Last week I went for my fourth hyperthermia treatment. Dr Bull continues to be that caring, compassionate oncologist that I am seeking. I can trust Theresa completely with the hyperthermia treatment. They even roll me down in my wheelchair to the entrance of Memorial Hermann Hospital and wait for my transportation (please ignore my picture - I still was full of fluid after the treatment). Dr. Bull leaves me with two words to remember (orange oppossum) to test my recall in recovering from the drugs...just the humor! I'll go for my fifth treatment in mid-February. As usual, I spent this week recovering. I've also added the interferon shot which is supposed to put my immune system on alert so aside from feeling tired, the nausea and diarhea, I had a day or two feeling like I have the flu. The days and within a day are variable so I've been sticking close to home. I still do my energy healing work with Joanna Lester and body talk with Debra Shorrock and those efforts help.
Reading becomes my mainstay with recovery. This week I enjoyed Oracle Bones, A Journey Through Time in China by Peter Hessler. Hessler, an American, makes his life in China initially teaching English to rural students and then as a writer for the New Yorker. In this enthographic book he gives snapshots of historical artifacts and interviews those involved in their uncovery. He also follows the lives of several of his students (their migration to urban centers) and a friend in Beijing (a Uighur who migrates to U.S.). All give a sense of contemporary life and some trends in China. I realize that my attraction to "travel writing" is tied to my beginning roots as a social scientist and the study of people and place...I just hadn't recognized the connection. I'm following along on Hessler's recommendations for other books and have another one coming. I also started Spark - The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain by John Ratey, MD, as recommended by Pam Gardiner. I believe exercise is so important to my healing journey, this book helps build upon that. It's just frustrating with my tiredness and digestion as to how to ease in and out of a routine. Before I left for treatment last time, I could feel the benefits of the cardio and getting the blood flowing....I just didn't make much progress this last week. Oh well, awareness and learning!
Featured Friend(s) - Justine (my mother) and Janice (my sister). 
I admire my mother for her humor and how she keeps life on the up and up. She's had her health issues and now I understand more about the challenge to maintain a positive attitude and be a continuous problem solver. My mom is a great social person whereas, I can tend to take after my father's introversion. I learn a lot from seeing how she takes the initiative to keep in touch with her friends and family and that it can be done (particularly in long distance) with just the phone. My sister, Janice, who is 5 years younger, values our family, family home and history. She's the one who is mother to all the dogs we have and tracks the "boys" (five grandsons) at the weekend lake outings. Thanks to my mom and my sister for making our family one with "glue"! (Of course, I haven't gotten to writing about my brother Tom and wife Bonnie yet and they are all in this as well!)
I admire my mother for her humor and how she keeps life on the up and up. She's had her health issues and now I understand more about the challenge to maintain a positive attitude and be a continuous problem solver. My mom is a great social person whereas, I can tend to take after my father's introversion. I learn a lot from seeing how she takes the initiative to keep in touch with her friends and family and that it can be done (particularly in long distance) with just the phone. My sister, Janice, who is 5 years younger, values our family, family home and history. She's the one who is mother to all the dogs we have and tracks the "boys" (five grandsons) at the weekend lake outings. Thanks to my mom and my sister for making our family one with "glue"! (Of course, I haven't gotten to writing about my brother Tom and wife Bonnie yet and they are all in this as well!)
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