Chapter 24 - The waiting is over

Trying out the new walking boots - very comfy!

It's now over a month since I went home for four days at Christmas and since then I have become de-institutionalised, if there is such a process. In other words, in the same way as I became institutionalised into hospital life for the three three months before Christmas, four weeks of restful recuperation, peace, quiet, exercise, good food and the company of my family has brought normality and increasingly good health back into my life.

Sunny skies and soggy walks - great for the soul.

On the way up...
But all the time, the shadow of my unfinished business at Southampton General has been lurking over my shoulder: several visits to the Prof's outpatients clinic and the odd blood letting at RHCH with follow-up phone calls to the Lymphoma nurses have seen my poor old depleted platelets gradually rise from 20, to 22, to 24 and then a giant leap to 51 and onward to 79. The magic figure to restart the (final round of) chemo is 75, so the latest visit to outpatients has ended in readmission onto the familiar D3 where I was greeted by hugs and high fives; what a lovely lot these people are. What a shame I associate them with being ill.

There's something satisfying about logging!

My four weeks at home have not been wasted. I am convinced that I have recovered more quickly in the comfort of my own home than I ever could have done here in hospital; I have walked two to three miles a day, done odd jobs around the house (including my ambition, to chain saw and split a load of firewood), caught up with a lot of recorded TV programmes, eaten like a lord and slept like a baby. Yes, I've had a cold - but who hasn't this winter?

...and then back down
So coming back into hospital where, in less than two hours I have had my blood pressure, SATS and temperature taken twice, my neighbours have had copious noisy visitors and I have been forced to listen to Eastenders and smell the hospital food close-up, would have been a real shock to the system if I wasn't steeling myself to slip back into the routine.

Timing could have been better - this week I shall miss the first read-through of Third Week in August, the summer outdoor production at Cheriton, and on Friday I shall have to forego the chance to go to the Curtain Call Awards (*ahem* - did I mention that I was nominated for a gong?).

And then there's the treatment itself: this is the R-IVAC regime, the hallucinatory, weird, nightmare-inducing gaga juice. Not to mention its nausea-making quality and the effect it has on my immune system, including those precious platelets I have been nurturing and incubating for the past month. The upside is that the Prof has decided to give me an 80% dosage this time, in the interests of a speedier recovery afterwards. The other upside is that it's the LAST CYCLE.

My girls (well, three of them): L to R Piggy, Rosie, Sally

Winter drawers on
The weather over the past month of January has been, for the most part, pretty good - cold but sunny, necessitating several layers of warm clothing, scarves, hats and gloves outdoors and roaring log fires and hot water bottles indoors. Today, before my return to Southampton, I took Rosie for a long walk and admired the snowdrops and catkins which are heralding the spring; but the forecast for Wednesday onward is for sleet and snow - the tail end of the storm which is currently affecting the east coast of North America.

Although this is unlikely to affect me in this hothouse it might just prevent Sally getting to me later in the week so I am hoping for her sake - and Lizzie's and Zoe's too, both of whom have to drive some distances for work - that we don't get hit too badly. I only have enough undies to last a week.

The fundraiser goes from strength to strength
The way the donations to the Lymphoma Association fundraiser has kept on coming is nothing short of staggering. The last few days have seen some £1,400 + Gift Aid added to the pot - from the combined efforts of the staff, friends and customers at the Flower Pots, our local. The total to date is now £7,820 - with Gift Aid it's over £9k! Thank you, all those who helped to raise this extraordinary sum and spread the word; wouldn't it be great to get to £10k, double the original target?

So, here we go on the last rollercoaster ride... roll on three weeks' time.

A reminder that spring is nearly here!