wrong room. My brother thought we were too. On the phone Rassie had said he hurt his back. When we walked into the ER room there was a man laying flat on his back. A neck brace, oxygen mask and all kinds of monitors. Not something I expected to see, to say the least. It has been on long journey but we are making it. Most importantly, Rassie IS making it and he IS improving. It's all we have hoped for.

On another note, Rassie has an oncology appointment comping up on June 2nd. Not sure what's in store for us yet. The past few oncology appointments have been pretty calm and routine. Go in, ask your questions, doctor asks his questions, check vitals, go over labs, etc. Pretty much they make sure everything is going smoothly. I have a feeling Rassie will be having a bone marrow biopsy in the near future but I guess I won't really know until after June 2nd. I'll keep y'all posted!

Thanks for following along on our journey. We really appreciated the continued support and prayers. There's always strength in numbers and God knows that each and every one of you are praying!

God Bless!

An Oldie but A Goodie

Thought I'd share a smile

I want to cry

2010-05-07T21:25:00.000-07:00

Tears of happiness. I guess I haven't been on much with the kids being sick and 3 appointments for them alone this week. Plus, we had Rassie's phsyical therapy and another physical med & rehab appointment. I try to keep up with everyone through the internet on my phone and my options are a little limited there.

Ok, back to the tears of happiness. There are some really kind hearted people out there. Tonight as I was catching up on everything through the little screen on my cell phone I came across a message on Facebook from a volunteer who works for a non-profit organization called Giving Anonymously. Apparently, they had made several attempts to contact me with little success. But finally tonight, I read through some of the attempts and invesitigated the organization.

Someone who has been following my blog and Rassie's story was touched and wanted to send Rassie a gift. They are helping us to get one step closer to buying Rassie a stationary bike that he can use here at home in an attmept to strengthen his legs and get better. It literally melts my heart to know that there are people in this world who want to help. I feel that our family is extremely Blessed to have the support of our friends and family in Rassie's journey to recovery. I truely believe Rassie will beat CML and Walk again!

Dear Kind Hearted Giver,

Rassie and I are very thankful for your generousity. We never excepted someone to reach out to us with a gift like this. God has wonderful things in store for you. You are truely one of a kind. Thank you!

From the bottom of our hearts,

Amber & Rassie

Coming up on 6

2010-04-28T20:42:00.000-07:00

Rassie is coming up on the 6 month mark since he started his Gleevec. All I can say is 'WOW'. These last 5 months have really flown. Of course its been a little longer than that since we found out Rassie had leukemia and was diagnosed with CML. September 25, 2009 will be forever etched in our minds.

I remember it like it was yesterday. It was a beautiful day outside. The bright sun, the warm air. Just beautiful. Rassie went in for a routine appointment that morning and it turned into labs and stat CT scan set for later that day. We were waiting for the results of the labs to see if Rassie had to be admitted to the hospital through the ER. We weren't sure why at this point.

I remember Rassie getting ready to head out the door for his CT scan when my cell phone rang and it was Dr. R. She told me Rassie's white count was extremely high and he needed to skip the CT scan and go ahead to the ER to be admitted. I asked about the high white count being an infection and Dr. R told me "No" . With counts this high it was something more serious but we would have to wait until we got to the hospital to find out.

Rassie went ahead of me while I waited for my little brother and then my mom to get here and watch the kids. I wasn't 10 minutes behind him. But in that short time Dr. R had already been in and given the diagnoses. When I arrived she came back in and gave it all over again. I remember hugging and crying with Rassie after she left the room.

There were so many questions and not enough answers. Dr. R was only a resident and wasn't allowed to give us the answers we wanted. We had to wait an ENTIRE night before we finally got to speak with the staff oncologist. As scary as leukemia sounded, Dr. H eased my fears and gave me great hope that things would be ok.

The few days Rassie spent in the hospital getting his white blood count under control felt like a lifetime. His counts were dropping and that was great. The doctors kept saying he would get to go home in a few days. The nurses kept saying he would be there a while with counts that high. Rassie's count started at 358,000 and normal count ranged from 4,000 - 10,000. I prayed everyday that God would bring Rassie home to the kids and I. And He did. God is good.

Rassie has been very Blessed with how his body has handled the Gleevec. After all, it is chemo. It just comes in the form of a pill. Thank you God for keeping my love strong through it all.

God Bless

Walking

2010-04-27T17:48:00.000-07:00

Rassie hasn't used a wheel chair in a week! You have no idea just how exciting this is to us. Rassie is walking all over the place. It's funny to think about it but he and Lane are going through milestones together. Lane learned to crawl and Rassie is learning to walk. Both my boys are making me proud.

Rassie is also seeing things from a whole new perspective all over again. I guess I never realized just how much you miss when you're sitting in a wheel chair. He feels like he's able to do and see more now that he's up on his feet again. Rassie is seeing things that are on higher shelves and such that have been there for months but he just never noticed on his level. Now that he's standing and can see over alot of things he's always asking "did you know this was here?" "how long has this been like that?" etc. Everytime he discovers something new it makes me smile.

Rassie's new brace is serving him well. The wires on it were tightened a little too much and screws not enough, so the lock wouldn't stay released when he needed to bend his leg. Made it through the weekend just fine though, seeing as the brace has 2 different lock releases. We went in today and CPO had it fixed in less than 30.

For now he has a return appointment to S&W: Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Dept. on May 5th. Dr. F had requested a 3-4 week return apointment but was all booked up. So it was a 2 week or 6 week return and the receptionist opted for the 2 week.

S&W: Physical Therapy Dept. submittied a requested for extended PT therapies. Another 12 sessions end May 5th. Can you believe by this time next Wednesday Rassie will have undergone 24 phyiscal therapy sessions? By the end of the first 12 sessions Rassie had learned to walk with a walker. By the end of this 12 sessions Rassie has received his brace and learned to walk with a cane. I am hoping that by the end of the next sessions (is approved) Rassie will be walking without the cane! Optimisim is a great medicine and I'm glad God has showed me how to keep the faith.

On another note, we are considering getting a stationary bicycle for Rassie. It needs to be one with heel a support along with the strap that goes across the top of the foot to help keep his right foot in place. It will help with the movement in Rassie's right leg. The one he can't feel. The movement and rotation will help move and flex those muscles and joints such as the ankles and knees that don't get any movement without help. Hoping that we can find one for a reasonable price. Or if you know of anyone selling one let us know.

Thanks for your continued support.

Good Night & God Bless

Quick Update

2010-04-23T21:08:00.000-07:00

Rassie is doing great. His next lab draw is Monday the 26th. And his next oncology appointment is scheduled for June 2nd.

Physical therapy is going great. Rassie is doing AWESOME. And he also had a PM&R appointment Wednesday with Dr. F. Rassie has upgraded from a walker to a cane and is using the wheel chair less and less. This is so amazing! And I love not having to load the wheel chair everytime we go somewhere! He still lacks feeling from his knee down in his right leg but is making improvement movement wise. Rassie can now feel the bottom of his left foot but not the top and his left leg is a little patchy with feeling from the knee down. The knot on Rassie's back is still present. I wish that ugly thing would just go away already! When it finally decides to dissolve itself , Rassie's nerves will start functioning more properly and he'll have even greater improvement. Dr. F was very happy with the way things are going. So are we. I told Rassie we just have to keep pushing through. Each time he has a new appointment and shows improvement he are just one step closer to reaching his ultimate goal.

Rassie's leg brace finally came today. I will ultimately have to take a picture because I cannot describe it very well. It's two big pieces of "plastic" that form to his thigh and lower legs. It velcros on and has a hinge on each side of the knee. Rassie wears some type of big cotton leg sock under it. He is able to lock and unlock when he needs to bend or straighten his knee. This afternoon was his first time wearing it. His only complaint so far is that it doesn't stay unlocked or he hasn't figured out how to keep it that way so we're going to make a phone call on Monday to get it figure out.

I know Rassie is so excited to be up standing and walking, cane and all. He's loving it and why wouldn't he be? This is a very big milestone for our entire family. I am very proud of my husband and I thank God everyday for what He has done for us. I now know and trust that God will never give us more than we can handle. He does however present us with things in life that will make us stronger. We just have to have faith and keep faith. Our God is and awesome God!

Rassie walking back from checking the mail!

God Bless & Good Night

SO PROUD

2010-04-13T20:55:00.000-07:00

Great Strides make for a proud wife! I love Rassie so much and he's doing so great. The Gleevec seems to be our miracle drug! Who would have thought going through chemo could be so easy. DO NOT get me wrong. The Gleevec is not a miracle drug for everyone. And not everyone breezes through using it without the dreaded side effects. Rassie has been lucky to have such minimal side effects and I feel that we have been very Blessed by this. God is Great! Rassie has monthly labs at the end of April and May and his next oncology appointment is June 2nd. I am so glad his appointments are few and far between. It's always a good sign when you don't have to spend countless days at the hospital for appointments like these. We're there enough as it is for his work related injury! Rassie also has an upcoming appointment with his primary just to see how everything is going in general and then with Dr. F to review his PT and see where he is with getting back to his old self.

Rassie using the walker outside AT HOME!

Rassie makes me so proud. He is making great strides. Physical Therapy is going well. Today he came home with a knee brace. It's not the one they are having made for him but a loaner. A very nice gentleman who no longer needed it gave it to him to use. Actually, it's the one he's been using all along for therapy. If it weren't for this nice man, Rassie would still be waiting on his own brace and wouldn't be walking with the walker yet. This type of kindness melts my heart. And I am thankful that there are people still out there willing to help you out just out of the kindness of their heart.

Speaking of braces! Rassie's should be finished by the end of this week or early next week. The anticipation is getting to me! I guess you could say its a fancy brace with all the bells and whistles. It will be one that locks into to place to keep his knee locked and in place for him to walk. Once he gets some feeling and mobility back in his right knee and lower leg he will be able to release the locks to get some bend action. He will also be able to release so he can bend his leg to sit down or get in out of the car, etc. vs. the loaner brace where his leg stays straight regardless unless he takes it off. Basically, the new one will have hinges. I am so ready to kick that wheel chair to the curb and I know Rassie is too! We're getting closer by the day.

APPROVED

2010-04-07T19:39:00.000-07:00

Things did not take NEAR as long as I expected them to. 12 more sessions of physical therapy were approved and Rassie starts back Friday. So not even a week without therapy. Woo Hoo!

Also, Rassie was fitted for for his brace yesterday. They made a mold of his leg and it will be specially made to fit him. It will be ready in 7-10 days! AND worker's comp. ins. approved it also. I am so excited for him to be walking and on the move at home. It's getting closer.

The blackouts / passing out have been way less frequent. There are days with ZERO episodes. Most days are minimal episodes. And a few days are where he has to lay down and nap because they come on a little stronger. All in all, he's doing better though.

And let's not forget, he's still working hard to kick Leukemia's BUTT!!! Still no major effects from the Gleevec and we are very thankful for that. Just a little hair loss here and there and nausea here and there. Other than that he's doing great! Thanks for your continued support.

God Bless!

Another Waiting Game

2010-04-06T09:07:00.000-07:00

Rassie's 12 sessions of physical therapy ended Friday. They've already put in a request to extend PT since he's been making such great improvement and already reached and passed his goals they set for him. But once again we are met with the waiting game. The hospital faxes all the paperwork over only to be told by worker's comp. ins. that they need more doctors' notes or they won't approve the therapy. GRR!. So, doctor's notes, physical therapy notes and any other kind of notes possible were sent over. There should be no more excuses! Same thing is happening with getting approval for his leg brace. Worker's comp received the prescription but they won't approve it until the prosthetics place sends over doctors notes too. I just don't get it. Worker's comp automatically gets a copy of all Rassie's medical records pertaining to the accident so why do they need doubles and triples every time a request for something new is made? Games!! They just like to play games which prolongs the approval process and is so irritating.

On a brighter note, Rassie has been walking with a walker during PT. On Easter he wore a knee brace wrapped in a couple of ace bandages to help keep it from giving out and he used the walker the ENTIRE day. Everyone was so proud of him. And I know he was proud of himself. It's good to see him up and walking even if it is with a walker. It's improvement that we've been waiting on for a long time now. I wish i would have snapped a picture of him standing to share with you all but I didn't! Next time I will, for sure.

We set up Rassie's next onoclogy appointment for May. We were originally told June but we received a letter in the mail that says we need to call and make one in May. Rassie did labs last week and we didn't get any phone calls so that means they all came back good. And that's all we can hope for. I am also hoping they will give us a time limit for when they will do a bone marrow biopsy to see how things are progressing with his CML in the marrow. That's about it for now

God Bless

Making Progress

2010-03-26T20:15:00.000-07:00

Rassie is making great progress with physical therapy. I am really hoping they push for more sessions than just the 12 that were originally approved.

This week Rassie did a lot of on land physical therapy. He moved straight past the parrallel bars and is using a walker. For those of you familiar with the ground floor of S&W, he has been walking from about Desk R, down past the elevators, around to where the occupational therapy hallway starts and back. Wednesday he walked this twice and today, three times. Rassie walks with his physical therapist and someone follows behind with a wheel chair just for precautions.

I am seeing major improvements here at home also. He is able to stand up and put all of his weight on his left leg now and some on his right. Before he could only stand if he had something such as the walker or counter to hold onto and had to put most of his weight on his arms because the pain was too unbearable on his back if he put too much weight on his legs.

Today, Rassie was supposed to be measured for a leg/knee brace to help stablize his right leg. The prosthetic person has been out sick though and didn't get the memo so he wasn't prepared to fit Rassie for the brace. In the meantime, Rassie is using a brace supplied by the hospital during his physical therapy sessions. I believe he is now supposed to be fitted for the brace Monday. Once he gets his own brace and is able to bring it home he will be able to start using the walker here at home too. This is all so exciting.

There have been no new improvements with the loss of feeling. But that's ok. We'll take what we can get for now. And I am pretty content with that for the time being.

God Bless & Good Night

Physical Therapy

2010-03-21T20:13:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is already Rassie's FIFTH physical therapy appointment. Can you believe it? He only has 12 visits total, approved right now so we're almost halfway through. He is doing great. Rassie tells me about all the things in the pool they do. He does a lot of side stepping and walking. Rassie's right knee seems to give out alot when pressure is put on it. The physical therapist is going to speak with Dr. F tomorrow (Monday) morning and see if she can get him to write a prescription for a leg/knee brace. This will help stablize that leg and hopefully bring Rassie one step closer to walking. From what Rassie has told me, they are going to be working with the parallel bars.

The physical therapist also has Rassie doing some exercises at home. Nothing new there, we've been doing things here at home all along. But there are some new ones that she's added in. Rassie is also working on 'sit to stand'. We pulled the walker out. Rassie is supposed to try to stand up to do smaller, simple things. Like getting a glass out of the cabinet. Also, when he transfers to and from the car or to and from the bed. Instead of using his arms to just slide over Rassie is supposed to stand up from the wheel chair and then sit down in the car. He's getting pretty good at this. He also does side steps along the side of the bed. Tomorrow, his physical therapy appointment is supposed to be on land.

And the best part about all of this? Rassie's left leg is getting stronger by the day and .....his right leg too! Although he still can't feel the right leg from the knee down he is able to lift it more at the hip and that was a real struggle before. It still is a struggle but you can just see the strength growing with each new day.

On a side note, the 'episodes' are still doing better and I couldn't be happier. I don't want to go back to those days where he wakes up having them, has them during the middle of the day, and then again in the evening. I don't want to go back to those days where I have to worry about him leaving the room by himself in fear that he might pass out and end up on the floor! I know we're not out of the woods yet but things are much better and that's all I can ask for.

I believe that we are truely Blessed as a family. We have had a lot of obstacles thrown our way over this past year but God has been right there all along to give us the strength we need to pull through and carry on. Thanks for your continued support.

God Bless

Pushing Through

2010-03-16T12:30:00.000-07:00

I want to start off by clarifying something from my last post. I said that Rassie's white blood count is at a 3 and by 3 I mean 3,000! I forgot to put 3K. Guess I was a little scatter brained at the time :) He will continue to do labs monthly. If everything continues to look good, his next oncology appointment will not be until June.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rassie started physical therapy last week for his injury. He said he really enjoys it and that he is able to move his legs more than he expected while in the pool. After yesterday's PT Rassie was excited to show me that he is able to lift his right leg at the hip more than he has been able to in the past. So he's building up strength. They also moved up from 30 minutes to 45 minutes.   They are trying to work their way up to that hour and execute as much time as possible. Along with working their way from water to land. I can't way to see how far this 4 weeks of therapy gets him.

Rassie had a physical medicine and rehab appointment last week with Dr. F also. He was very impressed with the improvement and stregnth Rassie is showing in his left leg. He also noticed a slight improvement in the right, which is a plus. Rassie also has feeling back on the bottom of his left foot. Dr. F and I agreed that Rassie's so-called twitching during the night is most likely happening because his brain is relaxed and his body is able to do more.   He follows up again with Dr. F in 6 weeks.

The passing out and dazing has started to linger off. We're both really happy about this. We still don't know if we agree with the stress diagnosis. We do think that stress played a part though and having a diagnosis along with PT finally being approved is helping to focus on the positive and relieving some of the stress factors. Rassie also seems to think that a medication he takes for nausea / motion sickness is playing a role in his blackouts. He went an entire weekend without taking it and had very few episodes. So he's stopped taking it for car sickness, etc.   Regardless of what's causing the blackouts I am happy to report they seem to be going away. We are still keeping in touch with the doctors about it in case they start to come back more frequent.

That's about it for now.

God Bless

Test Results and Updates

2010-03-04T06:30:00.000-08:00

Rassie's Oncology appointment went well. He got his 2nd scrip for Gleevec. They only give it for 3 & 4 months at a time. Can't hardly believe he's been taking it for 3 months already! So now we have to get that faxed off to caremark because you cannot just go and pick it up at a pharmacy. It comes by UPS! His lab results look good. His white count is actually SUPER low at a whopping 4! And yes you read that right, it's a 4. They are not concerned. They are going to continue to monitor him monthly with the labwork and if the white count doesn't come back up some they will lower his dosage of Gleevec (so it can come back up). We talked about how will we know when he's in remission and all that good stuff. Eventually, they will have to do a bone marrow biopsy to see how all that is going but since he's only been on the Gleevec for 3 months they're going to hold off just a little longer. And just in case you were wondering, there's no more easy bruising or swollen spleen going on. All that went away when his white count dropped back into normal range.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alright! Onto the EEG and MRI results. Rassie had a 4 hour EEG this past Friday. Well it was supposed to be 4 hours. They cut it a little short by the time they called us back and then they had to make sure all the tests results were in by 5 so he couldn't still be hooked up. I think it was a joke. He had a few minor episodes and then went to sleep. They wanted him up at 4:30 am and no caffine after midnight the night before so he would be tired for the EEG. Well he was and I really think it defeated the purpose in Rassie's case. Because he didn't have any episodes like he has at home. And the few that he did have? Well they saw some stress waves during those and so they are saying that stress is causing his blackouts and passing out. I really disagree. I know there is a ton of stress right now but he passes out in the middle of reading stories to Scarlett or sitting at the dinner table when he's just finished eating. Guess this is just one of those issues we're going to have to push because they are happening way too frequently and I just can't be with him and watch the kids at the same time 24/7. Something IS going on. Rassie and I have talked about it and we're going to ask that he do the EEG where you wear the monitors home. That way they (the doctors) can see what we see here at home. It will be a little more extensive and hopefully they can actually find something out.

The MRI's came back normal also. There was a slight disc protrution. In other words slipped disc. But it is not pushing on or affecting his cord in any way. So it is not contributing to the blackouts.

OH! I know I mentioned that physical therapy had gotten approved for Rassie. This past Monday he went in for a PT evaluation and physical therapy starts on March 10th! WOO HOO. He has a total of 12 visits (4 weeks) and will go 3 times a week. They are going to start out in the pool and work their way up to out of pool therapy. I am hopeful. Especially since his feet and legs have been twitching and kicking during the night when he's sleeping. It's not every night or even all night but it is STRONG. Last night I had to put a pillow between his legs because he kept kicking himself. He was alseep and had no idea he was doing it! On days Rassie is more active he seems to twitch or spasm more. Who knows, maybe those nerves are trying to come back to life!

Thanks for all the continued support!

God Bless

GREAT NEWS

2010-02-24T21:11:00.000-08:00

Scott & White Physical Therapy called today to let us know Rassie was approved for physical therapy FINALLY! *sigh of relief* Thank you worker's comp insurance for finally getting your act together! He has an evaluation appointment scheduled for Monday, March 1st (along with the MRI and Oncology appt). From there they will schedule his PT visits. I am thrilled that things are finally looking up. I know that this physical therapy is going to help Rassie so much. I can just feel it.

This was just a small update but a BIG one at the same time. Just wanted to share with everyone the good news.

God Bless & Good Night

Quick Update

2010-02-21T20:24:00.000-08:00

Just a quick update since it's been a while. No new news in the way of Rassie's CML. The last labs came back good. Rassie's next oncology appointment is on March 1st, so a week away. We should be able to update then on anything new the doctors have to say.

We're still fighting the worker's comp insurance in the way of Rassie's injury. We're doing what we can at home to keep his legs worked out and moving. He uses his left leg quite a bit to get around. It's the right one we're still working with to get feeling back. Zurich is giving us the run around, better yet, they know how to work the system and they're doing it. We got our 3rd denial for physical therapy. It's a joke! We have a letter written out that we are sending certified to Texas Dept of Insurance to request a benefits hearing. Hopefully then we will get something accomplished. Rassie has been without physical therapy since early December and this is just not acceptable. I can't understand why they (zurich) would not want to help someone walk again when the doctors keep saying that he will. Instead they want the doctors to change their diagnoses and say this is as good as Rassie will get! What sad is that without therapy he could lose muscle tone and much more and not get as good as he could! They need to quit putting him off period! It gets old. I get impatient. I am so ready for this to be over with!

On another note, Rassie is still having his blackouts. He passes out or goes into a daze. Some days are worse than others. The doctor had ordered an EEG but because of worker's comp it took us 2 weeks to get it approved and then they had to schedule it. AND they scheduled a regular EEG instead of the 4 hour video EEG that the doctor had ordered. When we caught their mistake they had to reschedule which pushed us back even more. So finally this coming Friday, February 26th Rassie is having his 4 hour video EEG. This will serve 2 purposes. 1) To see whats going on and why he's blacking out 2) To see where the conduction of the nerves are slowing down causing the paralysis in his legs. Then on Monday, March 1st. He has 2 MRI's that will be done simultaneously of his upper back to see if there is something they missed when focusing on the lowers half of his body all this time.

Thanks for continuing to keep us in your prayers. They are much appreciated. I'll update when we know results from all the upcoming appointments

God Bless & Good Night

Just an update

2010-02-04T17:47:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Rassie went and saw Dr. F the rehabilitation doctor. He was out of his pain medicine dilauded and has to be seen for a refill. We asked for a lower pain medication so he was prescribed vicodin this go round. We'll see how it controls his pain. He is still having blackouts and sometimes goes into a daze. We were supposed to hear back today on whether or not the tests were approved. The worker's comp insurance company is supposed to respond within 72 hours of the request but for some reason its been a week and we're still waiting. It's really hard to be patient. We called today but couldn't get a straight answer. Looks like we'll be making more phone calls tomorrow.

Rassie had bloodwork today for his CML. We should find out tomorrow the results from those. Fingers crossed everything is still looking good.

God Bless & Good Night

Nuerology Appt.

2010-01-29T09:03:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Rassie had a neurology appointment. There was also supposed to be a nerve study done but for some reason it was not upset. That is being worked on and means another trip to the hospital! The medical student and Dr. L looked Rassie over thoroughly. They seemed concerned about his blackouts and that the frequency is increasing. They asked all sorts of questions and even caused a hyperventilated induced blackout. That was a little creepy. While he was out they tried talking to him. They lifted his arm and let it drop to see if he had some sort of consciousness and would catch it. Then they checked his blood pressure, heart rate and and eyes. Everything was normal there. Dr. L wanted to have an MRI and EEG done right then in the office but there were no machines available so those have to be scheduled. Like always, they have to be approved by insurance. They are filing it through workers compensation insurance. But, we are not going to wait too long to get approval there, we will file with out own insurance if need be because we really need to know whats causing these blackouts. And if it truly is related to the worker's comp injury then we will worry about having it refiled with them. Rassie will most likely have his 4 hour video EEG on February 3rd but that date is not set in stone yet. The MRI is up in the air but we should find out soon. We are actually calling today to check back on everything, get an idea on when it will be approved and also to check back about physical therapy and if its been approved or denied this time around.

Rassie is stilling doing well with the CML and Gleevec. We forgot to get all of his counts when he did labs this month but we do know everything came back normal or they would have called. So no concerns there. Will Keep you updated as we find out more.

God Bless

2nd Opinions

2010-01-27T19:45:00.000-08:00

Rassie had an appointment today for a 2nd opinion on his work related injury. The worker's comp insurance wanted a second opinion and the Texas Dept of Insurance set it up. The doctor who saw Rassie agreed 100% that Rassie will get better but he NEEDS physical therapy to do so. Pretty much, Zurich, the worker's comp insurance was hoping they would say this is as good as Rassie is going to get. They don't want to pay for expensive therapy treatments even if that means he will walk again. How ridiculous is that? This doctor also said he was going to suggest the same thing as Dr. F......AQUATIC THERAPY! We are hoping since this is a doctor the insurance company wanted us to get a second opinion through he will have a little more pull when it comes to Zurich approving or denying therapy.

More news. The more people we talk to, the more we are learning just how to handle this situation. We've even contacted the ombudsman at TDI (Texas Dept. of Insurance) We are accumulating very helpful information from lots of people. One being, when the worker's comp insurance denies you some type of treatment don't just call and ask why. Send a certified letter so you have proof that you contacted them and if all else fails send certified letter stating that you would like a benefits review. It has to be set up before an actual judge and it usually gets the insurance company moving. I just hate that its taking so long to get the help he needs and to learn everything we can do to get things taken care of. So if you have any information to share, please do!

Rassie is still having fainting spells. Two nights ago he was feeding Lane at the highchair and ended up face down on the tray. AH! I try not to leave the room or turn my back but geez. Tonight he fell off the couch. I knew he was having his episodes and made him get on the couch to lay back in the first place. But then I had to run Scarlett to the bathroom and Lane cried so he leaned forward to check on him. Bad idea, he blacked out and ended up falling onto the floor. No worries, he wasn't hurt and it was a short fall but this has got to stop. He has been off the med supposedly causing the episodes for over a week now. It is only supposed to take a week to get out of his system so I'm thinking its something else or a different med.

Rassie has another neurology appointment tomorrow. He is having yet another nerve study done. We are also going to ask more questions about the blackouts and hopefully get to the bottom of them. Something is going on and we need answers. I have to be with Rassie at all times. If he has a blackout and falls the wrong way he can end up cutting off his air supply and suffocating himself. Very scary thought!

Thanks for all your well wishes, thoughts and prayers. They are greatly appreciated.

God Bless & Good Night

More & More Blackouts

2010-01-25T15:05:00.000-08:00

Or fainting spells. Whichever you prefer to call them. Rassie has been off 2 of his meds for over a week now. Soma and neurontin. They were blaming the blackouts on the neurontin. Maybe its just me but I think if you're coming off something the symptoms would get fewer until they were gone. Not the other way around. Rassie has been having more and more episodes. He has them on a daily basis now and has several instead of just one. Last night his episode lasted a while. After passing out and having to hold him in his wheel chair while I wheeled him to the living room, my brother and I helped him into the lounge chair where we let him sleep. He slept until about 9:15 off and on. And he could not remember how he got into the chair. It has never been that severe. Usually its a blackout and once we wake him up everything is fine. I am tired of not having answers! Thursday Rassie goes for another neurology appointment. I am going to push for further testing. I found out they didn't do an MRI at the emergency room. Only labs, EKG, and CT scan. All those came back normal. Something is going on and its getting worse! If it is the meds then it's not the one they were suspecting.

Please Pray that we get some answers and these fainting episodes STOP.

God Bless & Good Night

PM&R Appt. Today

2010-01-21T19:25:00.000-08:00

No update on the CML. Rassie has labs tomorrow and we should know the results by the afternoon or Monday. As far as we know this far his numbers are all in the normal range.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Rassie had a PM&R* appointment today. The nurse case manager "D" for the worker's compensation insurance attended this appointment. So far, we are still waiting for physical therapy to be approved. Dr. F made it known that he had tried several times to return contact with the insurance doctors whom he never got through to and that there was no way any of the numbness/tingling or paralysis was due to his CML. He also said he could not believe that the worker's compensation insurance doctors would let Rassie go this long without physical therapy. "D" asked if Dr. F could give a different or new diagnosis for Rassie's condition and he said "No" that he was sticking to his original diagnosis of paraparesis and that the nuerapraxia the worker's comp. insurance keeps referring to is only a partial diagnosis and they need to get that fixed. So now we are going for Round 3 of getting approval for physical therapy.

The nurse case manager also told Rassie she thinks its going to be a long while before he gets better and he should consider finding another job. Not likely. He's on worker's comp for a work related insurance. She also said he should consider going to school during his down time just in case he can't get back to where he was before. We're going to check into that and see if we can't possibly get it paid for.

Rassie's been having blackouts. We took him to the ER on Monday night I believe (my days are all messed up). Everything is leading back to it being a medication called nuerontin that is used for nerve pain. All tests are coming back normal for everything else. Rassie's primary care doctor had written a RX to switch him over to Cymbalta but Dr. F and Rassie are just going to work on weening him off of it completely. Rassie actually hasn't taken any yesterday or today and we've had no episodes. Dr. F did tell Rassie he is a health risk right now because of the blackouts and not to be holding the babies until the episodes stop and we're completely sure its the meds that were causing it.

Rassie also has another neurology appointment coming up on the 28th. His last nerve study came back "normal with delays". This is what is giving Dr. F the impression that Rassie will fully recover, it will just take time. They are also going to do a more extensive nerve study on the 28th. I am not sure of the name, it's 6 words long! I will get back to you with the name of it.

Okay! I think I covered everything. It's hard to remember it all. But if you have any questions feel free to ask and I'll try to answer them when I can. Thanks for the continued support.

God Bless & Good Night

*PM&R = Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation.

An Oldie but A Goodie

I love happy memories

Sorry It's Been a While

2010-01-17T20:26:00.000-08:00

It's been a while. Sorry! So far physical therapy has not been approved by the worker's comp insurance. We just got our 2nd denial in the mail. This time they are saying he should be better and that the numbness and tingling he is still having is a result of his CML. That's not true. This Thursday Rassie has another appointment with Dr. F the rehabilitation doctor and the nurse case manager for worker's comp wants to be there. I am glad. Maybe they will finally see the truth about what is going on and that Rassie really does NEED physical therapy.

Rassie's CML is still doing good and under control. No news to report there until after labs at the end of this month.

The only new thing really going on is blackouts. Ever since Rassie's appointment on December 30th, when Dr. F pushed around thoroughly on his back causing lots of pain and discomfort, Rassie has had 7 blackouts. (Dec. 30, Jan. 3, Jan. 8, Jan 13, Jan. 16, and 2 on Jan 17) Crazy, Crazy! We went in to see Rassie's primary care physician on January 12th. He seems to think the problem is a medication Rassie is on called neurontin. He prescribed him Cymbalta instead. We're not sure of the switch because cymbalta is used for several things including as an anti depressant. We've decided to wait it out until after the appointment with Dr. F on Thursday and see what he thinks, since he is the one who originally prescribed the neurontin. Rassie also has another appointment scheduled with neurology on the 28th. Hopefully we will get some answers at one of these appointments and be able to stop these blackouts.

Please keep us in your Prayers.

God Bless & Good Night

I forgot to update..

2010-01-07T17:20:00.000-08:00

Last week Rassie went back to the physical medicine doctor for his back because worker's comp is playing games when it comes to the physical therapy he NEEDS! Worker's comp told Dr. F that they denied the claim because they didn't think physical therapy was needed for.... drum roll please.... BACK ACHE! Are you kidding me? Rassie CAN NOT walk. What about this they cannot get through their heads sure beats the heck out of me. So Dr. F spent alot of time on the phone with worker's comp and here it is over a week later and we're still waiting. This is getting old and fast. We're being as patient as we can while staying on top of things on a daily basis. That's all we can do right now. We do as much PT here at home as we can and some days my brother and I help Rassie to stand with the walker.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rassie had a follow up type of appointment in oncology today. He saw Dr. W. Everything is looking good. All of his counts are normal. He only has to do labs once a month now and will be seen again in 2 months. He no longer has to take the allopurinol for the uric acid caused by the killing off of white blood cells (that was being caused by the hydrea that he is no longer on since he's on Gleevec).

Rassie went over all his symptoms from head to toe, including the ones caused by the accident. Once again we were reassured that the CML or the Gleevec does NOT cause paralysis and so on. The doctors have made sure to put this in their notes just because of worker's comp trying to play games here and there. The denial letter we received from workers comp for Rassie's PT stated that Rassie lost his balance and fell before being struck by a cable and that he was recently diagnosed with leukemia prior to the accident. Rassie actually slipped in oil based mud on the rig floor during the RAIN. It was not just some random loss of balance because of his CML. It was hazardous work conditions. He was then struck in the back with a cable not once but twice and never actually fell all the way to the ground.

Dr. W also referred Rassie back to neurology (worker's comp related) because Rassie is still having some cramping in his back and his left arm goes numb on occassion. Dr. W said this is not anything caused by the CML or Gleevec and so he should probably be looked over by neurology once again.

So that's about it, in a nutshell.

God Bless & Good Night

More Excuses

2009-12-29T17:49:00.000-08:00

So worker's comp called back around 5 today. This time the case manager said that it wasn't that the aquatic was too expensive and Rassie should be all healed. The excuse this time was that 18 visits (which totals out to 6 weeks) was way too long for him to need therapy. AND that tomorrow at his appointment the doctor needs to make sure and note exactly WHY Rassie needs therapy and what is going on. All this has already been done but whats one more time around to TRY and get this taken care of. She also said that the doctor needs to call the worker's comp insurance so they can talk to him personally.

Just pray that everything gets worked out and Rassie gets approved for the physical therapy that he really does need and deserve.

God Bless & Good Night

Worker's Comp and All It's Glory

2009-12-29T14:38:00.000-08:00

More phone calls today. Trying to get Rassie's physical therapy figured out. He hasn't seen a physical therapist since December 9th except to do an evaluation to be accepted into the physical therapy at S&W. On December 9th, Dr. F decided it would be best to do PT as an out patient at the hospital instead of as a home patient because one physical therapist or PT assistant wasn't cutting it here at home. Especially when he had no use of either of his legs and had 3 falls during PT at home.

Waiting, waiting and more waiting. Lots of phone calls and what... 2 weeks later? We finally got some answers today. I happen to be calling about our insurance statements because our personal insurance is being billed for the worker's comp related medical stuff. Got that straightened out and in then I was told that just yesterday the worker's comp insurance had called and denied Rassie for PT. She said it was a verbal denial and they would not know the reason until they received the paperwork and we should also receive a denial in the mail ourselves.

Lots more phone calls. Rassie's nurse case manager for worker's comp is on vacation until January 3rd. After calling all over, getting voice mail after voice mail saying to call this number and that number and several messages left, we finally got a call back. Dr. F had suggested aquatic therapy at the pool. Apparently aquatic therapy is TOO expensive and that is why they had him doing home patient therapy. Well, they canceled the home patient therapy on December 9th when the suggestion of doing out patient therapy was made. So once again he has been left without any 'real' therapy since then. Then the case manager proceeds to tell us that Rassie's initial diagnosis of neurapraxia should already be healed and there shouldn't be a need for PT any longer. Well he's not healed! Not to mention, all the discharge papers say paraparesis. They are similar but the healing times are different, etc.

SO, we have another appointment with the rehabiliation doctor, Dr. F tomorrow to try and clear things up with what is going on. Physical Therapy is a MUST. Hopefully we will get somewhere.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rassie's CML seems to be doing ok. No labs this week. He has to do labs on the 6th of January and then on the 7th we have an appointment with Dr. W to go over how things are going and pretty much just check up on everything. The last labs done, Rassie's WBC was at 7,500. His calcium was low, uric acid was good, sodium was border line low. That's about it for now.

God Bless & Good Night

A Christmas Miracle

2009-12-26T10:42:00.000-08:00

We were sitting around the tree Christmas morning in the midst of opening gift with the kids when Rassie realized he could FEEL his left leg. Not only could he feel it he could MOVE it!! The feeling in his left foot is still not back but the foot was originally numb, the leg was not. Rassie has been moving his left leg like crazy now. Using it for everything. I told him not to overdo it because those muscles are going to be sore but he's like a little kid and doesn't listen :) But I know he is excited. I am excited too!!! It was a true Christmas Miracle! God is Great!

God Bless

wait, wait, wait

2009-12-22T21:09:00.000-08:00

I feel like we are constantly waiting. Maybe I am just impatient. Rassie called the hospital today to check on his physical therapy schedule. As of yet the worker's compensation has not approved it. Last Thursday the hospital told him they should know something within 72 hours. I am thinking with the weekend it took a little longer. But still, I am ready to hear something back on his therapy schedule.

Rassie stood again today. Twice. We stimulated the spot on his foot and he took control of his left leg. The first time he stood he took a few steps. This time I pull his right pants leg to help him keep that foot straightened out so it wouldn't turn in where he stepped on the ankle again. He did much better. The second attempt, he just stood and bared weight as much as he could tolerate. I am proud of him for trying so hard at standing these past two days.
~~~~~~~~~~
Tonight after Rassie got out of the shower he told me his hair was falling out. He said there was a big glob in the shower. I reminded him that he is on a chemo medication. Gleevec IS chemo in the form of a pill. Then we laughed it off when I told him my hair was falling out too because of Lane! About 3 months after both of my pregnancies my horomones went crazy and my hair started falling out. I told Rassie we could lose our hair together. At least for a little while.

Alright, that's really all there is to say for tonight. I hope everyone has a great Christmas weekend. Stay safe.

God Bless & Good Night

Still Waiting

2009-12-21T21:06:00.000-08:00

We are still waiting to hear back on when Rassie's physical therapy will be scheduled. We know it will be 3 times a week though. The nurse case manager for worker's comp is on vacation. Which should not make a difference because there is another lady handling her cases while she is gone. But the hospital had also mentioned not setting up to start PT until after the first of the year. I am sure everything is hectic with Christmas and New Year's right around the corner, literally. Today my brother and I helped Rassie stand and walk while he did his at home PT. There is a spot on his left foot. If you firmly press it it sparks some nerves that gives him controlled mobility of his left leg. So we did this a few times and Rassie used the walker. I got a little upset when he was dragging his right foot and was not stepping on it right. Instead it was turned and he was pretty much stepping on his ankle. I made him stop and sit down. It worries me he doesn't realize what he's doing because he still can't feel his feet and legs. I don't want him doing more harm than good. So next time he / we just have to be extra careful. Rassie is also coming down off of his pain meds slowly. Dr. F cut the dilauded in half and cut one pill a day off of the slow release morphine and soma. This wasn't a problem because Rassie was already taking himself down slowly on his own. His pain level in his back is getting better and better. I hope that means the swelling is going down and the nerves will start conducting like they should soon.

~~~~~~~~~

Rassie talked to the oncology nurse today after labs. His WBC is down to 7.6K Woo Hoo! Great numbers, well within normal range. I am not sure when they will be checking to see the decrease in abnormal cells but his next real appointment is January 25. Rassie's calcium is also a little low. They told him just to add simple things like cheese into his diet. He loves to drink milk but lately its been upsetting his stomach with all the meds so he hasn't drank as much. Also, his uric acid levels are back within normal range and so he only has to take allopurinol twice a week now. They also suggested extra strength tylenol for the body aches. And they are 95% sure the soreness and body aches are from the Gleevec. That's about it for now. I'll update if I remember anything else.

God Bless & Good Night

Rehab Evaluation

2009-12-17T21:58:00.001-08:00

Rassie had his evaluation for outpatient rehab today. Scott & White approved him for three times a week. He will be doing all of his physical therapy in the pool. There will be the occassional out of pool evaluations to see the progress he is making. All we are waiting on now is approval through the workers comp insurance.

Rassie's WBC* last week was down to 18.7 k which is an improvement from the first week of 6leevec's 28k. He was not scheduled for labs this week so we will find out next Wednesday if his WBC* has continued dropping.
Three weeks on the Gleevec and everything still seems to be going good. Rassie gets some soreness and bodyaches in the morning every so often but we're not sure if thats from the back or the meds. He had a little nausea too but we all ended up with a stomach bug so not sure if that was the bug or the Gleevec either. Thats about it for now.

Good Night & God Bless

Results & Appts

2009-12-09T20:09:00.000-08:00

Today Rassie had his weekly labs at normal. We should be able to get the results on his WBC* tomorrow. We probably could have called back late this afternoon but that's ok. He seems to be doing well on the Gleevec. Still no major side effects. *Knock on Wood*

Today Rassie had another follow up at the rehabilitation clinic with Dr. F. We asked about the two nerve studies done on Monday afternoon. Both came back with good results. His nerves seem to be conducting just fine. This is good news, it means that none of his nerves have been severed. It is still looking like the swelling is keeping the nerves compressed and the cause of the loss of feeling to his lower limbs. The swelling in his back has gone down some but not nearly enough. They are still working to get an MRI and CT scan of his upper back for the off and on numbness in his left arm and the cramping in his right shoulder. It shouldn't take so long but it does. Everything has to be sent through worker's compensation and approved before anything is set up. We're going to call and check on all the appointments tomorrow though.

Ok, so back to today's appointment. I think it went fairly well. Dr. F checked Rassie over thoroughly as usual. He did lots of same things physical therapy does just to see how much movement Rassie had. Then he poked and prodded with a needle up and down the legs, back and stomach. Then he checked reflexes, all were good. Lastly he took his reflex tool (sorry I don't know what its called) and at the opposite end it comes to a dull point. Dr. F scraped it on the bottom of Rassie's feet. When he got to Rassie's left foot, Rassie could feel pain shooting up his foot and into his back. That was a good sign. And then for some reason the scraping stimulated some nerves and Rassie's left leg lifted up and the muscles kind of cramped. And for about a minute Rassie had some controlled movement of his left leg. This is the leg that has most recently gone numb! It was so exciting to see and Rassie was super excited and happy. He laughed and smiled and was just over all tickled about the entire situation.

Dr. F is very optimistic that Rassie will recover. "When" is the question though and the answer to that is "indefinitely". Physical Therapy will no longer be at home. We're moving back to the hospital to do PT as an outpatient. I think that this is a great idea and there were be lots more people and resources to help him get better and push him to try. We also threw out the idea of aquatic therapy. Dr. F thinks that is a great idea and is going to recommend it. Rassie is supposed to follow up with Dr. F again in 4-5 weeks. We should be hearing back about our new schedule of events as soon as everything is approved through worker's compensation. Our nurse case manager has been fairly good about getting things taken care of so it shouldn't take too too long hopefully.

That's about it for now

God Bless & Good Night

WBC = White Blood Count

Unexpected Appointments

2009-12-07T17:31:00.000-08:00

Rassie had a followup with his primary this past Friday. Today the rehabilitation clinic called to say they finally got Rassie scheduled again with neurology for the 14th of this month. Apparently, his primary didn't think that was soon enough and called neurology saying this was an emergency and he needed to be seen ASAP. Which leads to our exciting day. No one ever called back to tell us they moved up his neurology appointment for TODAY! So at 12:30 as I am getting the kids cleaned up and ready for nap the hospital is calling asking Rassie where he is at. He's already 30 minutes late for his noon appointment. So after snatching up the kids, throwing a diaper bag together and getting all 3 loaded into the car I zip us to the hospital by 1. We are there until 3! The neurologist checked Rassie over thoroughly. Up and down his arms, legs, back, stomach, neck. Pretty much his entire body. He decided he wanted to go ahead and do two nerve studies on Rassie so he walked us over a few halls. There they did two different nerve studies. One with electricity and the other with needles. The kids and I waited in the waiting area. It seemed like it took forever! And they weren't as thorough as they would have liked. The bed in the nerve study rooms were too high for Rassie to transfer from the wheel chair so they had to make do the best they could. Not sure when the results will be in but we are supposed to be getting a call with them sometime in the near future. If not, Rassie has an appointment with rehabilitation on Wednesday. I am hoping the nerve study will shed some light on what is going on and give us some idea on a time frame.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rassie is still doing good on the Gleevec. He has gotten nauseated a few times but is on a nausea med for all this other medications so it seems to be keeping things at bay. Saturday he said his body felt a little sore, like when you're getting the flu. But I got him up and moving and those muscles worked out and he felt much better.

God Bless & Good Night

The Little Things

2009-12-06T13:24:00.000-08:00

I want to share a special story from last night on the Power of Prayer. We were all snuggled into bed. Rassie was still sitting up getting situated but I had already layed down and said my prayers. I prayed that even though Rassie’s recovery from his back injury was a long, slow process that God would let us know he was getting better by even the simplest thing like being able to move his toes. The next thing I know, Rassie tells me he felt his toe twitch! I was so excited. I told him about my prayer and at first he laughed because he didn’t believe me but then he realized I was telling the truth. I love the little things God does for us! He truly does give me Faith.

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Rassie is doing good. Keeping his spirits high. He has is moments of frustration but who wouldn’t? I’m keeping him busy. He’s been helping out around the house. He gets diaper duty a lot. J I think its great that the chase lounge is just perfect to lay the kids on so that he can change diapers. I am sure he doesn’t appreciate it all that much though. Haha! He’s been helping keep the kids entertained too. He gets in the floor and plays with them. He is determined to help Lane Roll over on his own! He sits there with the video camera cheering him on. Too funny! The Saturday after Thanksgiving, Scarlett and I put up the Christmas Tree while Rassie and Lane supervised. Then Rassie helped decorate. We had to go out and get candy canes because that is Rassie’s favorite thing to put on the tree! I think it looks great!

Happiness keeps you Sweet, Trials keep you Strong,

Sorrows keep you Human, Failures keep you Humble,

Success keeps you Glowing,

But only Family and Friends keep you Going.

A Week

2009-12-04T11:53:00.000-08:00

A week ago today Rassie started the Gleevec. So far, no major side effects. It is causing a few mouth sores but the doctor prescribed a mouth wash that is helping with those. Rassie's Fellow, Dr. O had her baby this past week. Congrats to her! Rassie went in for labs on Wednesday. His WBC* is back up to 28k. They seem to think it is his body adjusting to the Gleevec and will be under control soon. They will continue to monitor his counts on a weekly basis. Once they feel comfortable they will move labs to every 2 weeks. Rassie's next oncology appointment is not until January 25th because of Dr. O having her baby 3 weeks early and the staff was unprepared. But K, the case worker is working on getting an appointment sooner than that. Most likely Rassie will continue to be seen by Dr. W. He is the staff doctor over Dr. O.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rassie had a follow up with ETS on Wednesday morning due to the absesses he received from the damaged tissue. I have been cleaning and dressing them daily. They look great and no longer need anything but a daily cleaning (so bathtime) and a bandage if Rassie feels necessary.

Today, Friday morning, Rassie had a follow-up with his primary doctor. Anytime there is a hospital stay you're supposed to follow-up with you're primary. He let her know everything that is going on here and all of his concerns. Because of the newer numbness in his left leg, the burning feeling he gets in his right shoulder and his left arm going in and out on him, she is having more MRI's and CT scans schedules. Rassie's injury happened so fast. He says he remembers getting hit twice with a cable but everyone's focus has been on the lower hit because that is where the swelling and hematoma are. Not to mention he only had loss of feeling in the lower part of his body. Since later symptoms are starting to appear Dr. R wants new tests so they can look at the upper body. Hopefully that will shed some light on things.

Physical therapy came twice this week. We missed today because Rassie was at an appointment and that was the only time PT could come so she had to reschedule for next week. I would like to say Rassie is making progress but it's a slow process. The upper right leg is getting stronger and moving it is becoming less painful. The lower half of the leg really hasn't made any improvement. The left leg is still completely numb. I do have hope because of the movement while sleeping though. Something is going on! We helped Rassie to stand at the kitchen sink this week. Last week he had a fall with the walker. His legs buckled and there was no where to go but down. The kitchen sink seemed safer this week that way we could help lock his knees and keep them from buckling. Tuesday went well but Wednesday was a new story. We're not sure if his ankle turned or what happened but somehow his foot slid back under his chair and once again he went down. Don't worry, he didn't just crash. The PT assistant and I are always helping during these workouts. The PT assistant decided no more standing for the time being. We see Dr. F, the rehabilitation doctor again on the 9th and we are still waiting on a scheduled nuerology appointment.

Sorry this was such a long update. Just wanted to try and get everything in. I hope all are doing well.

God Bless

So Far So Good

2009-11-30T19:22:00.000-08:00

Rassie has been on the Gleevec for four days now. So far everything is pretty good. The first day he had some nausuea and vomitting early on. I am pretty sure it was a side effect of not eating and taking several medications all at once. Other than that one time the only side effect he is having are mouth sores. They are a side effect of the Gleevec and Dr. O prescribed him a mouthwash to rinse with. She said its a pretty common side effect.

Not sure if I ever updated with Rassie's most recent WBC* but it is in the normal range again. The last read was at 8,200. YAY!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This week is a pretty busy one for Rassie. Physical therapy is coming Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. The home health nurse is coming Tuesday. Lane has a doctors appointment Tuesday morning so Daddy is going to stay home with Scarlett. Rassie is pretty comfortable with watching the kids alone for short periods. Wednesday is lab draw day and Rassie also has an appointment with the ETS clinic for an absess he got from all the tissue damage to his back. It's looking great and almost completely heeled. Thursday I think we are actually FREE and staying home to relax. Friday Rassie has a follow up with his primary, Dr. R just to make sure everything is going smoothly. Next week starts the process all over again and on December 9th we have another follow up with the rehabilitation doctor Dr. F. We are still waiting on approval from workmans compensation insurance to see the nuerosurgeon again. Dr. F thinks it is a good idea for a re-evaluation with that department. Doesn't seem to be much improvement so far with the hematoma yet either.

If any of you remember, Rassie lost feeling in his left leg. We talked with Dr. F on the phone this week and told him how Rassie can move the leg in his sleep. Dr. F said that is pretty normal because your body and nerves are more relaxed in your sleep. It's also a good sign that the body part still works! Rassie is making improvement strengthening the upper part of his right leg. He can move it quite a bit compared to when the accident first happened. He still can't move the lower portion or feel anything other than tingling. With the exception of feeling the blast of cold tingling on his feet the other day.

This past week the at home physical therapy was a little rough on Rassie. With the new loss of feeling in his left leg, standing with the walker was a little bit tougher. He managed to stand but then his legs gave out and he went to the floor. Don't worry, he didn't just crash. They physical therapist assistant and I were helping him and we got him down and seated on the floor. So the next time Rassie did the standing exercise we did it at the kitchen sink. This way he could lock his knees against the cabinets and keep them from buckling. He did a great job and stood a total of three times. Alot of the weight is still on his arms but thats ok. He's still doing a great job!

That's all for now.
God Bless & Good Night

*WBC = White Blood Count

Gleevec is HERE!

2009-11-28T06:27:00.000-08:00

Rassie's Gleevec arrived via UPS on Wednesday morning. He started his first dose Friday. So far no ill side effects. I expect it will take a few days or weeks before they kick in, but who am I to say. He did get a little sick to his stomach yesterday but that was most likely because he took all his meds for his back injury too and on an empty stomach. I am always telling him to make sure he eats when he takes his meds to avoid these things but sometimes Rassie is just so hard headed! I guess thats why I love him though :) Rassie will continue to go in every Wednesday for labs and then on January 25th he goes back to the oncologist to see Dr. O and Dr. W to see how things are progressing with the Gleevec. Of course if he needs to see them for anything in between now and then he can call and schedule an appointment. K, the case worker in the oncology department has also been a big help in answering any questions we might have. So for now its just a sit back and wait situation. And I am excited to see the progress Rassie makes in the days, weeks and months to come!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

No new news on the back injury. We are still doing physical therapy here at home by ourselves everyday and with a physical therapist 3 times a week. Making some progress in the right leg and very, very little is starting to come back in the left but I'll take it! Lot's more appointments and hard work to come. I will update when we know more. OH, there is one new thing. Yesterday in the car I turned the heat on and it blew a blast of cold air on the feet first and Rassie felt the cold on his feet!!! It was only for a minute or two and it was a cold tingling feeling but he has not been able to differentiate between hot and cold since the accident. This was BIG!!!! I was super excited and so was Rassie. Hopefully the hematoma is starting to decrease and the nerves that were compressed will start to regenerate so that Rassie can regain feeling

God Bless

A much needed update

2009-11-23T20:23:00.000-08:00

AH! I feel like I haven't been on here in forever. The rush of everything going on keeps me busy.

Rassie had an oncology appointment today. Everything went great. The doctors are all so nice. The Gleevec still has not made it but is being UPSed to us by Wednesday. There was a misunderstanding somewhere down the line and the pharmacy claimed they never got approval from the insurance but the social worker faxed that information personally but all is well and it WILL be here by Wednesday. K has also offered to help with paying a few months copayments. I think that is a very nice thing of him to do. Please pray that God thanks him for such generousity. Rassie's WBC* was down to 8,200 at last weeks draw. That is great news. Today Dr. O said there is no need to take the allopurinol anymore and that as soon as Rassie starts the Gleevec the hydrea can go as well. I am so excited that Rassie will finally be starting the 'real' treatment. And I Pray that this treatment does wonders for him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Last weekend Rassie lost feeling in his left leg. Originally it was the right leg and left foot. Rassie spent Tuesday night at the ER until late. The doctors could not find anything new so they sent him home since he had an appointment scheduled in 2 days with the rehabilitation doctor anyways. Come to find out they diagnosed his new symptoms as swelling from an enlarged spleen that they blamed on the CML. BUT we got that taken care of. When Rassie was at his oncology appointment today he asked Dr. O and Dr. W if the CML could be causing any of the symptoms pertaining to his back injury and was told that they are in NO WAY related. They made sure to put that in his medical records. This past Thursday Rassie saw the rehab doctor. There was a mix up there too. They called him with an appointment but it didn't get put into the computer. The good news is that the doctor went ahead and saw him. He said Rassie's new symptoms are just late symptoms from the back traume and that yes that does happen sometimes. There was lots of poking and prodding and although Rassie couldn't feel it the Dr. was seeing twitches. He said that was a good sign because it meant something was going on and it was still working. Rassie's left leg is still numb but I have noticed during the night he is able to move it. I told him and so he tried during the day. If moves pressure off of the knot (also the hematoma) on his back and more to his left side he is able to move that leg. He still can't feel it other than a burning sensation off and on. Dr. F is going to follow his case and set him up to see a nuerosurgeon again.

That's about it for now

God Bless & Good Night

One Step Back

2009-11-17T22:04:00.000-08:00

For every step forwards there is always a step backwards. Rassie has been doing so well with his physical therapy and managing the pain in his back. He's been moving around like a pro with the use of his wheel chair and gettting much better at transferring to and from the wheel chair.

Last night we took a step backwards. Rassie's right leg from the knee down has loss of feeling along with his left foot. Last night his entire left leg went numb. He also said there was a burning sensation like it was on fire. The burning feeling comes and goes. This morning the home health nurse checked him over and Rassie went ahead and called in to the doctor. The doctor suggested being checked in through ER to be re-evaluated since after 4 weeks he is experience a new loss of feeling. We made it to the ER around 2:30 pm. They poked and prodded, did an EKG (by mistake I might add), a CT scan and and MRI. The CT scan came back clear. He was back from the MRI at 8:30 and here it is midnight and we still haven't heard the results on it. We were told at 9:30 they should have the results in about 30 minutes. All this waiting is driving me nuts. I went ahead and picked up the kids and came home. Rassie is still in the ER awaiting results. If the MRI shows nothing new from the last one they will release him. If something has changed they will reasses whether or not to admit him or send him home. So that's where we are at right now.

The Gleevec hasn't arrived yet but should be here anyday. Actually I didn't get a chance to check the mail today so if we got the package I don't know. I'm going to check first thing in the morning. We do have a few questions before he starts though. He's still on the hydrea and allopurinol and so I am assuming he will have to stop those. He has labs tomorrow so we plan on asking then.

Good Night & God Bless

Amazing News

2009-11-13T18:00:00.000-08:00

The oncology case worker, K is a miracle worker. He took Rassie's case and went straight to the insurance with it. Got the last test the insurance company requested done on Wednesday and called us this morning to say Rassie HAS been approved for Gleevec. The monthly co-pay is much lower than anticipated and I am so greatful for that. The oncology dept at the Glenda Vasecek Cancer Treatment Center at Scott & White has offered to pay for the first months supply. How nice is that? Thank you S&W. And K is getting us in some other programs to help offset the cost of monthly copays, any hospital stays and other expenses that might come our way due to the CML.

Rassie's Gleevec should arrive in the mail early next week and he should be starting treatment either Monday or Tuesday. Which ever day it happens to come. I want to thank all of you who have kept us in your prayers and thoughts. The power of prayer is awesome!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rassie has been doing well. Yesterday I did his physical therapy exercises with him. He stood with the walker 3 times for about a minute each. He did such a great job. Today the PT assistant came. He stood with the walker twice and took a few small steps. He is such a trooper. Alot of his weight goes to his arms, then to his left leg and he puts the least weight on his right leg. He still has lots of shooting pain when he stands but he is pushing through it really well. We have a long road ahead of us but I have faith that he will regain feeling in both of his feet and his right leg and that he will be able to walk again with no problems. The doctors are very optimistic that this is only temporary paralysis and he will get better. It will just take time.

All of Rassie's follow-up appointments have been scheduled for everything from the CML to the Rehabilitation. Plus his weekly labs are set up again to watch his WBC. There has been no more talk about a bone marrow biopsy but I am sure they will still want to do one eventually. The next oncology appointment is November 23rd so we will find out what our next step is at that time and get all of our questions answered.

Thank you for your continued support.

God Bless & Good Night

Another Test

2009-11-11T12:52:00.000-08:00

The oncology case worker called today. He has talked with our insurance. They have not agreed to cover Gleevec yet. They want another test done. It's a simple blood test to verify that Rassie has the Ph+ CML. (if you look to the right side of the page you can read more about Ph+ CML) I have to take Rassie in to do labs today anyways so they are just going to take the extra blood they need. After labs we're supposed to stop by K's (the case worker) office and see if we can't get Rassie's appointments moved up. Because of the whole work injury appointments got pushed back and moved. Now his next appointment isn't until December sometime. But we're going to get that worked on and reschedule.

We have been nonstop here at home. There has been a little downtime to relax. Rassie is taking it easy. But me! I have been going and going and going. Babies, baths, feedings, dinner, dishes, laundry, floors, bathrooms, start all over again and go.................. It's not as bad as it sounds. Rassie has a homehealth nurse coming everyday to check his vitals and some of his cuts and scrapes to prevent infection. And a physical therapist comes 3 times a week for the obvious reasons. Rassie has what is called a hemotoma on his back. It is what is causing alot of pressure on the nerves and most likely the cause for the loss of feeling. It could take a while for this hematoma to dissovle and go away. It is very painful but we have been keeping it undercontrol the best we can. The physical therapy is to help keep his muscles built up and in use. Think of the old saying ' Use it or Lose it'. We definitely don't want Rassie to lose the use of his legs and muscles so its work, work, work! He is such a trooper.

2009-11-10T19:49:00.000-08:00

May the Fallen Soldiers who passed during the Ft. Hood shooting

Forever Rest in Peace

Finally, A Moment to Update

2009-11-08T19:38:00.000-08:00

Rassie was released from Scott & White on Friday. I was worried about getting in to pick him up because the hospital was supposedly still on lockdown from the shooting at Ft. Hood. But I got right in. We got Rassie and his 3 weeks of collected "stuff" packed up and ready to go. All we were waiting for was the nurse to come in and go over the discharge papers. Seemed like it took forever but we finally made it out of that place. He will continue physical therapy as an outpatient and they are trying to set it up so that PT comes to our house. How nice that will be! We swung by the registration office on our way home and picked up temporary handicap tags. I am thankful for those because I can't get the car door open far enough for the wheel chair without them! Then I got Rassie all settled in at home and fed.

Then it was off to get his prescriptions. Oh the joys! I went to CVS first. They didn't carry the pain medicine prescribed. The pharmacist called all over town for me and no one carried it in that dosage. And the doctor forgot to write 'workers comp' on the prescription so they wouldn't take the rest of the scrips as workers comp. Off to pharmacy #2. I went back to the hospital to use their pharmacy. I figured if the doctor prescribed this pain med the hospital pharmacy should have it. WRONG! I was told they had it in a lower dosage and I would have to get a new prescription. No problem. I paged the doctor he called back immediately. I ran up to the 4th floor grabbed the new scrip and went back to the pharmacy downstairs. Only for them to tell me they didn't have any dosage of that pain medicine but to come back Monday! You have got to be kidding me. I let them fill the rest of the meds and I ran home to Rassie. He has a slow release pain med that did get filled and he needed it plus the others. I called around to even more pharmacies. Guess what?! I found one that had the dosage for the orginial scrip and not the rewritten one. Just my luck huh? I just about given up. I finally found a Walgreens that had the right dosage but not enough pills. I decided to go with it or else Rassie wouldn't have anything until Monday. My luck got better when I went to pick up the prescription. The worker's comp insurance was already closed for the weekend and I couldn't get approval on the last pain medication. Luckily I had our BCBS ins. on me and it was only $10. What a night! I finally made it home. Made sure Rassie had everything he needed and we were both passed out by 9:30!

Saturday was Rassie's birthday. I made him breakfast and we just relaxed for the early half of the day. Then at 5 we had a wedding to be at. Rassie was up for getting out of the house and going so we made our way there. It was a beautiful wedding.

Since I didn't get to do anytihng special for Rassie on Saturday, I cooked slow roasted steak and potatoes on Sunday. It turned out so yummy! I also treated Rassie to a homecooked breakfast and a good lunch. I have to say he enjoyed it alot. But why wouldn't he? He's been stuck eating hospital food 95% of the time for the past 3 weeks! Scarlett and I also made Daddy a cake. Scarlett was such a good little helper and Rassie really loved watching her help out and have fun. To see pictures of Scarlett making Daddy's birthday cake click here.

We have all had a really good weekend and hope there are many more to come! We are waiting on all the follow up appointments to be set up (for everything, injury and CML) and we will go from there. Tomorrow I call the case manager and find out what the insurance said about Gleevec. We still haven't heard back. I'm hoping no news is good news.

God Bless & Good Night

Yes he's 30 but we were out of candles so it was "1" or "Tinkerbell" Scarlett picked out the "1". I think Daddy enjoyed being 1 instead of 30! Happy Birthday Rassie!

Coming Soon....

2009-11-07T20:07:00.000-08:00

....A nice little update... For now, Rassie is home and well. Took a little getting our hands on his pain meds. Got all settled in last night. Relaxed for the most part today and then a wedding. It was beautiful.

The best part of today. Rassie being home for his birthday.

Happy 30th Birthday Rassie!!!!!
We love you- Mommy, Scarlett & Lane

Prayers for the Fallen

2009-11-05T17:13:00.000-08:00

Ft. Hood is about 30 miles here from home. What a day it has been. 13 Fallen and 30 more injured. Under fire by one of our own. A soldier nontheless. What a tragedy. It saddens my heart. The lockdown for Ft. Hood has been lifted and cars are pouring onto base. Some victims were flown to Scott & White hospital where Rassie has been for the past few weeks. As of now there are 4 in surgery and 5 more in the E.R. here at Scott & White. There are many many more. There was a an immediate blood drive and I am so proud of Central Texas for the turn out. Tonight Scott & White is having to turn donors away and ask them to come back after 8 a.m. in the morning. The lines were out the doors, down the side walks and around the corner.

Say a Prayer, Hug your loved ones, Fly your Flag at halfstaff this week. May the Fallen rest in peace and ay God be with their familes. May God watch over the injured and be with their loved ones as well.

A Piece of Beauty from Above

2009-11-05T11:02:00.000-08:00

A piece of beauty that God has Blessed us with

This is a picture I took. It's been a while since I've looked at it but I always enjoy days like this when God's beauty really shines through. It always brightens my day and makes me smile.

Life is Hard Sometimes

2009-11-05T10:36:00.000-08:00

As I was reading through all the blogs I keep tabs on today I came across this one that really caught my attention. Ryan also has CML and is already undergoing treatment with Gleevec. Please keep him Ryan in your prayers. But today's post was different. It wasn't about himself. It was about his young cousin who was recently diagnosed with ALL. It is also a form of leukemia but is much faster paced. It is heartbreaking to hear of anyone diagnosed with leukemia but it saddens my heart even more to know that a child has been touched with this disease. I have great faith that Carson will fight this ALL and win! I have known two people from my childhood who were diagnosed with leukemia as a child and are now grown adults with families and children leading happy, healthy lives.

Please take a moment out of your day to stop and say a prayer for Carson and his family. You can visit his site at http://www.carsonwiener.com/

Wednesday Wishes

2009-11-04T20:01:00.000-08:00

Rassie's Wish this Wednesday is to be home in time for his birthday. His Birthday is this coming Saturday, November 7th. And just his luck, he's coming HOME Friday!

We are all very excited. Rassie feels some relief about being able to come home. He can't wait to be home for good.

I think this calls for Birthday Cake and a home cooked dinner!

G'night and God Bless

Daddy's Encouragement

2009-11-03T21:08:00.000-08:00

I wanted to share some Daddy's encouragement... I think we will all agree these two little miracles are great encouragement!

We miss you Daddy on days we play at the Park.

We can hardly wait for you to come home!

We Love You Daddy!

I'm dreaming of Daddy! He's my Hero!

Remember the days Daddy, when we played Rockband?

I can't wait for you to come home and let me play again!

Look at Me Daddy, ain't Life Grand!

Your Sweet Little Pumpkin who brought you lots of treats!

And don't forget Mommy, She Loves You too!

There's Hope for the Insurance Yet!

2009-11-03T18:42:00.000-08:00

I don't know if you all remember, but when Rassie was diagnosed with CML not too long ago they ran our insurance and Gleevec was denied. I kept thinking that our insurance denied it because they considered Rassie's CML a pre-existing condition. But why wouldn't they? He had just started a new job. The insurance had just kicked in. Then Rassie uses the insurance for the first time and BAM he has leukemia. I guess if I were the insurance company I would have been a little skeptical also. Today, Kevin, the oncology case manager contacted our insurance company again to get things worked out. And what do you know, the insurance originally denied Gleevec because they did think that the CML was pre-existing. This is somewhat of a relief. Now we can try for the Gleevec again. As of yet, we haven't heard back from the insurance to know if the Gleevec has been approved or denied. I am definitely going to be praying for good news. If approved, we still might face more obstacles like a high copay. Kevin said if the copay is high then we will not go for the insurance right away. Instead we will try to get involved with different Foundations to help pay for it instead. A copay for Gleevec could run up to $1,000 per month. Yes, it's that expensive apparently. So, say an extra prayer for us tonight that all goes well with approval and a low copay.

On another note, the rehab team for Rassie's worker's comp case had an evaluation meeting today. Unfortunately we didn't get to talk with the doctors so we don't know exactly what the plans are. The nurse did look at the chart though and said it is written down that he may get to come home this Friday. How exciting is that? They did another ct scan yesterday. The knot and bruising on his lower back is still there. They had anticipated it would have started to go away by now but that's just not the case. It is a hemotoma (sp?). Or a pool of blood. They are still hopefull it will go away on its own. Early on they had talked about draining it but its really not possible because the blood is pooled up in tissue and such, its not just a pool of liquid. Other than that, everything seems to be moving in the right direction. The PT team helped to stablize him again today so that he could use the walker. Rassie did mention that the team helped less today, so that's even more imporvement. I was hoping to have an estimate on when they think he will be out of the wheel chair and using the walker but I didn't get my question answered. I visit in the afternoons and late evenings and by then the doctors have already made their rounds. And for some reason Rassie never asks! But I will be patient. Hopefully he remembers to ask all my questions for me tomorrow :)

Good Night and God Bless

Hooray For Weekends

2009-11-03T11:34:00.000-08:00

Rassie got to come home two days in a row on a pass this weekend. Everything went pretty smoothly. He's able to fit through all the doors except the master bath. We have a chase loung and that's where he set and relaxed. It was the perfect spot for him. He transitioned to the car really well also. The PT Cruiser is just the right height. Now I wish we could use the Journey because I didn't have the space for a wheel chair and a stroller in the back of the Cruiser! I got to see Rassie doing some physical therapy. He is able to kick his left leg out to do leg raises. He tries a little with his right leg. It doesn't go as much. He also lifts knee to nose (not actually that far but up like that) and the PT helps him do those. He did a great job. He also has to do bicycle pedals with his hands to keep his arms moving and in shape. Yesterday in PT they stablized him enough so that he could stand up and walk with a walker. He didn't go far but its an improvement from the parellel bars. It really hurts through his right foot up through his leg and into his back. But he IS doing it. I just keep reminding him how proud I am and that he is doing an awesome job. We've started taking little trips outside to the Healing Garden when the weather is nice. I think it does him good to get out and get some fresh air.

All of the doctors working on Rassie's rehabilitaion case were supposed to have an evaluation meeting today and let us know approximately how long he will have to stay and a date to look forward to for coming home! I am hoping sooner rather than later but if not I will survive a little longer without him next to me each night. My main hope is for him to get stronger and better with each day so that he will walk again. And with any luck, back to his old self again!

Not much news on the CML. His white count numbers are still down. Not where they are supposed to be but pretty close. The Oncologist Case Manager was supposed to work on the insurance coving Gleevec yesterday. I have not heard anything yet. That's a different department from where Rassie is at and so there are 2 seperate case managers that we are trying to keep seperate since one is being paid for by worker's compensation and the other by our own health insurance.

A Few Hours Get Away

2009-10-30T19:30:00.000-07:00

What a busy few days. An oncologist came by Rassie's room yesterday and his Fellow (resident type doctor) came by today. He says he does not see any reason to prolong trying to get Rassie on the Gleevec. Another doctor had initially mentioned waiting until the whole rehab problem was over with. I also talked to a case manager for the oncology department. I have to get our insurance card to her so she can make a copy front and back. Not sure what happened to the first copy. They are going to try getting Gleevec approved through our insurance company again. *fingers, eyes and toes crossed* and of course lots of praying that it goes through this time! The doctor that stopped by said that Rassie has the 926 strain of CML. I am going to have to double check that number because I can't remember for sure. He also said that they were definite on it being CML and really the only reason for a bone marrow biopsy now is for completion of diagnosis in his charts. I know Rassie does not really want to do the biopsy but it's just one of those things he has to do.

On to the few hours get away! The physical therapists had Rassie call me at noon today. They wanted me to be there at 1 for his PT time. Bad news! Both babies were down for a nap and there was no way I was waking both of them. But they said that was fine and so I have to be there at 9 in the morning. What they really want is my car! They are going to see how Rassie transitions from the wheel chair to the car and back again. If the transition goes well they are going to talk with the doctor about getting a pass to come home for a few hours on Sunday. YAY! We have a Dodge Journey that I drive. For those of you who don't know its a cross over between a SUV and a Mini Van. At least that's what I am told. Rassie and I both agree it might be too high to transition so we are going with the PT Cruiser instead. It should be a perfect height and make the transition alot easier, plus it still has tons of room. Now all I have to do is switch out the carseats. I am so excited and hope the transition goes well!

Oh, and there's more progress. Rassie walked the entire length of the parallel bars yesterday. I forgot to ask about today because we went to a little (lobby) Halloween Party and outside for a bit. I have also noticed when I help him move his legs that he is using them more on his own. I can tell that he's putting weight on his left leg and that he is trying to lift his right leg more by himself. I told him that I had noticed this and that I am so very proud of him for working so hard at it.

Slow progress is still PROGRESS and that's what counts.

Taking Steps

2009-10-28T18:41:00.000-07:00

First, I want to thank everyone who is following our story and praying for Rassie and our family. It means so mcuh.

Rassie's CML is doing ok. Dr. R lowered his dosage of hydroxyurea a little too much. His white count went up again to 58k yesterday. The physical therapy doctor went ahead and increased the dosage. Next Monday, November 2nd. We will meet with the oncologist and have Rassie's first official appointment. Hopefully we can get the Gleevec worked out then. It may not happen right away but the good news is the hydroxyurea is keeping it under control in the meantime.

Rassie's back injury is so-so. He is still unable to really feel his right leg and both feet. Just pins and needles. But he is making progress of sometime. He is able to move his left leg more without the pain in his back. He seems to think his left foot is waking up more. And yesterday he took his first TWO steps! I am so very proud of him. Today he took a total of TEN steps! I am so excited for him. They physical therapists helped him up to the parallel bars twice. The first time he took four steps and the second time he took 6 steps. He says that all the pins and needles in his right foot and leg turn into nails and a sharp pain goes up all the way from his foot up to his back. He says its very painful but he knows he has to try so that he can and will get better. I have to tell you though, these are extremely supported steps. He has a belt they put around his waist to help hold him up, plus the parallel bars and then the two physical therapists who are right there along side of him the entire time. They PT's do have to help him to get on the bars. They have to lock his legs with their legs. What this means is one stands in front of him and puts their toes to his toes and their knees to his knees and then they pull him up.

He is still doing physical therapy twice a day and occupational therapy is down to a group therapy once a day. Occupation therapy thinks he is doing great and doesn't need anymore therapy in the area of being able to take care of himself. As for the physical therapy, he still has a ways to go. But the progress he is making is just amazing and I will take anything we can get right now. Did I mention how proud of him I am?! Tuesday he has an elvalutaion with the rehab floor doctors. They will make their decision then on whether he gets to come home and continue with rehab as an outpatient or if he needs to stay another week.

That's our update for now.

Not Much to Update On

2009-10-26T18:42:00.000-07:00

There's not much to update on. Rassie's white count went up a little from 17k to 30k. Could be they went to low on his hydroxyurea or could be that his bone marrow just let off extra that day. He has an oncology appointment rescheduled for November 2nd. If he is still in the hospital they will arrange for him to be taken to the appointment.

As for his back injury. There's not much of an update. He's in the rehab unit. He does 1.5 hours of physcial rehab and 1.5 hours of occupational rehab a day. Sometimes it is group therapy and they talk about things. They are still playing around with his pain meds to see what works best for him. They rearranged the meds today and Rassie seems to think they are working a little better. It still hurts him alot to try to move his right leg (at the hip joint) . He said it is becoming easier to move the left leg, less painful. Rassie also thinks the pins and needles in his left foot seems to be getting better. He hasn't really noticed any improvement in the entire right legt. (The right leg is the one that's all pins and needles, not just the foot). They are still thinking a total of 2 weeks in the rehab unit before they send him home. They want to make sure his pain is under control and he is as capable as possible of taking care of himself and being independent.

That's about all for now. I'll update you when I have more news.

STC-4 Here We COME!

2009-10-21T12:16:00.000-07:00

Rassie is getting moved to STC -4 today (special treatment center, floor 4). That's the rehab unit! We are super excited about this. The attending doctor for the rehab unit thinks that Rassie will only be there 2 weeks before he comes home. I am hoping sooner. Their goal to get him home is to get him to be as independent as possible. So that does not mean he has to be walking before he comes home just mobile. Walking will come with time but he is making progress. He is already able to get himself to the wheel chair with minimal help. He also is able to get himself to the bathroom and the shower. All these are good, positive things! Today the physical therapist helped him to stand twice with the walker. As painful as it might be, he did it. I am very proud of him.

That's my short update of the day. No new news on the CML.. Since his numbers are doing well its on the back burnere for a short time. He is still on the hydroxyurea and allopurinol though.

Rehab is in the near future

2009-10-20T18:57:00.000-07:00

Rassie's white count is still hanging in there at 17k as of today. Not bad at all.

Rehab is in the near future for Rassie. They really want to get him moved down to the rehab unit of the hospital. This excites me. I am sure it excites Rassie too he just doesn't show it as much. He still has a little bit to go before he gets there. First, they want him on oral pain meds only and IV free. It is in the orders that he can get pain meds through the IV if needed but so far he is hanging in strong since yesterday with oral meds only! Second, he has to be up to doing 3 hours of physical therapy a day. This doesn't mean 3 hours consecutively, just throughout the day it needs to add up to 3 hours worth. I really do have faith that Rassie can do this. Once he gets moved to the rehab until we will only be able to visit between the hours of 5 and 9 because they do therapy sessions during the day. I can so handle this if it means getting my husband better and home!

Today two physical therapists came in. They helped Rassie scoot to the edge of the bed and stand up using the walker. You have no idea how AWESOME that is!!!!! His feet and right leg are still pins and needles but the fact that he was able to do this is just....WOW! I am so very proud of him.

I cannot wait for the day I update you guys and he's moved to the rehab unit and even better the day I update to say he's coming home!!!

Not Much News Today

2009-10-19T18:10:00.000-07:00

So there's isn't much news today in the way of Rassie's CML. They didn't do labs today because his numbers are looking so well there really isn't a need to do them everyday. He was scheduled to only do them once a week anyways. If it weren't for the back injury they would not have been doing them everyday .

So here we are a week and a day after the accident and there still isn't any improvement. After a nurse failed to do her job yesterday. Rassie was left waiting in a wheel chair for over 2 hours for sheets to be put on his bed so he could get back into it, get the pressure off of his back and his feet propped back up. It caused both legs to go numb from the hips down and tremendous swelling. After asking to speak to a charge nurse, Rassie's nurse had sheets put on his bed and then left him to move himself from the wheel chair to the bed. He's able to move his upper body over but having no feeling in his legs he is still unable to move them back and forth from bed to wheel chair and vice versa.. So he had to wait some more! I was at home with the babies so I was not happy to hear about this. It also caused his lower back to swell up and bruise. ( I will try to get a picture uploaded later but I must warn you it looks nasty) The doctors seem to think that leaving him in the wheelchair so long aggitated something in his back and they also said it was very unacceptable of the nurse to do that. They sent him for another ct scan today. This time they did not use contrast. And they also did an ultrasound on both legs to make sure they were free from blood clots. All we're waiting for are the ct results. I plan on going to the hospital in the morning to catch the doctors and ask all the questions that Rassie forgets.

For now, all I can say is Keep Praying!

The weekend

2009-10-18T18:31:00.000-07:00

Rassie's white count was down to 17,000 today. I cannot believe what progress he has made with that. The Doctors are very impressed. It makes them a little less concerned about the leukemia for the time being so that they can focus on his back injury.

Speaking of his injury. Things are about the same. No feeling in either foot, except for the tingling. And the right leg is still numb. He still has lots of pain and is unable to stand or walk. He has a knot on his lower back where the cable hit him. It seems to be getting bigger. The physical therapist seems to think it is fluid build up. Dr. R said she doesn't think its fluid and she will let the nueroligist know tomorrow, Monday. So, pretty much the only progress that has been made is Rassie is able to move himself to and from a wheel chair. He does need some help though moving his legs from the bed to the wheel chair and vice versa. He is not able to stay in the wheel chair long or both legs go numb and start swelling. I am really hoping for some answers and some improvement soon. For now, all I can do is support him and Pray.

So....

2009-10-16T19:04:00.000-07:00

Today's white count was down to 26,000! I am so excited that Rassie is doing do well on the hydroxyurea. I am still ancy about the whole leukemia thing. There are still questions I want answers to. Dr. R came by again today. She is going to see if she can get Dr. O (the lady who is going to be Rassie's oncologist) to come by and see him while he's in the hospital since we have no idea how long he will be there.   We did have someone stop by the room today and she mentioned that the oncologist deptartment is still working with the insurance to get the Gleevac covered. Hmm, that's news to us. But we did miss Monday's appointment and all that good stuff so who knows! *fingers crossed*

The back injury - Rassie seems to be moving his upper body a little better. It is still really painful to do so because obviously your back is part of that! He got to sit in a wheel chair for a while today. He didn't sit long because sitting straight up puts more pressure on your back and it really got to him. It also made his legs go completely numb. Rassie's right leg is still pretty numb and lifeless. The good news: it feels tingly which means he does have feeling in it. Now if we could just get his back feeling better maybe the feeling in his legs would come back. The nuerologist explained what happened to Rassie's back like this: ' Think about when you hit your funny bone, how your arm goes numb and tingly for a minute or so. Well Rassie's injury is like a badass version of that. The cable hit his back causing his leg to go numb and tingly'   He said they would hope it would get better anywhere from a few days to a week or so.

The MRI came back and it confirms a herniated or slipped disk. The neurologist said the slipped disk doesn't really explain the numbing of the leg and only part of the extreme pain in the back. But, the cable hitting Rassie in the back does explain his symptoms. So I guess we're still at a stand still with what is actually wrong?

The physcial therapy physician came by this afternoon. She is hoping that we can get Rassie moving a little more. That will get him from the acute care unit to the rehab unit. Once he is in the rehab unit they'll work on helping to get him even more mobile so that we can move him home. She thinks its in our best interest right now to wait until the pain he's having subsides some and he can move himself around more easily (from bed to wheel chair, etc) before we consider moving him home. They are taking into account that we have 2 small babies at home already and it would take too much out of me to have to care for him too. Which is a good thing. Man oh man am I ready for him to come home!   But I will do whatever it takes to get him better. And I will wait as long as we need to make sure everything is ok.

Even Lower

2009-10-15T11:15:00.000-07:00

Rassie actually got to see Dr. R this morning. She is a resident and this week she is doing rounds in acute care where Rassie is. What a coincidence. His white count what down even lower! 30,000. So amazing. She went ahead and lowerd his dosage of hydroxyurea. Great news. I am so happy about that. We haven't gotten a chance to call over to oncology yet and set up another appointment to get things rolling there, but we will.

As for the injury. I was so happy to see Rassie this morning and so were the kids. A few doctors came in while I was there. I didn't catch their names. There have been so many names to keep up with lately. They ordered another MRI and they are also going to do a nerve study. He is still having a numbing sensation in his right leg. He could not wiggle his toes or bend his ankle. They also poked him with a safety pin all the way up his leg and he could not feel it until they got to the outside of the upper thigh. Yikes! Good news is when they hit it with the little hammer thing (name?) to check his reflexes they are good. But this is what the nerve study is for. For now, they are thinking that the slipped disc is pushing or pinching a nerve and causing this. We will know more once we get the results of the MRI. (which was ordered at 11 am and he was in by noon, it didn't take over 24 hours, yay!) I am hoping no surgery is needed but we will see. Occupational and Physical Therapy have already made a trip to his room. They moved his legs around for him as much as possible without hurting him. They also had helped him to stand twice. It was VERY supported standing and caused a lot of pain. So like I said, it was only done twice. Physical Therapy will come everyday and Occupation Therapy will come every few days. Once they get him doing at least 3 hours of physical therapy a day the doctors will decide whether or not he is ready to come home and be seen on an out patient basis.

That's about it for now. Just waiting on results and still need to reschedule oncology appointments. Thanks to all of you who have said a prayer for us.

A Good Update

2009-10-14T18:13:00.000-07:00

During the middle of everything going on with Rassie's accident I forgot to update on the good. According to the ER doctor on Sunday, Rassie's white count was 56,000. Thats down about 300,000 from where it started and that is AWESOME in my opinion. It is a big relief to see such progress.

On another note, Rassie is being transferred home to S&W hospital as we speak. We are both extremely happy about that. At first JPS was releasing him completely and said he could come home! But the had not even done a PT workup and Rassie cannot get out of bed by himself or walk so that was not a good idea. He still has numbness in his right leg and extreme pain in his back but he is feeling better.

Once he gets to S&W we will be able to reschedule his oncolgy appointment and see what we can do about getting him a new script since his was left at work when he got injured and no one can seem to find it. I am so excited to see him in the morning!

The Day We Found Out

2009-10-13T21:02:00.000-07:00

I was just going through pictures on my phone from the day we found out Rassie had CML. I thought I would share.

The first one is my visitors pass from the ER so I could go back and see Rassie. I had no idea the news I was about to face.

This one is of Rassie. He didn't realize I was snapping his picture and wasn't all that happy about it either. But I told him not to worry. It was just his face and he looked fine. I love him no matter what!

This was our view from NT806. You can see the old part of the hospital. The sky is such a beautiful blue.

And this next picture is actually from the day Rassie got discharged. Our 2 sweet babies waiting to bring Daddy home. We were all worn out and ready to be home for good.

A few answers on the accident injury

2009-10-13T18:10:00.000-07:00

JPS actually got Rassie in for an MRI last night and he got to se a nuerosurgeon today. He has a chronic slipped disk in his back. They let him take off the neck brace and sit up. They are also feeding him finally. It's about time. I know he was starving. Today is the first day he has had anything to eat or drink since Saturday. Yesterday they finally gave in and let him have a few ice chips but other than that he was getting nothing but a saline drip.

The nuerosurgeon suggested transferring Rassie to Scott & White because his recovery will take 4-6 weeks and it would be better if he were closer to home. Because if they do let him come home he will need extensive physical therapy and we can't drive back and forth 2 hours one way everytime he has a pt appointment. But, once Rassie get's here to Scott & White their treatment may be different than what JPS would do. So it's just a wait and see situation. Right now we are waiting for the transfer to be approved. It is a whole process of JPS calling S&W and getting a doctor here to accept Rassie as a patient. Getting dishcharge papers from JPS getting and ambulance transport in between 911 calls and finally the trip down here. We are pretty sure since it's already 8 pm that the transfer is not going to happen tonight but are really praying it does tomorrow. So keep us in your prayers for an approved transfer and a safe drive down here.

Rassie's employer is also giving us trouble and saying Rassie was admitted to the hospital due to a personal illness and not because of his injury at work. We are trying to get that worked out and are considering talking to an attorney. We already have a few picked out that we are going to call for a consult to see if we want to go any further. Maybe just the consult will get his employers on the right path and stop them from denying him workmans comp during his recovery.

Bad News

2009-10-12T22:31:00.000-07:00

Rassie was supposed to go in for weekly labs today and his first two outpatient appointments for his leukemia. He didn't make it. I had to call and cancel. It explains everything below.

Let me start off by saying the bad news is not about Rassie's CML.

This past Saturday night / Sunday morning Rassie had an accident on the oil rig. He injured his lower back. From what he has told me, it was between 2 and 2:30 am. He slipped on wet oil based mud and his feet came out from under him but he never actually hit the ground because the other guys threw his tongs and there was slack in the cable and it came back and slapped him in the back picking him back up onto his feet before he could fall all the way. I know you guys have no idea what I am talking about and don't worry I don't really know what exactly everything is but I do understand that this is a very strong cable and slapping someone in the back can cause major injury. So let me finish. Rassie was in a lot of pain and told his driller who then told him to go down and tell the pusher (the boss). So Rassie (with his back injury) had to walk down a steep flight of steps to the pushers shack. Here he was not feeling so well and needed to sit down so he took a seat on the step outside the pusher's shack (trailer/office) After about 30 minutes of agonizing pain he realized he could not stand up. He was left sitting in the misty/rainy weather until almost 4:30. That's TWO hours. Finally the pusher had 2 members of the crew come down and help Rassie into the change house where they set him in a metal chair. He sat there until about 5:30-6 am when the safety guy made it out to the rig. The safety guy just kind of picked Rassie up over his shoulders and drug him to the truck and then drove him to the hospital.

I would like to stop for a minute and get out all of my frustrations. If someone has a back injury DO NOT LET THEM WALK. ESPECIALLY DOWN STAIRS!!!! They should have called for help right then and there. And their 2nd mistake. They waited FOUR HOURS until they took him to the emergency room that was I think 45 minutes away.

So they get him to North Texas Medical Center. They do a CT Scan that shows negative. But Rassie is in a lot of pain and unable to move his right leg without the pain in his back becoming excruciating. Not to mention he can't feel his right leg all that well. They want to do an MRI but decide they need to send him to a trauma hospital. Rassie requested Scott & White. They told him no and sent him to John Peter Smith Hospital in Ft. Worth. NEVER USE THIS HOSPITAL.

We have had nothing but trouble since Rassie got transferred to JPS. They wouldn't contact Scott & White to get him back on his leukemia meds which I couldn't find at his job so he couldn't take them. Finally after a day one nurse called and got the confirmation and dosage. The first doctor in the ER told me it would not hurt Rassie to be off his meds for a day or two that they were only worried about his back injury. I was steamed! Somewhere between ER and the Observation floor they lost the workman's comp insurance papers. After waiting 24 hours the MRI had NOT been done because they only have one MRI machine and they do out patients before trauma patients. Doesn't that seem odd to you? We spent all day today requesting to be transferred to Scott & White 1) for faster, better care 2) to be closer to home.
The doctor refused to transfer. Want to know his reason? Because too much time would be lost and Scott & White would have to start all over. Get this! They have had patients ordered for an MRI stat waiting for 2 days! And they are worried about another hospital having to start the process over when they haven't even started the process here other than pushing the pain meds to keep him passed out. Every time we asked to speak to someone they would give him pain meds to knock him out. We asked for a patient advocate and all she did was take the doctors side and then we caught them both in lies.

We are stuck at a county hospital with a workers comp claim and in my opinino they won't transfer him because they know they will get paid no matter what for this patient. Anyways! That's my rant. I will let you know more when I can. For now I am home with the kids because I couldn't get a babysitter past tonight. So Rassie is 2 hours away, laid up in a hospital bed all alone and its killing me.

Please Please Please say a Prayer for Rassie and our family. We are facing a lot right now. Not sure when this storm will pass but I know we could use the prayers.

Wednesday Wishes

2009-10-07T19:14:00.000-07:00

This Wednesday's Wish is to share time with the ones you
love and to provide them and yourself
with memories
that will last more than a lifetime.

Rassie did that this week by spending time with his two sweet babies.

Daddy & Lane watching the Cowboys Football Game

Daddy & Scarlett reading 'Daddy's Girl'

Our First Obstacle

2009-10-06T12:09:00.000-07:00

I want to start off by saying that Gleevec, the pill they want to put Rassie on, costs an outrageous amount each month. One that we cannot afford to pay. And now after some miscommunication by the case worker on the 8th floor we face our first obstacle

Dr. H and Dr. R both told us it would take a while to get our hands on Gleevec. They said it would be hard to get the insurance to cover it and if we did get coverage the copay could be $500-$1000 a month. Talk about a shocker! The Monday before Rassie was discharged the 8th floor case manager came in and told us that the insurance had approved Gleevec and there was a $0 copay. We were thrilled. It seemed way too good to be true but who were we to complain.

This past Friday we got a letter in the mail from our insurance company saying they denied the request for authorization of Gleevec. What? How? Yesterday and today we spent on the phone trying to get ahold of the case manager from the hospital. We finally got her only to learn that "I didn't tell you that your insurance covered it" and then "There must have been miscommunication somewhere". It had to be on her end. Rassie and I did not hear her say the same thing twice about being covered and having no copay. But that's that.

Now we are supposed to take in a pay stub so we can try to get coverage through a program. The first program the case manager is going to try is to get the pill company itself to pay for Rassie's prescription. We are really hoping that this happens for us or that the insurance company changes their mind. We do plan on contacting the insurance to see exactly why they denied Gleevec. Rassie and I think that the insurance company may be under the impression that the Leukemia is a pre existing condition since we have only been with them for about a month. And if that's the case and we can prove it was not pre existing maybe they will change their minds and provide coverage for the Gleevec.

Please keep us in your prayers that one way or another we will get assistance to help pay for the Gleevec. If we have to make a copay that is fine with us but without some type of assistance we will never be able to afford it.

Hydroxyurea - The Medication Currently being used

2009-10-05T10:59:00.000-07:00

Hydroxyurea is the medication that Rassie is currently on to lower his white count. It seems to be doing it's job. Rassie's white count initially started out at 358,000. As of this past Friday it was down to 150,000.
We did have a bump in the road this past Tuesday. Rassie's white count went up instead of down.  His dosage had to be upped from 4 pills a day to 6 pills a day. Which means 2,000 mg a day to 3,000 mg a day. I am very thankful for hydroxyurea right now and its ability to lower Rassie's white count so that he can be home with us, his family.

I have been researching hydroxyurea. There are lots of articles out there. They do not all relate to CML so I kept searching until I found one that did. I wanted a better understanding of what this medication is doing for Rassie.   Here is an article I found on WebMD that helps to explain it in much better terms than me.

Hydroxyurea
Generic Name: Hydroxyurea                    Brand Name: Droxia, Hydrea
Hydroxyurea is available as a pill you can swallow. It is also known as hydroxycarbamide.

How It Works
Hydroxyurea keeps cancer cells from growing. It is used to treat chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML) and, rarely, chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) or acute myelogenous leukemia (AML). It is sometimes used to treat sickle cell disease or other cancer.

Why It Is Used

Hydroxyurea is used to treat CML and CLL because it works fast and does not cause many side effects.

How Well It Works
CML and CLL can cause your white blood cell count to get too high. Hydroxyurea can reduce white blood cell counts within 1 or 2 days. It can be used during pregnancy in many cases.

Side Effects
Side effects of hydroxyurea are generally mild and can include:

Low blood counts, which may increase the risk of infection and bleeding.
Nausea or vomiting.
Loss of appetite.
Diarrhea.
Hoarseness.
Fever or chills.
Mouth sores (stomatitis).
Blackening of the fingernails and toenails.
Skin ulcers (uncommon side effect).
Rashes.

What To Think About
Hydroxyurea should be used only under the supervision of a medical oncologist or hematologist. He or she will monitor your blood counts regularly.

Hydroxyurea is still an experimental treatment in children. Long-term effects of the drug on children are not yet known.

Learning about Gleevec

2009-10-04T08:23:00.000-07:00

I don't know about all of you out there, but Rassie and myself are very curious about this miracle pill called Gleevec. We want to know all there is to know about this pill that will replace chemothereapy, avoid a bone marrow transplant and keep Rassie healthy. So far, this is what I have come up with. There are several articles out there but this one does a pretty good overview of everything.

1. What is Gleevec?
Gleevec, also known as STI571, is a new drug that was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2001 for the treatment of chronic myeloid leukemia (CML), a cancer of white blood cells, and for the treatment of a rare form of stomach cancer called gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST) in 2002. It was designed in the laboratory to target an abnormal version of a normal cellular protein, present in nearly all CML patients. The abnormal protein is much more active than the normal version and is probably the cause of the disease. By blocking the abnormal protein, called BCR-ABL, Gleevec kills the leukemia cells.

2. Why is Gleevec different from most chemotherapy drugs?
Gleevec represents a new class of cancer drugs and a new way of thinking about cancer. These molecularly targeted drugs are different because they target abnormal proteins that are fundamental to the cancer itself. Most current cancer therapies lack specificity, killing both cancer and normal cells. This is one reason why many people who undergo chemotherapy experience unwanted side effects from their medications. But Gleevec and other drugs in development are designed to zero in on specific cancer-causing molecules, eliminating cancer cells while avoiding serious damage to other, non-cancerous cells. In the case of Gleevec, the drug is targeted at the bcr-abl protein in CML cells. (Gleevec also affects other messenger systems in a cell which may contribute to its toxicity.)

3. What were the results of the previous clinical trials with Gleevec?
In June 1998, the first clinical trial of Gleevec was launched. This small, initial study sought primarily to determine whether Gleevec is safe in people, not its effectiveness as a cancer drug. However, as the doctors gradually increased the dose of the drug, they noticed dramatic responses in their patients, all of whom were no longer benefitting from previous therapy.

In December 1999, Brian Druker, M.D., and his collaborators reported the preliminary results of this early study. Their data showed that once patients reached an effective daily dose of 300 mg or more, 31 out of 31 patients had their blood counts return to normal, a sign that a treatment is working. In nine of the 20 patients who were treated for five months or longer, no leukemia cells could be found, which showed that the drug was eliminating the source of the cancer. They also noted that side effects were minimal in these patients. Such dramatic results are rarely seen in such an early clinical study.

In April 2001, Druker and colleagues reported the results of a larger follow-up study of Gleevec in the New England Journal of Medicine. They reported that Gleevec restored normal blood counts in 53 out of 54 chemotherapy-resistant CML patients, a response rate rarely seen in cancer with a single agent. Fifty-one of these patients were still doing well after a year on the medicine, and most reported few side effects.

4. What is chronic myelogenous leukemia, or CML?
CML is a disease in which too many white blood cells are made in the bone marrow. The bone marrow is the spongy tissue inside the large bones in the body. The bone marrow makes red blood cells (which carry oxygen and other materials to all tissues of the body), white blood cells (which fight infection), and platelets (which make the blood clot).

Normally, bone marrow cells called blasts mature into several different types of blood cells that have specific jobs in the body. CML affects the blasts that develop into multiple cell types in the bone marrow, including the white blood cells (granulocytes). The white blood cells do not mature normally and become too numerous. Immature white blood cells are then found in the blood and the bone marrow. Most people with CML have an abnormal chromosome, known as the Philadelphia chromosome, in which segments of chromosomes 9 and 22 are fused together to create the abnormal protein at the root of CML.

CML is diagnosed in about 4,500 Americans each year, usually people who are middle-aged or older, although the cancer also can occur in children. In the first stages of CML, most people don't have symptoms and the disease progresses slowly.

Treatment with interferon alfa may produce partial or complete remissions in chronic phase CML, restoring normal blood counts in up to 70 percent of patients. Complete cytogenetic responses (disappearance of cancer cells) have been reported in up to 20 percent of patients with a delay of disease progression and prolongation of survival. Bone marrow transplantation in the chronic phase is the only treatment known to cure CML. However, many patients are not young or healthy enough to tolerate a transplantation or don't have a suitable marrow donor, and the procedure can cause serious side effects or death.

5. Is it possible to target abnormal proteins in other tumors with molecular-targeting drugs?
Yes, provided that the target is correctly chosen. It is important to note that Gleevec builds on an observation that was first made in 1960. Scientists then had just learned how to isolate and study human chromosomes, and they noticed that CML patients often had an unusually small chromosome that is not found in other people. They named it the Philadelphia chromosome, after the city in which the research was conducted. This set in motion decades of work to determine its cause, which was eventually found to be a genetic mistake in which segments of chromosomes 9 and 22 stick together to form the Philadelphia chromosome. The bcr-abl gene is located at the place where chromosome 9 and 22 are fused together.

With the emergence of gene cloning technologies in the late 1980s, scientists later isolated the bcr-abl gene and characterized its aberrant, cancer-causing protein. By the early 1990s, scientists at CIBA-Geigy, later Novartis Pharmaceuticals, were able to use this well-defined target to create Gleevec, designing it to shut off the BCR-ABL protein in people with CML.

Given the success of Gleevec and the recent explosion of powerful molecular technology now available in cancer research, scientists are searching intensively to discover the correct targets in other cancers. At NCI, for example, several initiatives are under way to accelerate the discovery process. These include: Cancer Genome Anatomy Project; Director's Challenge: Toward a Molecular Classification of Cancer; the Molecular Targets Initiative; and Molecular Target Laboratories.

6. Does the approval of Gleevec mean that scientists now will stop studying the drug after only a few clinical trials?
No. Though the results of the first clinical trials have been dramatic, many research questions remain to be answered. These include:

How long does Gleevec control CML?
Does Gleevec actually cure patients of CML? Or, does the drug delay the onset of more advanced forms of the cancer? If so, how long does Gleevec keep CML in check?
Can the effectiveness of Gleevec be enhanced in combination with other drugs?
Why does Gleevec not help all people with CML?

Because Gleevec is a molecularly targeted drug, it will only be effective in cancers in which a target protein is present and involved in causing the tumor. In addition to BCR-ABL, Gleevec may also target the cellular proteins c-kit and platelet-derived growth factor receptor (PDGFR). Several clinical trials with Gleevec are already under way to find other tumors that might respond to Gleevec. Currently, these tumors are: gastrointestinal stromal tumor (GIST), glioma, and soft tissue sarcoma.

7. Where can I find out more about clinical trials with Gleevec?
There are several options. By telephone, contact the NCI's Cancer Information Service at 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237); deaf and hard of hearing callers with TTY equipment may call 1-800-332-8615. Or, on the Internet, visit the Clinical Trials section of the NCI's Web site. It provides a comprehensive list of clinical trials now under way to study Gleevec. The Web site address is: http://www.cancer.gov/clinicaltrials/search. The site also contains helpful background information on Gleevec.

A pharmacy you CAN'T rely on

2009-10-03T11:15:00.000-07:00

Everything is good here. Rassie is feeling great. He helped weed eat the yard yesterday. He wanted to cook out steaks but we couldn't get the grill lit. We think the ignition switch is broken.

Anyways, on to the Pharmacy! Do NOT use Wal-Mart pharmacy if you have a really important prescription. I can understand waiting a few days on an antibiotic or acid control or even have to start over with birth control. Something little like that. But when you need a script to help keep your white count down so that you don't end up back in the hospital, its not something to play around with.

Rassie got out of the hospital on Tuesday. Dr. R had prescribed a 30 day supply of hydroxyurea. Wal-Mart pharmacy claimed they only had a 3 day supply but their shipment would be in the next day. So Rassie took the partial. We called back Wednesday. No shipment yet. When we stopped by Thursday they told us they still had not gotten anymore in their shipment. But by some miracle they could give Rassie another 3 day supply. We called Friday and the lady said it still didn't come in but would for sure be here Monday. If Rassie wanted to come in and get another 3 day partial just to feel safe he could! That would mean 9 days worth of pills when they initially claimed they only had a 3 day supply!!! But we decided we would pick it up today, Saturday, because his supply will run out Sunday and it would put Rassie's mind at ease to have 3 more days worth. We get there and they told us that they didn't have any and Rassie would have to wait until Monday. Then the pharmacist said, "Oh, we did get the shipment in. I can fill the complete prescription, I just wanted to wait until Monday because we are so busy". I was not happy. Nevertheless, she fill the script and we are good to go for the month. We will not be using the Wal-Mart pharmacy for Rassie's prescriptions anymore.

Just a quick Update

2009-10-02T18:50:00.000-07:00

It's Friday. Everything is going good. Rassie is feeling just fine. That seems to be the question on everyone's mind. I just want to let everyone know that Rassie never felt bad. He had some swelling and some bruising and went to the doctor as a precuation. We never thought that the blood work would come back with the diagnosis of leukemia.

Rassie's white count is down to 150,000 today. That means the higher dosage is doing its job.

The only complaint we have had is about the Wal-Mart pharmacy. This will be last time we try to get his prescription of hydroxyurea filled there. They are supposed to give him a 1 month supply but apparently they haven't gotten any in their shipments. Therefore, they've only been giving him a 3 day supply at a time. Which in my opinion is dumb. It also means that they have more than what they are handing out. If they give you a 3 day supply because that is all they have and you go back the next day to get the rest but it didn't come on their shipment how are they going to give you another 3 day supply! I guess we should both just be thankful and not complain. But we know he needs this medication and Wal-Mart pharmacy seems to be playing around. Talk about irritating!

Happy Thursday

2009-10-02T18:45:00.000-07:00

Thursday we spent the day enjoying time together. After taking Lane to his well baby we decided to take Scarlett to the park. Scarlett and Daddy had a blast playing together!

Finding a Donor

2009-10-02T18:35:00.000-07:00

Finding a bone marrow donor is a simple yet difficult task. They prefer a sibling match over a non related relative match. Mother and Father will NOT be a match because you get one chromosome from each parent so they will not have both chromosomes needed.

To find out if you are a match, all that is need is a sample of your blood.

To donate if you are a match, you are hooked up to an IV that is placed on the left or right side on the front of your shoulder area. They give you a medication that will increas your white blood cell count. They will monitor your white count as it rises and when it gets to the number they are looking for they will take the white blood cells from you.

The difficult part is finding a donor that matches.

A Set Back

2009-10-02T18:31:00.000-07:00

A set back, or so we thought. Rassie's labs came back on Tuesday and his white count had gone up from 190,000 to 240,000. They were supposed to go down. We were so worried and wanted to know why the medications were not working. Would we have to speed up treatment? There were so many questions and the doctor took forever coming by.

Dr. R finally showed up about 3:30 and set our minds at ease. Rassie would still get to go home. Dr. R said that the bone marrow had just let out more of the 'bad cells' and all that meant was we needed to up his dosage of hydroxyurea. He was to come back once a week for labs to make sure it was doing the job.

They went over everything with us. Said Rassie would do labs once a week and they they would get us a clinic appointment set up with Dr. O (I think this is the Fellow). From the clinic appointment we would get the bone marrow biopsy set up and talk about getting Rassie on the Gleevac.

We were all so happy to be bringing Rassie home!!! We celebrated with dinner out with Mexican food.

Good News Monday 9/28/2009

2009-10-02T18:27:00.000-07:00

On Monday, our day played out pretty much the same. The kids and I made it to the hospital to see Rassie in the morning. We took him ham, egg and cheese sandwiches for breakfast. Took the kids home for nap and let his parent's stay there and watch them while I went back to the hospital.

Dr. H came by close to 4. He had GREAT news. Rassie's white count was down to 190,000 and he said he would most likely get to come home the next day, Tuesday. What a relief. Dr. H also went over the options of the pill Gleevec and the bone marrow transplant again. Then he told Rassie that they would want to do a bone marrow biopsy to further study the leukemia cells. He told Rassie that he could do this before he was discharged from the hospital or on an out patient basis at the clinic. Rassie opted for the out patient procedure. He still needed to let it sink in a little.

We both slept a little easier that night knowing that he would probably get to come home the next day.

Sunday Sunday

2009-10-02T18:23:00.000-07:00

I didn't make it to the hospital to see Rassie as early on Sunday. Scarlett slept in until 8 and then we still had to get showers and swing by McDonalds to grab daddy breakfast. Rassie wasn't too hot on the hospital food. We made it to the hospital by 10. We were slow getting started that morning. I missed the Fellow (doctor). Rassie's parents showed up about 20-30 minutes after me. We set around talking and letting Scarlett play with daddy. Rassie spoiled Scarlett with icecream and cookies while she was there, but that's ok. I kept waiting for Dr. H to come by on his rounds. After waiting for what seemed like forever he never came and we all went back to the house about 1 so that I could get the kids down for nap.

Rassie and I were both curious about his white count and how low they wanted it before they would let him come home. The Dr. had said 2-3 days in the hospital but the nurses would look at the chart and say it would be a while before Rassie would get to go home. We just wanted answers. Before I made it back to the hospital Dr. H did come by. He told Rassie that he wanted the count to come down to around 110,000 before sending him home and that would probably take 1-2 more days. That was good news and we were excited that the stay would not be much longer.

Later that night I went home to see the kids and play with them for a bit before getting them in bed. Then I went back and sat with Rassie until about midnight. He wasn't tired that night and wanted the company. I didn't mind.

Meeting the Oncologist 9/26/2009

2009-10-02T18:14:00.000-07:00

I woke up bright and early Saturday morning so that I could get myself and a few things for Rassie ready. Then I headed up to Scott & White to see Rassie and catch the oncologist. I did not want to miss meeting the doctor when he did his rounds. We waited and waitied. They started their rounds on the other side of the floor and Rassie's room was on the tail end and one of the last to be seen. While we were waiting, Rassie's brother Jerry and his wife Hayley came to visit and keep us company for a while.

Finally, about 12:30 Dr. H (the staff doctor), Dr. R (the resident) and a Fellow (some type of doctor) came in. Dr. H was wonderful. He explained everything in great detail in a language that we could actually understand. He was not just an in and out doctor and that really meant alot. Dr. H told us that Rassie's white blood cell had started out at 358,000 on Friday when they had done his labs. The normal range for white count is 4,000 to about 10,000. Dr. H explained that the hydroxyurea and allopurinol that Rassie had been put on was to help lower his white count and to get rid of the dead cells. So far they were doing their job. Rassie's white count had come down to 238,000.

Then Dr. H went over treatment options. There are two different ones they are considering for Rassie.
1) Gleevec - A pill that Rassie would take on a daily basis.
2) Bone Marrow Transplant

Although, with a bone marrow transplant, the leukemia could be cured and gone for good, it is a risky option. Gleevec would not be so risky.

A bone marrow transplant would mean extensive chemotherapy to kill off and destroy all the white counts, finding a donor that matched, the transplant itself and then immunosuppression if the bone marrow started attacking the new body it's in. I would be a long, hard process. The pill, Gleevec, which a chemical will replace chemotherapy treatments. You take it on a daily basis and are able to live your life as usual with no restrictions. I specifically asked Dr. H to make sure of the side effects Gleevec would have on Rassie and would it affect what he would be able to do. Dr. H responded with "why shouldd it?" . This pill only has minor side effects reported. Headaches, nausea, rash, little things like this. Other than that Rassie should feel no different than he ever has and will be able to continue with his activities and job regardless of how strenuous.

Dr. H had said they would probably keep him 2 to 3 more days until they could get his white count down a little more and then they would see him on an out patient basis at the clinic.

Once Dr. H left, a lady from admissions came in to go over paperwork with us. Then she told us how she prayed over the patient files for all of the patients that she sees. It was words from her prayer that gave us the inspiration to share our story. "Share your story to spread His Glory". And with that we agreed we would start a blog.

After that news, I went to pick up Scarlett at mom's and came back to the hospital. Scarlett was happy to see her daddy and daddy was happy to see both of his babies. Rassie's parents came into town and met us at the hospital about 4:30. We talked Rassie into getting out of the room and getting his mind off of things. We went down to the Healing Garden outside. It was nice but the mosquitos were awful so we moved things inside to the huge lobby. Rassie took Scarlett walking all around. She met some old men and gave them high fives. Rassie was having a good time too. Then we went back to his room and visited until about 7ish. I had to go home and get the kids fed and in bed. Scarlett was out before we made it home. She was exhausted from everything. Lane took a little longer to get to sleep but I finally headed back to the hospital with a grilled cheese in hand for Rassie. Rassie got hooked up for a blood transfusion before I made it back. His hemoglobin was pretty low, only at a 7. Dr. R felt it was safer to go ahead and get a transfusion then wait it out at that number. They ended up giving him 2 units of blood and it only brought his count up to an 8.8. I stayed with Rassie until about 11 p.m. and then I went home to get some rest.

The Initial Diagnosis 9/25/2009

2009-10-01T19:47:00.000-07:00

On the morning of Friday, September 25, 2009, Rassie was seen at the Scott & White Clinic for a routine check up because we had some concerns with a few things. In the past few months Rassie had noticed that the left side of his stomach was tight and had a hard spot. It also had become bruised. The bruise had gone away previously but had returned within the past few weeks. Rassie's feet had also started swelling, some days it was pretty bad. He started bruising more easily too. We didn't think anything of that because of his strenuous job.

That morning, Rassie saw Dr. R. (a resident) at the clinic. Dr. R. was concered about the hard spot on the left side of his stomach. She ordered immediate labwork and set up a ct scan for 2:30 that same afternoon. After doing labs Rassie came home for lunch. At 2 p.m. he was getting ready to head back for his ct scan when my cell phone rang. It was Dr. R. She explained that Rassie's white blood count was really high, too high to be just an infection. She wanted him to skip the ct scan that had been ordered and go straight to the ER to be admitted.

So I sent him on his way and told him I would be there just as soon as I could get the kids taken care of. Matt and Ashley came over to watch them until Mom could get here. I got the diaper bags ready while I waited. They were here in about 20-30 minutes. I called Rassie and told him I was on my way. It took all of 10 minutes to get to the ER but I was too late. Dr. R had already given Rassie the diagnosis. I felt just awful that she would break the news to him while he was there alone. She then told me what was going on. Rassie has Leukemia. CML - Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia to be exact. The good news was that it is chronic and not acute. This means that it is slow moving instead of fast paced. Dr. R could not really tell us much more until we talked to the oncologist. She left the room and we did our hugging and crying for a few minutes. Then we were interrupted. The ER went ahead and did a ct scan and confirmed that Rassie's spleen was enlarged from working over time. The bone marrow was putting out excess white blood cells and the spleen was trying to take care of them all.

They were done with tests for the time being and all we were waiting on then was a room on the oncology floor so that Rassie could be moved into it. I ran home to meet my mom and get the kids sent home with her. Rassie called and said they had a room that they were getting ready for him so I made my way back to the hospital. Room NT 806. I beat Rassie to the room. Dr. R came in and she explained to me again what type of leukemia Rassie had so that I could write it down. Finally transportation brought Rassie up. Dr. R said that Rassie would be put on a saline drip for hydration and two different oral medications to help lower his white blood count. Hydroxyurea and Allopurinol. She said we would meet with Dr. H, the oncologist, in the morning to discuss treatment options.

Rassie's brother came down with his wife and son to visit that night. They ordered him pizza and kept him entertained for a while. I stayed until about 11 or so and then went hom to get some sleep. That first night was the hardest. There were still so many unanswered questions and the main question of "why Rassie?" "why our family?" These are questions that we still do not have the answer to and probably never will.