New Priority

So I have a new priority: the blood clot. ...then the cancer.

I just got back from the doctor's office. I went upstairs and into the office where I would get my shot, but they had not yet received the Pro-Time (Prothrombin Time) test results from the Quest clinic downstairs. So they asked me to run downstairs to get it. Unfortunately, I could not have it. I guess they have to bring it up themselves. So I went back upstairs and waited. It wasn't long. Kathleen looked at my results (1.27) and told me that the meds weren't therapeutic at this point. I asked her "So they are basically recreational?!" WTF? Haha! She laughed. My results should be in the 2.0 to 3.0 range. This means do the same thing tomorrow that I did today: Coumadin tonight (10 mg) and another Lovenox shot tomorrow afternoon. Also a Pro-Time test in the morning (around 11 am).

(Because I have this blood clot, my doctor is trying to thin my blood so that the blood clot doesn't get any bigger and so that I don't get any more blood clots. That's all we can do. My body should be able to make the blood clot go away by itself [I hope so!]. So in order to get the blood thinner, I take Warfarin Sodium [generic for Coumadin] : 10 milligrams daily [I take it at the very same time every day 8:00 pm] but because it takes Coumadin a couple of days to get in the system and make a difference, I am also getting a shot of Lovenox everyday [it takes effect immediately]. It's pretty tricky to get the blood to the right viscosity. [I am sure that is not the right word but it works for me] You want the blood thin enough to reduce the likelihood of clotting [in my case], but you don't want it so thin so as to put you at risk for bleeding to death just because you have a cut on your finger, for example. So in addition to taking these drugs to make the blood thinner, you have to have a Pro-Time test regularly so the doctor (or nurse practitioner) can evaluate the test results and adjust your meds accordingly.)

In an attempt to butter-up the nurses, I wore my "I Love My Oncology Nurses...even when they show up with needles" shirt. They laughed. They said "We really like your shirt!" And then Kathleen said "Well, we like what's IN the shirt, too." :-)

So I stuck out my chest as I walked away.