Thursday, July 22, 2010

22/7/10 Day 254. 2 weeks off chemo...Yay.. But the steroids knocked him down instead..


The household was calm and happy after a super exciting weekend and we were pleased and excited about 2 weeks off chemo. But the short burst of steroids which he had been taking crept up and stuck it's boots in.. Bigtime...

Back pain..... Unbelievable back pain........
Home early on Monday, and the pains came on. A terrible nights sleep. Awake most of the night rolling around trying to get comfortable. Tuesday was OK, a call to Royal Childrens for an opinion, but that night it came on again and far, far worse. Like an stooped over old man with a smashed up back... And no painkillers because they can mask infections and any temperatures....
During the night he barely slept and was in fear of losing feeling in his legs, and despite the pain, he would insist that I help him out of bed and walk him up the hallway and back. This happened at 12.30am and every hour after that. I have not ever ever seen such toughness...... He could have stayed in bed and hoped for the best. But this is Owen... Tough little Bugger....
He saw Dr Waters and he said that Steroids are great for Leukeamia but have the worst side effects. Mood swings, depression, pain, weight gain. (Yep, O has had the lot) This the tough end of the game....
As a parent, this cuts into your heart. And the worry that things are turning pear shaped when you find out his side effects aren't common.. I guess it will all make sense eventually.....
But slowly, he is improving... We all hope that he will be back to school tomorrow (Friday).
I wanted to tell you about all the wonderful football (All codes, especially Collingwood) and Challenge stuff but we were kinda distracted over the last few days, as the household was knocked down as well this week .... Back soon, with something uplifting and positive.......

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